An amusing, entertaining and cheesy little B-movie from exploitation king Roger Corman. All factors are present and correct for this typical alien invasion flick, from the violence to the bad special effects to the glamour content. Dispensing with any slow-paced moralising about humans destroying the planet, instead this film concentrates on a plot of alien possession, murder, and then take-over. The cheapness of the movie is clear, but doesn't detract from the inherent fun to be had from the simple premise.
This film isn't remotely plausible, but don't let that put you off from watching. Where else can you see flying bat-creatures capable of possessing human beings? What if I were to say these creatures are poorly-animated and unconvincing? On top of that, another major plus is that the killer alien RESEMBLES A GIANT CARROT! That's right, it hides in a warm cave for most of the film's running time, only to emerge as a hulking vegetable with rubbery, crab-like pincers! The alien is only destroyed when a scientist sacrifices himself and shoves a blowtorch into its eye, unleashing a steady flow of strawberry jam from the empty socket!
The acting is pretty wooden and non-existent, with one notable exception: a winning performance from Lee Van Cleef, who would later go on to star in numerous westerns. Cleef is exceptional as a multi-dimensional scientist, torn between his human instinct for survival and his willingness to help an alien invader conquer the world! His dilemma and eventual sacrifice is actually quite moving. On top of this, a high percentage of the cast die violently; all the women are sacrificed or murdered, and Corman regular Dick Miller appears as a comic-relief soldier. INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS is an obvious influence, but this doesn't stop IT CONQUERED THE WORLD throwing in its own ideas as well as a few snatches of fearful paranoia. Not bad at all; apart from the monster that is!
This film isn't remotely plausible, but don't let that put you off from watching. Where else can you see flying bat-creatures capable of possessing human beings? What if I were to say these creatures are poorly-animated and unconvincing? On top of that, another major plus is that the killer alien RESEMBLES A GIANT CARROT! That's right, it hides in a warm cave for most of the film's running time, only to emerge as a hulking vegetable with rubbery, crab-like pincers! The alien is only destroyed when a scientist sacrifices himself and shoves a blowtorch into its eye, unleashing a steady flow of strawberry jam from the empty socket!
The acting is pretty wooden and non-existent, with one notable exception: a winning performance from Lee Van Cleef, who would later go on to star in numerous westerns. Cleef is exceptional as a multi-dimensional scientist, torn between his human instinct for survival and his willingness to help an alien invader conquer the world! His dilemma and eventual sacrifice is actually quite moving. On top of this, a high percentage of the cast die violently; all the women are sacrificed or murdered, and Corman regular Dick Miller appears as a comic-relief soldier. INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS is an obvious influence, but this doesn't stop IT CONQUERED THE WORLD throwing in its own ideas as well as a few snatches of fearful paranoia. Not bad at all; apart from the monster that is!