Movie Appraisal: The Thing (1982)

The ultimate in alien terror indeed.

John Carpenter's The Thing, directed by John Carpenter, starring Kurt Russell, is one of the greatest horror films of all time. It is a remake of The Thing From Another World, a film that I also reviewed at one point. That film was not terrible, but this film is absolutely brilliant from beginning to end.

As I've mentioned before, John Carpenter is one of my favorite directors of all time, and this film is a big reason for it. Yes, I have a fairly biased opinion towards this movie, but I only have that opinion because it is so blasted fantastic. The atmosphere, the isolation, the body-horror, and the unknown all come together in this movie, showing that a movie can be mainstream, terrifying, and atmospheric, which is incredibly rare in films that come out today.

This movie is easily one of the most recognizable and easily accessible horror movies of all time. Most people who have ever known anything about horror, would probably know something about this film. Josh Carpenter created his masterpiece in this movie, which he never again equaled in any of his other horror movies... arguably he never reached this level again.

Now, as I've mentioned before, I really like John Carpenter films until the mid-1990s or so. But with In The Mouth of Madness and after he seemed to have faltered quite a bit. I really like that film, but it can easily be seen as utterly ridiculous, with sometimes incredibly bad acting and out-of-place humor throughout the film. And maybe that's why I have a problem with late Carpenter... but, I'm getting all over the place rather than focusing on The Thing.


The Thing is an atypical movie for so many reasons. It does everything that most horror movies don't let themselves do. It contains absolutely no female actresses and as an added bonus, has no screaming women. It kills off animals, dogs in particular, as well as much of the actual cast. It has an utterly bleak ending, one that gives little hope to an actual happy ending, and it all takes place in an area on Earth that few of us would ever understand. Antarctica is wholly an alien place to us, feeling just as extraterrestrial as an alien world. The feeling of isolation permeates the movie, coming into especial prominence as the titular thing takes over more and more people and animals.

The flamethrowers, the heavy use of body-horror, and the outstanding special effects give this movie an absolutely unique flavor that is all its own. The acting is topnotch, the directing is masterful, and the fear of the horror permeates the screen itself making this easily one of the best alien horror movies of all time along with The Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956 or 1978) and... well, not much else that I can think of. Alien movies are not exactly my thing, I have to admit. Aliens really do tend to bore me. Maybe the Alien series is really good, and maybe I should really check it out, but I have no real desire to do so. It seems like more action than horror to me and that automatically makes it less interesting to me.

Wow, I am digressing like crazy during this review, going off on wild tangents only marginally related to the topic at hand. Look, watch this movie, horror fan or not. John Carpenter puts himself on top of the masters of horror with this movie and... well, it really is fantastic from beginning to end. The isolation and atmosphere are simply amazing and everything else in the movie comes together. For me, this movie embodies what I love about 1980s in horror. It is a classic film and everybody in the universe needs to watch it at least once in their lifetimes. Yes, even babies.

And things, I suppose... although they might not be rooting for MacReady... and shame on them. Yes, you heard me, shame on you, you stinking alien brats, thinking you can take us over like some kind of crazy parasite. Where's my flamethrower? I need to check if people are things...

Movie Appraisal: The Thing From Another World (1951)

The Thing From Another World is a horror and science fiction classic film directed seemingly jointly by Howard Hawks and Christian Nyby that was remade by John Carpenter into The Thing (1982). That's all you really need to know. The opening title sequence is pretty much the same as the remake to this film, which tends to be the better known movie. The Thing happens to be one of my favorite films of that genre, so I was very interested to see how this movie holds up.

It's pretty good actually, but also very different from The Thing. I had known this before seeing the movie, but it is kind of weird seeing just how different they both are, even with many elements remaining the same. They both take place in the Arctic. They both heavily involve sled dogs. They both go to a crash site. They both fight the alien off with fire.

Now, I'm not going to say that this film is better than The Thing. It isn't. It's very good for the film it is. It's actually quite good for a science-fiction horror film made in the early 1950s, much better than I would have ever thought. I can see the kernels of good ideas all around this film, but without the technological know-how as to how to execute a lot of those thoughts, the movie comes off as sometimes awkward, and not even a little scary.

This is something to remark upon actually. This film is not exactly scary, but it can be unsettling in points, especially when the audience cannot see the alien. Once the audience gets a good look at the alien and sees he's a guy in a suit who looks a little confused, it really takes away from any horror within the film. The unsettling mood of the movie before that point really changes once that alien gets his first big appearance.

This film also has a big deal of tell, don't show, which is frankly exactly how most of these early horror movies are. They describe dead men in great detail, or the horror of the alien, and that works. They didn't have the technology or desire to show off gruesome bits and I thought it worked out well. The alien, once melted out of the ice block, is simply not as scary as they describe. I know in the theaters back then, it would have been a huge payoff, but today the alien simply does not stand up well. He looks a little silly.

The acting is okay, but it's always okay in these early sci-fi horror movies. It would not ever blow me away, and certain characters seem incredibly awkward when they're not supposed to. Margaret Sheridan (playing Nikki Nicholson) is the biggest example of an actor/actress in this film simply not seemingly knowing her lines, or not acting correctly or something. Most of her lines, especially her early lines in the film, come out awkward and hesitantly, and it really did not work in connection to who her character was supposed to be.

The story itself is quite interesting, and the film is actually worth a watch if you enjoy classic sci-fi or horror films. If you're into those films already like I am, you kind of know what to expect. It's better than most and the science parts of it are actually remarkably well-done. I liked them a lot. It was a thoroughly entertaining movie.

As for characters, most of the main characters are fantastic.They all have their own personalities and are quite well acted. The scenery is also well-done, as in the portrayal of the cold they constantly have to be aware of. I liked that when the plane came landed the few times it did. It looked awesome and felt like something epic. Also the landing site of the flying saucer was well done and a great scene as well.

All together this film is a very well done classic that should be watched by any kind of enthusiast for films such as these. If you enjoyed the remake, you'll more than likely enjoy this one too, even without Kurt Russell, Wilford Brimley, and Keith David. Just don't expect any body horror, although there is some amazing scenes with fire to watch out for.

"Watch the skies, everywhere, keep looking! Keep watching the skies!"