Scary, yet dated.

Rating: 6/10 (3 July 2007)

SPOILERS People have always told me how great "The Thing" is as a film. So it was with high anticipation that 15 years after it's release, I finally got round to watching it. It's a shame that I waited too long though. "The Thing" is a good film. It's tension builds nicely and the acting well above standard. Unfortunately it's also blatantly an 80s film, is ridiculously dated, and the special effects are practically Jim Henson standard.
Not exactly a complicated story, the beauty of this film is it's occasional twists. Set in the arctic, it tells the story of a bunch of scientists (including a young Kurt Russell) who are conducting experiments. As events unfold however, it becomes apparent that they aren't quite alone.
So taking the good points of "The Thing", it has great tension, the acting is up to standard, and occasionally it scares the bejezers out of you.
It's just a shame that despite all that the special effects have faded over the years and the creature itself isn't really that scary anymore. Still, for what it is, "The Thing" is pretty damn cool!