Claustrophobic, frozen, fear.

Rating: 9/10 (27 March 2012)

I have not seen the original. But without having that as a comparison I can say that The Thing is easily one of my favorite horror movies. The plot follows researchers in the Antarctic who have to battle a shape shifting alien, pitting them against one another. Carpenter captures the feelings of isolation, claustrophobia, and paranoia that are so essential to making this story work. I will never, ever forget the score to this movie, while it is very simple I don't think a better one could have been made for the film. Aside from his ridiculous hat choice early in the movie, I would also say this is a pretty good performance on the part of Kurt Russel, not his best, but he plays his part perfectly. The special effects in this movie are worth mentioning as well. While some people would say it is outdated I think the grotesque creatures Carpenter helped bring to the screen work much better than those in the 2011 prequel which are all CGI. But I'm not sure that should be mentioned in the same breath as Carpenter's The Thing.