They Live Made Roddy Piper And Keith David 'Beat The Hell' Out Of Each Other
Leave it to John Carpenter to inject scathing social commentary into a film where the ugly reality of a hyper-capitalist world is revealed after wearing sunglasses that also unmask aliens living among the populace. These special sunglasses unlock the core of "They Live," which highlights the constant subliminal messaging that humans are subjected to by the affluent — in this case, aliens posing as humans, who are bent on depleting Earth's resources. We follow blank-slate everyman John Nada (Roddy Piper), a drifter who surveys his surroundings with cool indifference until he stumbles upon a nefarious conspiracy, revealed through the sunglasses that challenge the traditional normalcy of perceived reality. Shaken to the core, Nada desperately wishes to confide in someone but is left to contend with this revelation without any real allies.
Frank (Keith David) is the only person he can dream of confiding in. When Frank and Nada meet in an alley, the former senses something is amiss, and asks Nada to leave him alone. What follows is perhaps one of the most intense, visceral brawls between two people rooted in their perspectives, where neither is ready to bow down to the other or listen to what they have to say. Car windows are shattered as the two engage in this battle, almost like they're in a fighting ring, desperate to beat their opponent to a pulp. While Frank fights ferociously out of self-preservation and the stubborn wish to not get involved, Nada kicks, punches, and knocks him down so that Frank can put on the glasses and see the world for what it is.
Carpenter spoke to American Cinematographer and explained the mechanics of the scene, including how Piper's experience as a former wrestling champion helped shape the physicality of the tense confrontation.
The art of confrontation in John Carpenter's They Live
The alley fight in "They Live" is almost 6 minutes long, where the two men exchange jabs and insults while beating each other up in the most elaborate, outlandish ways. Carpenter describes this confrontation as an epic "battle of wills":
"The fight becomes a battle of wills between the two men. It reminds me of the ending of 'The Quiet Man', where John Wayne is fighting Victor McLaglen. They're fighting over something relatively insignificant, but there are broad thematic undercurrents. We shot the scene in an alley over a period of four days. By using the Panaglide and some of the power moves that Roddy knows from wrestling, we tried to break from the stereotypical action formulas. We rehearsed the fight for weeks, and every move was scripted. There is real contact, and they're beating the hell out of each other, but the fight has some ballet-like qualities. I haven't seen anything like it in recent film."
The best part about this fight is that it feels natural from start to finish, similar to brawls between friends who mean well but things end up escalating due to heightened emotions. However, the fate of the world is at stake here, and Frank quickly understands this after Nada forces him to wear the sunglasses after their mad dance, and shouts "Look!" as two aliens pass by.
Once this happens, the conflict of wills is resolved, making the resolution feel more cathartic as Nada now has a loyal ally in Frank, who is equally geared to fight the good fight against good old consumerism powered by an alien invasion.