John Carpenter’s Most Political and Timely Film Returns to Cinemas

Many years ago, in comics and magazines, there were advertisements selling products proclaimed to be miraculous and that over time became legendary: from the famous sea monkeys to potions that made muscles grow, not to mention the ever-present “X-ray” glasses, which promised to reveal the naked bodies of the people in front of the wearer.
It was probably (also) to these glasses that John Carpenter drew inspiration for his most explicitly political film, which remains strikingly current today, and which Filmclub Distribuzione with Minerva Pictures and Rarovideo Channel are bringing back to theaters in an unmissable 4K restoration on October 12, 13, and 14 coming soon.
We are talking, of course, about They Live, released in cinemas in 1988 with former wrestling champion “Rowdy” Roddy Piper alongside Keith David. A blend of science fiction, horror, action, dystopia and political satire, They Live tells a story as simple as it is powerful and metaphorical: that of John Nada, an unemployed worker who, thanks (indeed) to a pair of enigmatic sunglasses, discovers that the world is governed by an alien ruling class capable of manipulating reality through the media, advertising and consumerism. Wearing those glasses, John is able to see what lies behind the surface of appearances: aliens disguised as humans, certainly, but also subliminal imperatives (“OBEY”, “CONSUME”, “MARRY AND REPRODUCE” and “NO INDEPENDENT THOUGHT”), hidden behind the patina of everyday life in such a way as to reduce everyone to a form of unconscious slavery.
On this masterpiece, which invites us to look beyond the surface of images, challenging the languages of power, advertising and the media, we will return soon, because it deserves it.
In the meantime, here is the new trailer for They Live announcing its arrival in our cinemas.