HorrorFest: The Thing (1982)

All the spoilers all the time.  You have been warned!

My Thoughts While Watching:

This horror flick holds up well. Kurt Russell and John Carpenter classic.

Chess Wizard!

It looks SO cold but it is so beautiful.

Stereotypical stoner and stereotypical black guy with fro and roller skates.

Mutated spider dog!

Wilford’s audibles throughout are the best!

I want Kurt Russell’s hat!!

“A long way to go on” on the shelf behind Kurt Russell.

If Johnny Fever and the kid from the 70s show had a baby, it would be THAT guy!

I will never look at a code blue in a movie the same!

SPIDER HEAD!

The blood letting scene is my favorite!!

I’d rather not spend the rest of this winter tied to this fucking chair!!

The ole fingers in the cheeks routine!

 

All kidding aside, this movie truly holds up well for a horror movie. There are cinematic cuts like when the scalpel is stolen that are just amazing. The landscape is an amazing backdrop.  John Carpenter is rightfully proud of this movie.

Some Interviews and Extra Video:

 

IMDB Synopsis: A research team in Antarctica is hunted by a shape-shifting alien that assumes the appearance of its victims. 

Starring:

	Kurt Russell	…	MacReady
	Wilford Brimley	…	Dr. Blair (as A. Wilford Brimley)
	T.K. Carter	…	Nauls
	David Clennon	…	Palmer
	Keith David	…	Childs
	Richard Dysart	…	Dr. Copper
	Charles Hallahan	…	Vance Norris
	Peter Maloney	…	George Bennings
	Richard Masur	…	Clark
	Donald Moffat	…	Garry
	Joel Polis	…	Fuchs
	Thomas G. Waites	…	Windows (as Thomas Waites)
	Norbert Weisser	…	Norwegian
	Larry Franco	…	Norwegian Passenger with Rifle

Director: John Carpenter

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My ranking scores –

0-19 Levels of: Ugh

20-39 Levels of: Meh (aka I cannot reach the remote)

40-59 Levels of: I don’t hate it?

60-85 Levels of: That was solid.

86-100 Levels of: I Loved It!

I rank this movie a 97.42!

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Trailer:

Additional Movie Info:

It received a Rotten Tomatoes rating of 84% Fresh.  It received a Rotten Tomato audience rating of 92% liking it.  Average Rating: 3.9/5 with a number of User Ratings: 131,408.

Movie Reviews:

• Roger Ebert
• NY Times

Specs:  Release date: 25 June 1982 (USA) / Runtime: 127 minutes / Budget: $15M

IMDB Trivia:

• John Carpenter has stated that of all his films, this is his personal favorite.
• This film is considered a benchmark in the field of special make-up effects. These effects were created by Rob Bottin, who was only 22 when he started the project.
• To give the illusion of icy Antarctic conditions, interior sets on the Los Angeles sound stages were refrigerated down to 40 degrees Fahrenheit, while it was well over 100 degrees Fahrenheit outside.
• The opening title exactly duplicates the original Howard Hawks film. To create the effect of the title, an animation cell with “The Thing” written on it was placed behind a fish tank filled with smoke that was covered with a plastic garbage bag. The garbage bag was ignited, creating the effect of the title burning onto the screen.
• In August 2003 a couple of hard-core fans, Todd Cameron and Steve Crawford, ventured to the remote filming location in Stewart, British Columbia, and, after 21 years, found remains of Outpost #31 and the Norwegian helicopter. The rotor blade from the chopper now belongs to Todd and rests in his collection of memorabilia from the film.
• Ennio Morricone’s score for this film was nominated for a Razzie Award for worst score. However like the film, it has since gone on to become considered a classic.
• When the dog wanders down a hallway and pauses outside a door, we see a shadow of one of the men, beckoning it in. John Carpenter wanted it to be mysterious which character was involved, so didn’t use any of his actors to cast the shadow.
• There is a character name “Mac” and another named “Windows”; since the film was made in 1982, this is purely coincidental.
• The female voice on MacReady’s computer was performed (uncredited) by the wife of John Carpenter, Adrienne Barbeau.
• Based on the classic short story “Who Goes There?” by pioneering science fiction Editor John W. Campbell, Jr. He is not credited in the DVD version until the end credits.
• In 1982 before it was released, Fangoria magazine had a contest called Draw the Thing to see if anyone could guess what it was going to look like. The winner won a trip to Universal Studios.