The Thing (1982) Review

 

     

          The 1980s was the peak and the start of the decline of the horror genre. Two pop culture icons appeared and changed the horror genre. Jason Voorhees and Freddy Krueger are horror icons that changed the game. Although, there were small gems that fell through the cracks. John Carpenter's The Thing came and was misunderstood. It didn't do well financially and was eviscerated by critics. Years later, it went through a reappraisal process and became a beloved remake. I feel that Carpenter teased this movie when viewing Halloween (1978). When Laurie is with the kid she is babysitting, they see the original The Thing From Another World. Lastly, it's based on a novella called Who Goes There? by John W. Campbell Jr. SPOILERS will appear in the review.

1.      Story

Since it’s a remake of the original it takes its own liberties and follows somewhat from the novella. A spaceship lands in the Antarctic. We then follow a helicopter controlled by the Norwegians trying to kill a runaway husky. The noise wakeups the crew in a United States Outpost. They investigate and confront the Norwegian pilot tell them something which they can’t understand. The crew shoot at the pilot and take in the dog.

Macready played by Kurt Russell takes a few of the crew to investigate the Norwegian outpost. When Macready’s company arrive, they find that the outpost has been burned. They gather as much info as they can to see what led to the hunt of the husky. Meanwhile, one of the workers Clark leads the dog to the pack. It then starts to expose itself which triggers the huskies to bark and yelp.

Soon, the workers realize that the dog is an alien. Since there is no help arriving in their area, paranoia begins to consume the group when they figure out that the alien can imitate them. Macready and the others try to find who is the real alien while also attempting to not go insane. I feel that the story comes across as a Lovecraftian story. Meaning that the creature is the whole center of the story. Those types of stories called “Weird Fiction” don’t really work for me since there aren’t any depth in character.

2.      The Thing

Obviously, the main star isn’t Kurt Russell. He takes a backseat to the main star of the movie. The special effects of The Thing is so, I can’t think of a right word to describe it. Realistic and grotesque, those are the two words that I can at least come up. I find it interesting that the man who is responsible for the special effects Rob Bottin got in the opening title sequence along with the main actors and director.

Clearly, he unleashed so much into the film. I think the best showcase out of any of the moments where we see the creature is when the alien is with the huskies. When the alien peels off the husky skin to show its form is truly engrossing and horrifying. You really feel bad about the dogs since they are scared. Like I mentioned before, one tries to escape by biting against the fencing but inevitably gets absorbed.

I find that the whole concept of The Thing is just not limited to its body that it creates. It’s an adapting organism. There is a shot where the crew is testing their blood and one sees that the blood from the Norwegians is moving and begins to go after the member. I think it’s original and quite possibly one of the scariest aliens ever created. It should be up there with the Xenomorph and Predator. 

3.      Paranoia

When it came out, it was torn asunder by critics which they say that it was very bleak and nihilistic. I feel that the overall vibe is warranted in the film. The film takes place in the Antarctic with no help. With the entire crew knowing that any of them can be the alien increases the paranoia.

I think it was intentional since the only likeable character is Kurt Russell’s. Everyone has their own personality, but we never really get to know them. When the alien starts to cause problems, I feel that any sympathy for the other characters are gone since, we don’t even know if any of them are the alien. More so when they start to turn on each other.

It works as a work of weird fiction or a Lovecraftian film. Since the whole experience is just how they slowly start to be combative and figure which one isn’t who they are. This is probably the first time where a horror movie has that motif. Since mostly any horror has a killer or people trying to survive. I say, the film is unique by introducing this paranoia angle since this alien can adapt. 

4.      Overall

This is probably the shortest review I can muster for The Thing. Mind you, it’s good, but nowhere near as good as Halloween (1978). If the cast was memorable and amped up the dread of the alien it may have been the best. This is by far one of the best remakes since it’s hard for a movie to differentiate itself from an older adaptation. For one thing, the movie must be different and try something new. The special effects are the main highlight and should be appreciated since computer generated images would make the concept feel tacky. Which what happened when the story was adapted again but acts as a prequel to this movie.

The Thing (1982) gets a four out of five.