Review of The Thing (1982) by Joseph C — 25 Jul 2015

I was very surprised by what this film achieved. I went in with low expectations even though it had a spot on IMDb's 250; man was I wrong.

From the start of the film we are immediately asking questions for which we want answers. Is that helicopter crew shooting at the dog? What are they afraid of? Why did they attempt to destroy the American base in Antarctica? When these questions are answered, we ask the more important question: which of these men have been infected by the titular "thing?".

Such a simple premise, yet so powerful to get our hearts racing and question humanity. Blair may seem mad, but he is very rational trying to destroy transportation so the thing cannot reach the world outside of Antarctica. What I love is that saving humanity is an implied motivation for various characters within the film, but it is hardly stated by any of the characters.

This movie is a thrill ride, science fiction film with a concept not unlike "And Then There Were None." One thing bothered me in this film: remember how I said Blair is rational? This is due to a lazy bit of writing, in which a computer states before the camera that humanity could be wiped out in a short amount of time due to this thing, and this is based on a few seconds of analysis by the computer. I just found it cheesy.

The conclusion of the film had me in awe, questioning humanity while the two survivors simply wait for a sign that either of them are a double until they ultimately perish.