Thing

UPC: 025195046107

Studio: Universal Studios

MPAA Rating: R   Contains:[Violence, Not For Children, Sci-Fi Violence]

Summary: John Carpenter's The Thing is both a remake of Howard Hawks' 1951 film of the same name and a re-adaptation of the John W. Campbell Jr. story "Who Goes There?" on which it was based. Carpenter's film is more faithful to Campbell's story than Hawks' version and also substantially more reliant on special effects, provided in abundance by a team of over 40 technicians, including veteran creature-effects artists Rob Bottin and Stan Winston. The film opens enigmatically with a Siberian Husky running through the Antarctic tundra, chased by two men in a helicopter firing at it from above. Even after the dog finds shelter at an American research outpost, the men in the helicopter (Norwegians from an outpost nearby) land and keep shooting. One of the Norwegians drops a grenade and blows himself and the helicopter to pieces; the other is shot dead in the snow by Garry (Donald Moffat), the American outpost captain. American helicopter pilot MacReady (Kurt Russell, fresh from Carpenter's Escape From New York) and camp doctor Copper (Richard Dysart) fly off to find the Norwegian base and discover some pretty strange goings-on. The base is in ruins, and the only occupants are a man frozen to a chair (having cut his own throat) and the burned remains of what could be one man or several men. In a side room, Copper and MacReady find a coffin-like block of ice from which something has been recently cut. That night at the American base, the Husky changes into the Thing, and the Americans learn first-hand that the creature has the ability to mutate into anything it kills. For the rest of the film the men fight a losing (and very gory) battle against it, never knowing if one of their own dwindling number is the Thing in disguise. Though resurrected as a cult favorite, The Thing failed at the box office during its initial run, possibly because of its release just two weeks after Steven Spielberg's warmly received E.T.The Extra-Terrestrial. Along with Ridley Scott's futuristic Alien, The Thing helped stimulate a new wave of sci-fi horror films in which action and special effects wizardry were often seen as ends in themselves. ~ Anthony Reed, Rovi

Category: Science Fiction

Features: 480i Standard Definition
English Dolby 2.0

Thing

Format: Blu-ray

Release Date: 09/30/2008

Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1 Cinemascope

Audio: DD2 Dolby Digital Stereo

Runtime: 60 Minutes

Sides: 1

Number of Discs: 1

Language(s) English,French

Subtitles: Spanish,French

Jeremy Wheeler

John Carpenter's remake of the 1950s monster film is a grotesque exercise in how to scare the living socks off of even the most jaded viewer. Cold, claustrophobic, and expertly realized, The Thing creeps under your skin and doesn't let up until the last credit rolls. Carpenter is at the top of his game as he flexes his horror muscles once again and arguably surpasses original with an expertly crafted film that continues to ask questions of its audience decades later. Equally worthy of praise is the amazing work of the still young FX guru Rob Bottin. With free reign to let his imagination run as wild as he wanted, Bottin (fresh off of The Howling) spent a little over a year living at Universal's back-lot creating some of the most horrific images audiences had ever seen. The outrageously surreal and bloody work he created (with the brief help of another young lad named Stan Winston) has been a benchmark for practical makeup effects since its release in 1982. The Thing wouldn't be the same without the palpable dread provided by Dean Cundey coldly controlled camerawork and Ennio Morricone's Carpenter-esque score thumping in the background. Apart from its exceptionally crafted aesthetics, the note-perfect ensemble goes a long way to sell this menacing tale. From the chilling Blair (Wilford Brimley) to the cool of Childs (Carpenter fave Keith David), these are meaty characters facing a no-win situation -- with Kurt Russell as MacReady leading the motley crew. Russell is a mean quiet machine as he and Carpenter create another iconic hero to rule over the annals of cinema. Famously, The Thing flopped at the box office against the feel-good alternative - a little film called ET - yet the bleak picture found its real audience - and near-universal reverence - in the years that followed. ~ Jeremy Wheeler, Rovi

Cast and Crew: Kent Hays  Actor 
Eric Mansker  Actor 
Larry Holt  Actor 
Donald Moffat  Actor 
William Zeman  Actor 
Rock Walker  Actor 
Thomas G. Waites  Actor 
Melvin Jones  Actor 
Nate Irwin  Actor 
Jerry Wills  Actor 
Clint Rowe  Actor 
Denver Mattson  Actor 
Tony Cecere  Actor 
John Carpenter  Director 
John Carpenter  Screenwriter 
Mick Garris  Screenwriter 
Bill Lancaster  Screenwriter 
Burt Lancaster  Screenwriter 
Ennio Morricone  Composer (Music Score) 
Lawrence Turman  Producer 
Wilbur Stark  Executive Producer 
David Foster  Producer 
Kurt Russell  Actor 
Wilford Brimley  Actor 
T.K. Carter  Actor 
David Clennon  Actor 
Keith David  Actor 
Richard Dysart  Actor 
Charles Hallahan  Actor 
Peter Maloney  Actor 
Richard Masur  Actor 
Joel Polis  Actor 
Norbert Weisser  Actor 
Larry Franco  Actor 

Country: USA