The Thing (1982)

Written by CinemaSerf on November 3, 2022

As remakes go, this is one of the better ones that I have seen - though I still prefer the degree of menace generated by the 1951 iteration. A man in an helicopter is shooting at a lonely mutt amidst the antarctic wilderness when it arrives at an American scientific base. An accident ensures the inhabitants cannot interrogate the pursuing Norwegians and a quick visit to their nearby camp shows that disaster has struck. A large block of hollowed out ice suggests, though, that they may well have made an unique discovery - especially when they find some smouldering skeletal remains. Back at their own camp - along with their new charcoaled find - things get back to normal until the mysterious dog is put into the cage with the others and all hell breaks loose. It is soon clear to "Mac" (Kurt Russell) that they are dealing with something extremely strong, adaptable and ruthless. Can they survive? The visual effects here go a long way to compensating for the rather lacklustre acting - Russell isn't really very good - and the claustrophobic antarctic settings and howling winds add a richness and sense of peril to this superior horror story. The fact that the creature has a sort of Azazel-like ability to transfer from any life-form to another, and to more than one simultaneously adds some decent jeopardy to the plot, too, as neither they nor us know who is to be trusted right until the ending. This is certainly one of John Carpenter's better efforts - and is well worth a watch on a cold winter's night!