The Thing

Antarctica, winter 1982. The team on an American research base get surprised by a couple of mad Norwegians who is chasing a dog with a helicopter, trying to kill it. All the Norwegians are killed and the Americans are left with nothing, but a dog, a couple of bodies and questions. That's the beginning of the greatest horror/thriller film I've ever seen.

From the very beginning all to the end you feel the tense, paranoid mood. Helpless and alone out in no-mans land. Ennio Morricone was nominated for a Razzie Award for his score. Why I don't know 'cause as far as I can see his score is simple, creepy and very good. It really gets you in the right mood.

The acting is great! The best performance is probably given by the dog who's just amazing. As for Russell and the others on two legs I can say nothing less.

You may think 1982 and special effects are not the most impressive? Well, think again! You haven't seen it all until you've seen this. Bodyparts falling off and creatures changing forms... Rob Bottin has done a great job witch today stands as a milestone is special effects makeup.

The movie didn't get a big response when it first hit the big screen due to other alien films at the time and so it's not very well known. In fact you can almost consider it an unknown movie. Nobody I've asked have heard of it. However the movie has managed to survive for over twenty years as a cult film on video and DVD. Twenty years is a long time and except for the haircut the movie is still pretty much up to date. This movie is to be considered a classic.

The movie is without doubt one of my, if not my favorite. I've seen it several times, but it's just as good as the first time I saw it. As a Norwegian the only thing I don't like about this movie is that MacReady keeps calling the Norwegians swedes!

I am ashamed to say it, but I have to admit, the first time I saw this film was only about a year ago. After seeing it, I immediately rushed out and bought the DVD collectors' edition and have watched it many times since.

The film is terrific on many levels. It works as your straight monster or action type film, as a horror/sci-fi and also as a very intriguing look into the human psyche. The incredible sense of paranoia, mistrust and fear, lent not only by Carpenter's direction (which is stunning) but also by the incredible acting of the cast in general. Kurt Russell (obviously) is spectacularly understated in the lead role of MacReady, and, as a direct result he "feels" like a real person, rather than a hollywood "all american hero". The other cast members all carry off their roles with style, and the net result is an intensely believable atmosphere, and a truly fantastic film.

You're stationed at an isolated outpost in Antarctica when a helicopter arrives intent on shooting a dog it had been pursuing across the tundra. Things get out of hand and the occupants of the chopper have their ability to pursue curtailed, more permanently than they'd like. Not too long after this carnage it becomes apparent that the pursuing shooters had a pretty good reason for wanting to remove the dog from the land of the living as the dog turns out to have the same aspirations as its pursuers, albeit in various guises, transformations, metamorphoses and reconfigurations.

While this was made in 1981 it remains to this day one of the greatest and most engaging pieces of horror movie making that has ever been created.

A classic film. John Carpenter's "The Thing" is one of the most entertaining horror films ever made - fast, clever and purely exciting from start to finish. It is one of my personal favorite horror movies. This is how all movies of the genre should be made. Set on an isolated base in Antarctica, this version seems almost to pick up where the original version (The Thing From Another World) left off. The American scientists discover a decimated Norwegian base some miles distant. Everyone is dead, and only the half charred remains of some unidentifiable thing left to smolder outside the compound might offer any answers to what may have happened. The Thing is brought back to the American base and, too late, the scientists realize that it is alive and lethal. The Thing thaws out and is off, not only killing anyone and anything that crosses Its path, but also absorbing them, making Itself into whoever and whatever it wants. The film then turns into a brilliant paranoia piece. Everyone is suspect, anyone can be The Thing, and no one trusts anyone anymore. Gone is the strength and security found when human beings band together in spite of their differences to battle a monster. The group splinters and fear rules supreme. Who is the Thing?

Seriously I Love this movie I love it To Death. I love Escape From New York and I love Escape From L.A. but I also love The Thing so much better this is definitely the best Carpenter film a truly masterpiece classic I love R.J. MacReady - Kurt Russell I love everything about this film that is. Science Fiction, Horror and an Action Epic Film. A lot of the practical effects were left out but the it looked nice and the acting was good and it expanded upon the monsters background and showing you the inside of the ship. It must of been tough to bring across on screen the visual design.

In my opinion, nobody has topped this film in the 25-odd years since its release. I'll put any of "The Thing's" old-school effects up against any CGI-driven movie, or this cast against almost any other ensemble. If you haven't seen the film yet, I envy you because I WISH I could see "The Thing" again for the first time. WOW! Does more need to be said? How about this...there is no parallel. Who's your friend? Who's the Thing? Who do you trust? Who can you afford to trust? If you've never seen this movie...your in for a treat. The only other movie that had such an impact on me was The Matrix (the first movie)...where I left the theater touching the walls wondering if they were really real. This movie will leaving you wondering....is the guy/gal next to you really real?

"Trust is a tough thing to come by these days."

John Carpenter's The Thing is a seminal piece of horror that is not only a fine specimen of its era, but it also serves as a shining example of horror done absolutely right in any era. Combining gross-out special effects reminiscent of Hellraiser, the nail-bitingly intense, claustrophobic filmmaking of Alien, offering a story that is very well-paced, such as George A. Romero's Dawn of the Dead, and presenting the idea that true terror can be found at any time, in any place, and inside anyone, much like Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho, The Thing works on every level, and represents the peak of each and every aspect that may be utilized to make horror films effective. Granted, this amalgamation of styles is not the only formula for winning horror.

The basic plot about this movie is Horror-moister John Carpenter (Halloween, Escape from New York) teams Kurt Russell's outstanding performance with incredible visuals to build this chilling version of the classic The Thing. In the winter of 1982, a twelve-man research team at a remote Antarctic research station discovers an alien buried in the snow for over 100,000 years. Once unfrozen, the form-changing alien wreaks havoc, creates terror and becomes one of them.

It is one of the best favorite horror films of the 80's ever. I love this film to death. The Thing is the best classic horror film from master and genius John Carpenter! 'The Thing' is classic Carpenter and one of the few remakes that is better than the original. Kurt Russell's characters: Snake Plissken, R.J. MacReady and Jack Burton are Kurt's best favorite characters he ever played. I also love the music score from Ennio Morricone! Awesome!!! 10/10 Grade: Bad Ass Seal Of Approval

A group of explorers in the arctic region have encountered a vicious alien organism that can consume a person and make itself a perfect copy. This is a classic horror film that is loaded with brilliant special effects and graphic violence that is a perfect way to spend a cold evening. Kurt Russel stars as a troubled alcoholic who takes charge and tries to find which person is really the alien creature. One of the most brilliant things about the movie is that it plays with the idea of not knowing who you can trust. I found it interesting that it had an all male cast, something uncommon for many movies. The acting is very natural and very realistic. This movie was surprisingly scary and the graphic scenes were surprisingly horrific. It's a dark, brutal, and claustrophobic sci-fi horror film that has stood the test of time from the genius of John Carpenter.