Carpenter's Genius on Celluloid

Rating: 9/10 (22 January 2003)

John Carpenter's "The Thing" is a fantastic sci-fi/horror film with an interesting story and good special effects (for 1982). Carpenter turns what would've been a lesser film in the hands of another(except possibly the great Quentin Tarantino)into a slam packed film in which the suspense is great and the various revelations pose more questions than answers. Kurt Russell oozes cool as helicoper pilot MacReady who only wants to get out of Anarctica and go home. The plot is one of my favorite aspects of the film: a remote Antarctic research station is infiltrated by a creature that is thousands of years old and can assimilate any body and become a carbon copy. Paranoia and fear run rampant as the residents try to discover which one of them isn't who they claim to be. The writing can get corny at times but the script hold tight enough. Carpenter's direction in the horror genre is untouchable and this film is a glaring example of why. Upon first viewing it instantly became a favorite of mine, and I hate horror.Should tell you something about the quality, kids.