Invasion, U.S.A. (1952)

***SPOILERS*** This neurotic war crazy movie starts peacefully enough with a number of people from all walks of life hanging out at a local watering hole to freshen up with a few drinks and shoot the breeze about local politics in the city. There's news reporter Vince Potter, Gerald Mohr, who drops in doing his latest thing asking those at the bar such meaningless questions about what they think of the draft as well as if the zoot suite or ladies bloomers will ever come back in fashion. There's also this mysterious Mr. Ohman, Dan O'Herlihy, who seems to be fascinated in watching the wine in his glass spinning around as he shakes it. It's then that the preferable you know what hits the fan with a news bulletin that we, the US, are under attack by an unknown enemy that's launching a massive air and sea assault from across the Bering Strait's at the US territory, it wasn't a state yet, of Alaska!This sneak attack by what is obviously the USSR, that's never once mentioned in the film, quickly turns into a full fledged invasion of the United States with the enemy also using nuclear weapons, or weapons of mass destruction, in the process. As those in the bar watch and listen in horror to the TV news it finally sinks in that because of the cut backs of military spending by the US Congress the US Military is now in deep sh*t in not being able to prevent this invasion and occupation of the US from happening! Among the tactics and tricks that their enemy uses to gain the upper hand is having it's military, by taking night course in collage, speak English and even worse, a clear violation of the 1929 Geneva Accords on the conducting of war-fear, wearing US Army & Marine military uniforms.We soon see as they, the nameless enemy, advance deep into the US heartland what an uncouth and unfeeling, especially towards the weaker sex, these enemy troops really are. Drunk and disorderly they don't for a moment represent the clean cut milk drinking and boy scout US GI's and Marines that they are impersonating. In what seems like a nut cracking strategy, coming together from west to east, the enemy forces storm the capital, Washington D.C, massacring the entire US Congress, the President and his cabinet escaped by air, and now move on to the "Big Apple" New York City in its final push to make the US a Peoples Republic like nation or dictatorship. It's just then when everything seems lost we the audience and those in the movie get the surprise of theirs and ours lives!***SPOILERS*** Very probably the best example of Cold War hysterics to come out of Hollywood in the 1950's. With the exception of not identifying, very much due to both diplomatic as well as political pressures, who's doing the invading it tells on film what we back then feared most and on top of all that in a worse case scenario ending that must have caused a number of heart attacks and fainting spells to those watching in the audience. It was the final few minutes that was the right medication that those watching the movie needed to clam them down and bring the back to reality. That's if they lasted long enough by still being conscious and alert to watch it!

Not a bad movie at all. Hypnotist Dan O'Herlihy foresees the future. Recently, the Russians paratroops in deception uniforms in the movie is almost exactly what they did in Crimea. I only wish Noel Neill was the love interest and had a bigger role in the movie, but Peggie Castle was credible. Gerald Mohr was decent as the newsman but not one of his better roles. I thought O'Herlihy stole the show and if he had a bigger role, this would have been a better production. This is a good description of real concerns of the air raid drills, a-bombs, and world destruction that the Soviets posed at the time. Communism was as deadly then as it is today. But people will wake up and see the destruction that this movie and others warn us of. It does not take much, remember, it only took 2 punks to shut down Boston. As, Mr. Ohman said, it takes focus. Something lacking today, but thanks to movies like this, we can remember what we need to be free. As for the communist "scare" in the 50's it was very real. They ranted of invading the US, but it took Ronald Reagan to make them "tear down this wall" and that's exactly what they did.

A small diverse group of strangers lounge in a New York cocktail bar . Suddenly there's a newsflash and reports come in that a foreign power has captured key installations in Alaska and the whole of America is now threatened with invasion You want to make a small subtle point ? Well just get a sledgehammer to crack a nut and this propaganda film is it . The opening sequence is set in a cocktail bar and a middle class businessman complains about having to pay the top rate of tax and if this atrocious behaviour by the government wasn't bad enough they also feel the need to interfere in other aspects of the free market . Wow next thing you know they'll be banning smoking in bars or perhaps even banning the sale of alcohol itself . Taking taxes off people is rather small fry compared to what American federal government has done in the past or indeed the future when this film was made . Perhaps this character might like to live under a regime where people don't tax simply because they don't get paid . Oh hold on here's a newsflash " Be careful what you wish for because you might just get it comrade " I've seen a few Christian propaganda films recently that were all universally dreadful they made me forget there was a time when American studios were constantly spewing out propaganda like this one . Often they were entertaining enough to disguise the danger of communist invasion by producing science fiction films where the aliens were closet reds , usually from Mars which is " The red planet " . With INVASION USA no attempt is made to disguise who the invaders are . Even though both Joseph Stalin and the Soviet Union aren't name checked you're under no misapprehension who these bloodthirsty tyrannical invaders really are . I suppose this is indicative of American thinking at the time but the invasion itself isn't creditably developed or delivered . If the Soviets capture Alaska as a bridgehead why not nuke the airfields in that state ? How are they able to fly over Canada with impunity ? How are able to bomb New York from San Francisco ? etc etc etc . There's also a lack of credibility in other aspects ? For example here's no sense of time passing between events and the time frame seems bizarre to say the least . How on earth can the TV news report detailed casualty figures to events that have just happened ? OF course there might be a very good internal reason to this once the film ends but while the film is entertaining - possibly for all the wrong reasons - it's never credible on even the most basic level

I saw this movie twice on late night TV between 1965 and 1980. As a jingoistic "message" film, its anachronistic views are almost solely of an 'historic' interest. But they are quite accurate. As a grade-school student in the 1950's, I can attest to the very real concerns of the time : air raid drills, military brinkmanship, and uncertainty about the very future of civilization. This movie was the "Dr. Strangelove" of it's time and shows what 'might' have happened if Russians heated up the Cold War! Of course, the 'invaders' are never actually called Russkies - that's just obvious. And their overwhelming superiority lets them succeed, hence the message of the movie. We all know the Reds never got that kind of edge.The story and characters are often compelling even if not brilliantly acted. The romantic interlude, however, is too 'Hollywood' -- it was years until war movies treated the subject with more realism. Likewise the special effects and military footage are mostly the standard stock of the era. The movie does have one casting coup : both Lois Lanes from TV's Superman! I enjoy the movie as a whole, probably because it shows what we avoided in the Fifties. It's a relief that this particular fear is no longer a threat. But perhaps we need a better update than the Chuck Norris film : a film that shows us how we can act as citizens TODAY to ward off the very real current threats to our country's future. If Gerald Mohr did it, so can we!Addendum : I made sure that the version I bought had some bonus short features from the Red Scare era, one by Jack Webb. They are funny in a way...*now*...