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10 reasons we still love John Carpenter's The Thing 30 years later
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The Saltex Brujo
Jun 22, 2012, 5:20:44 PM6/22/12
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10 reasons we still love John Carpenter's The Thing 30 years later
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John Carpenter's arctic-alien-shapeshifter horror flickâ€"which pits
Kurt Russell's grizzled survivor against a thing from another
worldâ€"occupies a special place in our collective nerd heart for
lots of reasons. But here, 30 years after its June 25, 1982, opening,
are our favorite 10.
Carpenter's flick was ignored and dismissed when it was first released
into theaters, but timeâ€"and the thriving home-video
marketâ€"have been rather kind, elevating it to the beloved post it
now holds.
These are just some of the reasons why we love it so. What are yours?
[Warning: There will, of course, be spoilers ahead!]
 Click Image to Enlarge
THE MALAMUTE The movie starts rather innocently, with a sled dog racing
across the Antarctic tundraâ€"the very definition of big events
having small beginnings.
KURT RUSSELL’S BEARD Just look at it. It’s so lush and
overgrown, like the charred brown lawn of the old man down the street
who never cuts it and leaves it to roast in the summer heat.
It’s so perfectly, defiantly manly. Plus, it holds icicles
really well.
THE GORE Before The Thing, there had been gory movies and there had been
sci-fi movies, but the two were never synthesized together with such
visceral skill as this, with special effects maestro Rob Bottin (and an
assist from Stan Winston) going balls-out to gross out moviegoers.
THE COLD Few films look as inhospitable as The Thing, which was shot
during a British Columbian winter and on artificially cooled
soundstages. Everyone looks miserable, which only adds to the drama.
THE HEAD COMES OFF If you’ve seen it, you know. The moment when
Norris’ head slowly detaches from his body, sprouts legs, and
skitters along the floor like some crazy head-spider? Yeah, that one.
THE BLOOD TEST Who is infected? Who’s the shapeshifter? MacReady
devises a simple test: take a small sample of everyone’s blood
and put a hot wire in it. If the blood is normal, it’ll just
sizzle. If it’s not .... The tension mounts in the most
delicious way.
KEITH DAVID’S VOICE This actorâ€"who also lit up
Carpenter’s They Liveâ€"has one of the five best voices in
all of Hollywood . Any chance to listen to him growl it out is
welcome.
THE BRIMLEY Wilfred Brimley. That is all.
THE PARANOIA Like Alien, The Thing is a sci-fi haunted house movie, with
the added element of the monster being “one of us.†As
such, Carpenter goes to great lengths to foster that sense of distrust
in both his characters and the audience.
THE END? Two men sit in the cold, watching their temporary home go up in
flames. Are both of them human? Will one of them bring untold horrors to
civilization once rescue arrives? It’s a beautifully depressing,
ambiguous ending.
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Tweet
John Carpenter's arctic-alien-shapeshifter horror flickâ€"which pits
Kurt Russell's grizzled survivor against a thing from another
worldâ€"occupies a special place in our collective nerd heart for
lots of reasons. But here, 30 years after its June 25, 1982, opening,
are our favorite 10.
Carpenter's flick was ignored and dismissed when it was first released
into theaters, but timeâ€"and the thriving home-video
marketâ€"have been rather kind, elevating it to the beloved post it
now holds.
These are just some of the reasons why we love it so. What are yours?
[Warning: There will, of course, be spoilers ahead!]
 Click Image to Enlarge
THE MALAMUTE The movie starts rather innocently, with a sled dog racing
across the Antarctic tundraâ€"the very definition of big events
having small beginnings.
KURT RUSSELL’S BEARD Just look at it. It’s so lush and
overgrown, like the charred brown lawn of the old man down the street
who never cuts it and leaves it to roast in the summer heat.
It’s so perfectly, defiantly manly. Plus, it holds icicles
really well.
THE GORE Before The Thing, there had been gory movies and there had been
sci-fi movies, but the two were never synthesized together with such
visceral skill as this, with special effects maestro Rob Bottin (and an
assist from Stan Winston) going balls-out to gross out moviegoers.
THE COLD Few films look as inhospitable as The Thing, which was shot
during a British Columbian winter and on artificially cooled
soundstages. Everyone looks miserable, which only adds to the drama.
THE HEAD COMES OFF If you’ve seen it, you know. The moment when
Norris’ head slowly detaches from his body, sprouts legs, and
skitters along the floor like some crazy head-spider? Yeah, that one.
THE BLOOD TEST Who is infected? Who’s the shapeshifter? MacReady
devises a simple test: take a small sample of everyone’s blood
and put a hot wire in it. If the blood is normal, it’ll just
sizzle. If it’s not .... The tension mounts in the most
delicious way.
KEITH DAVID’S VOICE This actorâ€"who also lit up
Carpenter’s They Liveâ€"has one of the five best voices in
all of Hollywood . Any chance to listen to him growl it out is
welcome.
THE BRIMLEY Wilfred Brimley. That is all.
THE PARANOIA Like Alien, The Thing is a sci-fi haunted house movie, with
the added element of the monster being “one of us.†As
such, Carpenter goes to great lengths to foster that sense of distrust
in both his characters and the audience.
THE END? Two men sit in the cold, watching their temporary home go up in
flames. Are both of them human? Will one of them bring untold horrors to
civilization once rescue arrives? It’s a beautifully depressing,
ambiguous ending.
Blastr CATEGORIES
31 Days of Halloween Animation Announcements Art Awards
Blastr Gift Guide Blastr Video Blu-rays Books Columnists
Comic-Con Comics Comments Conventions DVDs Fandom
Galleries Games Gossip Green Week Horror Image of the
Day Infographic Interviews Links Lists Movies Music
News Opinion Polls Posters Reviews Rumors Science
Syfy Channel Theater Top Stories Toys Trailers TV
Video Web Weird Stuff
Most Commented
Astronomer uncovers the good, bad and WTF science of Prometheus
Latest Breaking Dawn Part 2 teaser reveals new vampire footage
Hoping for new Star Trek: TNG? Then you're about to get your wish
The Blastr App
Download for iPhone and iPad
Download for Android devices
Subscribe
Follow us
Become a Fan
About Blastr
Editors: Scott Edelman edi...@blastr.com Contributors: Tara Bennett
Marc Bernardin Nathalie Caron Adam-Troy Castro Krystal Clark Kevin Coll
Evan Hoovler Kathie Huddleston Matthew Jackson Chris Kalb Don Kaye Dave
Maass Michael Marano Brian Murphy Carol Pinchefsky Phil Plait Dan Roth
Jeff Spry Staci Layne Wilson
FAQ
Feedback
Terms
Privacy
Advertising
Newsletter Signup
About Blastr
©2012, Blastr. All rights reserved.
mobileleaptop
_
/'_/)
,/_ /
/ /
/'_'/' '/'__'7,
/'/ / / /" /_\
('( ' Fuck /' ')
\ You' /
'\' _.7'
\ (
\ \
POLITICAL CORRECTNESS IS DA DEVIL!
DON'T TAZE MY GRANNY!
BEWARE OF OL' JEEZL PETE.
2012: YEAR OF THE ROBBY.
rob
Jun 28, 2012, 2:23:35 AM6/28/12
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