The Thing
April 14th 2008 21:41
It recreates the premise of a group of scientists, stuck in the Antarctic, that find a hostile shapeshifting alien that has laid dormant for thousands of years in the Antarctic ice. As a shapeshifter, once it gets going, it learns to mimic the scientists that it murders, prompting wonderful scenes of confusion and paranoia.
Kurt Russell is the closest thing we have to a hero - at least, he's the one that seems to step up and take control. Russell would be Carpenter's Anna Karina of sorts - the director seems fascinated by Russell's tough, brooding face, and it's used to maximum effect here.
"The Thing" did rather poorly in its theatrical release, perhaps because of the vague title, but since then, the movie has found a ferocious audience among horror fans. It was a film that went all out for special effects; while they might look dated compared to the CGI effects of today, I find the rubber and latex animatronics to be vastly superior.
The alien takes on some horrible forms and Carpenter gives it to us in a nightmarish concoction. There'll be ooze and blood; tentacles and gruesome deaths. This is definitely a movie for horror fetishists.
Perhaps the most powerful aspect of "The Thing" is the movie's halfway point, when the alien has successfully shapeshifted into one of the crew, and they're all eyeing each other suspiciously.
At this point, the movie moves away from easy fright horror and elevates itself into allegory. How can you trust anyone? By their words? Their actions? We assume that Kurt Russell is not the alien because he's presented to the audience as the protagonist, but what of the other survivors?
Naturally, though, Russell comes up with a plan to determine which crewmember is the shapeshifting alien, the setting for one of the all time classic horror moment, wrought with tension.
"The Thing" is one of those films that'll never find its way onto lofty film journal pages, but is still a momentous achievement. It's beautifully shot, timed to perfection and genuinely achieves a sense of dread. Horror never looked so good.
I say: "The Thing" was recommended to me, a long time ago, by Bryn from Horrorphile. He just came back from his honeymooon, so this review is my tip of the hat to the Orble master of horror. Cheers, Bryn, a fantastic recommendation!
See it for: There are several 'infamous' scenes, but the insane special effects of the 'running head' scene is unbelievable...
*this image is from Filmjunk
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Comment by JohnDoe
Film & TV on DVD
This one is certainly in my top films of all time, a horror sci-fi with few equals this side of Invasion of the Body Snatchers...cracker pacing, thick atmosphere and a sense of dread that few thrillers ever achieve....a masterfully minimalist Ennio Morricone score and of course stellar performances....the imaginative FX are still jaw droppingly intense...Carpenter Rocks my world!
Comment by Cibbuano
20/20 Filmsight
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Comment by Bryn
Horrorphile
It bombed as it was released not long after Spielberg's ET, and audiences were revolted by combination of malevolent alien and the gory special effects, which were replusively realistic. They were ahead of their time, and still pack a punch, partly because they were, for the most part, engineered entriely in front of the camera. The head-with-tongue cost around $US60,000, which was crazy money to spend on an effect back in those days on a so-called "B-movie". I love the whole idea of Blair with the alien inside him has constructed a craft underground to try and get away ... The music is sublime, Kurt has never been better.
Although it bombed at the time, it is now regarded by most horror scholars as a bonafide classic. Carpenter may have made some real clunkers since then, but his double whammy of Halloween and The Thing cements his position as arguably one of the greatest modern directors ever.
Comment by Bryn
Horrorphile
Comment by Miswanderlust
Killer Beats
Ramble On
Hipnotherapy
Great movie. Great review! Cheers!
Mis