John Carpenter's They Live Impacted My Thinking Forever!
I forget how I heard about this movie but, I’m glad I did. This is one of those life-changing films. You know, the kind that put such a spin on something that it changes the way you think forever? Movies like A Clockwork Orange, Terminator, and The Matrix are a few I can think of. They Live certainly made an impact on my thinking and views of the world. You pair this with current studies in marketing and you see things differently. You can read more about this movie on IMDB here. Let’s jump in.
Think NES' Bart VS The Space Mutants
If you’ve ever played an awesome Nintendo game by the name of Bart VS The Space Mutants, then you have an idea of what this movie is like. A group has discovered an ongoing alien scheme taking place on Earth. Nobly, the group is actively working to make mankind aware and expose the plot. The group develops glasses that allow people to see the aliens through the façade for what they are. You put on the spectacles and the aliens no longer look like humans, but aliens.
They Live Makes a Big Political Statment
This movie is political. John Carpenter himself even boldly said this was the case. According to him, it is about “hyper-capitalism” that was issued during the Regan administration. I don’t know enough to argue politics and certainly don’t care to but, a political statement agenda is clear in this movie. Don’t take my word for it – hear John say this himself here. All too often people avoid answering direct questions about statements, but not in this case. John Carpenter also did The Thing, another make-you-think kind of film. Of course, he is probably most well-known for Halloween. Carpenter must be an interesting guy to talk to. I would love to sit down on a porch somewhere and just talk to him.
Manipulation is All Around Us!
Another very clear idea in this movie is the manipulation of the masses. Regardless of where you stand, I think we can all agree that this is taking place every day. We are told what to buy, what to wear, what we need to look like if we are rich, if we are poor, where we need to live, what we need to watch, what we need to listen to, and the list goes on. If you don’t believe me, ride down any major road and read billboards. Even easier – log in to our social media accounts and look at the ads. I remember hating commercials on TV and loving the fact that you could stream media without them. Somehow though, they have made their way back in again. If you think about this, one could argue that we are puppets. How many choices do we make for ourselves anymore?
I didn’t mention this part earlier but, this will help explain how manipulation is illustrated in this movie. Roddy Piper’s character looks at a billboard with a lady relaxing on a beach. He puts the glasses on and looks at the same billboard. Now, it no longer has a picture and simply says “Stop Thinking, Spend Money” for instance. They Live was a game-changer for me, period. I have forever changed how I look at advertising. I have already been aware of the manipulation happening around me but, this took my alertness to another level. I so impressed by this film that I contacted a friend of mine who is a marketing professor. I recommended that he watch this movie and use it for class projects. For once, the movie choice would be excellent for one of those film analysis assignments.
TikTok, A Grand Manipulator of Today
Recently, I heard that universities are banning the TikTok platform on their campuses. When I investigated this, I read something interesting that I had previously heard. The parent company of TikTok is Chinese. TikTok in China has limited amounts of time this app can be used (it is very addictive) and is also controlled. Content in China is encouraging, patriotic, etc. In America, TikTok is all about pranks, funny videos, softcore porn, and altogether mind-numbing garbage. Just log in and see. Read this information for yourself in an article from University Business by Micah Ward here. I mention this only to reinforce the idea that we are all being manipulated constantly.
They Live is a Great Marketing Analysis Project for Class
It’s hard to talk about They Live and not talk about the statement it makes. Regardless of the politics, this movie is cool, fun, and easy to watch. The overall story, action, and production are entertaining and well done. Roddy Piper plays the lead role. Any fans of the old-school awesome WWF can dig this fact, I’m sure. There is a well-known line in this movie too from Piper. He says that he’s “…kicking a$* and chewing bubble gum”, I think. They Live even features a fight scene with Roddy Piper and another character. It is a drawn-out fight too. I imagine this was easy for Piper, given his background in professional wrestling.