Review of The Thing (1982) by Ben T — 30 Oct 2015

The Thing is a 1982 cult horror classic directed by John Carpenter who directed the masterpiece Halloween. The Thing is a remake of the 1951 classic The Thing from Another World which John Carpenter is a big fan of, in fact in Halloween the movie the kids are watching on the tv is The Thing from Another World. When this film came out it was unforunatley panned by critics. Lots of critics said the film was too gory and depressing. The film also bombed at the box office as it was going against ET. It's weird to think this film wasn't very popular as now it's a classic and one of the best movies ever made. The Thing is one of the best horror movies ever made. John Carpenter fantastically directs this movie, he did such a good job and I think he might have done a better job directing this film than Halloween.

This film stars the brilliant Kurt Russell and he's amazing, his character is very likeable and I love the way he takes charge in this crazy situation. He's one of the best horror movie heroes ever. The rest of the actors are really good and there isn't a bad peformance. I especially like Keith David as Child's. Throughout the film all the characters are at odds as none of them know who the Thing is. Apparently John Carpenter didn't tell the actors they were the Thing except for vital scenes so the actors would be at odds wondering which one was the Thing, this made the performances so much better. John Carpenter also made sure the sets were really cold so when the actors really look like the are freezing they actually are.

The film just had a brilliant sense of unease, from the moment the Norwegian sled dog arrives as the base camp you know something isn't right. The dog actor is fantastic also, it's so damn creepy. There's also loads of tension, the tension just builds and builds as you wait for the Thing to reveal itself in another brutal transformation. Speaking of the transformations the effects in this film are so unbelievably good. Every transformation is so brutal, you get bones snapping, extra limbs ripping through skin and blood, lots of blood, some of the transformations are so brutal they'll nearly make you sick. The practical effects in this film are some of the best I've ever scene.

This film also has one of the most brilliant scores of all time. This films score was done by the guy who scored the good the bad and the ugly and he did an amazing job for this film. The score for this film isn't loud, it isn't bombastic, but it makes every scene all the more intense. This film also has a bleak and depressing ending that fits the film perfectly and is one of the best endings ever. I don't really have any problems the film was that good. A+.