Since the extra-terrestrial craze of the 1950s and beyond, where interest in the possibility of aliens coming to Earth became mainstream, film and television writers have had a fascination with exploring these concepts in their work. This has led to a consistent amount of alien invasion films, a sub-genre of sorts that remains to this day.
As with all science fiction, there can be quite a few familiar tropes deployed in these stories, whether or not they’re on film, TV, or even books or comics. Alternate universes, simulations (like the premise of the Matrix franchise), the moral duality of aliens, and humans being the cause of their own self-destruction (often due to their own questionable morals) are all prime examples of common storylines within this genre. There is, of course, the alien invasion trope as well, which has arguably provided some of the most interesting science fiction stories ever created.
One of the most influential shows of all time, let alone in the science fiction genre, is the original iteration of The Twilight Zone. Created by Rod Serling, The Twilight Zone tapped into the post-World War II fears of its time, playing with themes like the threat of nuclear war, advancing technology, and political and social isolationism. It’s a show that has been relaunched a few times since, but never with the same charm or x-factor of the original. The series’ initial run had countless episodes focusing on aliens, and many were surrounding the topic of them coming to Earth.
One of these alien invasion stories arguably stands out above the rest, though, in the form of "The Monsters Are Due On Maple Street." Considered by many to be one of the best episodes of television of all time, this Season One episode begins when the technology on a typical 1950s suburban street shuts off unexpectedly, causing anxiety for the entire block. This quickly turns into hysteria, with the residents of this small town turning against each other as they hear reports of a possible alien invasion. They become paranoid that someone among them is an alien and turn against each other, a development that eventually causes riots and complete chaos.
As with most episodes of The Twilight Zone, there is a twist in the form of an alien spaceship lurking in the clouds above, with its inhabitants simply manipulating the power as they know it will cause the humans to turn against each other and lead to hysteria. That gives them their moment to invade the town. It’s something they do to similar places all across Earth, conquering the planet one at a time.
What makes this episode unique is ultimately the twist, but also the theme of humans neglecting each other and being so quick to jump to conclusions. This is a theme seen in almost all alien invasion stories, but is perhaps presented at its absolute best in this Twilight Zone episode. The humans’ demise was self-inflicted, as it was their overreaction to losing power that brought upon the alien invasion and made it possible. Human nature, something so crucial to most stories of this incredible series, was the downfall of the residents of this small town.
There are some more slightly straightforward examples of alien invasions, and a few that are more modern. There's the Cloverfield franchise, Signs, and A Quiet Place, for example. The latter focuses on a family who are forced to live in hiding after an alien race comes to Earth and begins to hunt humans. As audiences will remember, these extra-terrestrials have extremely sensitive hearing, so any minor sound can be enough to alert them. Many of the typical alien invasion elements are here in these two films, directed and starring John Krasinski. The alien invasion has already happened, and the world is mostly destroyed right from the get go.
There’s also a clear inspiration from that episode of The Twilight Zone as well, particularly in the second outing. Cillian Murphy’s character doesn’t trust the family he meets even as he knew them for years prior to the invasion. This lack of trust threatens to get them all killed by the aliens, but unlike the residents of Maple Street, they eventually come together and form a bond.
A slightly different alien invasion story is seen in Invasion of the Body Snatchers, a film that takes a more subtle approach to the story and the horror that follows. It’s not as overt as A Quiet Place, despite the presence of aliens right from the start, as the world is normal — or so they think. Alien pods coming down to Earth replicate nearby humans who are asleep, meaning that aliens are essentially replacing these humans. Again, this is a more subtle approach than something like A Quiet Place, and plays a lot into the paranoia aspect that writer Rod Serling loved so much in his science fiction stories. The key caveat of these alien replicas of humans is that they are devoid of any and all emotion, a shadow of the person they’re imitating. This only adds to the horror aspect as they feel frighteningly lifeless.
Alien invasions have been a key trope in science fiction stories for decades now, and the presence of newer films like A Quiet Place show that they have no signs slowing down.