Horrifying, Unsettling, and Claustrophobic. John Carpenter’s The Thing is the most terrifying film I’ve ever seen. While his previous horror classic, Halloween, was far more psychological as opposed to the sheer violence that emanates from The Thing, it manages to hold up much better than Halloween. Initially panned on its release in 1982 when theater-goers were enjoying E.T., The Thing was wrongfully overshadowed and is one of the best horror movies ever made.
R.J. MacReady (Kurt Russell) and his scientist cohorts are in Antarctica. There is no one near to provide help for them if they should get into trouble. It’s a damn shame because that’s exactly what happens. A husky seems to be running away from some Norwegians. Perhaps they have gone insane due to the extremely climate and isolation. The team decides to take in the husky with their other dogs, but they have no idea what to expect.
On further investigation of the Norwegians camp, it seems as though they have found something in-human. It happens to be an Alien creature that assimilates ( the conversion of nutrient into the fluid or solid substance of the body, by the processes of digestion and absorption) itself with its host. When MacReady takes the specimen back to camp he has no idea that he will soon lose track of his friends and enemies.
Let’s get the obvious out of the way first, this movie is extremely gory. Although it was made in 1982, the make up and prosthetic used still hold up wonderfully. It’s a damn shame that everything has converted to CGI because this feels like the height of realism in creature effects. If the gore or countless closeups of needles don’t lead to a freak out, the spectacularly graphic creature transformations will. Still horrific in 2012, it’s amazing how they achieved the gross out effects of The Thing.
Luckily, The Thing has more substance than just a gross out horror movie. There’s a true sense of isolation similar to Ridley Scott’s classic Alien film. There’s no escaping their fate and it will only be a matter of time before The Thing will get them as well. The Thing isn’t the only thing to be afraid of though. Since it replicates itself into its host, anyone of the scientist could already be a creature. While there is strength in numbers, The Thing manages to make that feel a lot less comforting. The film is also wonderfully scored by Ennio Morricone famous for his scores for classic westerns, but also one the greatest living composers today.
The Thing scared the pants off of me and I highly recommend it for a horror scare. It lives up to its reputation as one of the scariest films of all-time. John Carpenter is certainly one of the best horror directors who ever lived.
