Was on the 90s but it was the '80s when The war of the world show was on TV. They have the one that was set and at the time present day, but then they did an offshoot show where the the Martian said already taken over and it was this dystopia apocalyptic sort of world, and it was the resistance fighting against the totalitarian alien regime.
I watched every episode back in second and third grade as a kid. Trust me on this.
I do agree with a lot of your statements though...
I did rewatch The invasion of the Body snatchers movie a little while ago and it still holds up so well, and is easily one of the scariest movies from like you said just a dread standpoint. When movies don't have the ability to rely upon special effects and what have you, it's all about story and the ability of the characters to act their part well to sell that willing suspension of disbelief. YouTube has lots of older films that maybe I can watch because I've got premium, but most evenings I've been watching just old movies that pop up from the 50s through 70s, and there's not many that I don't enjoy. Things were just so much better back then.
I had never seen 12 angry Men before, and for such a limited set and number of characters it's fantastic. Probably one of the best movies I've seen all year.