A Classic Horror Film

Rating: 8/10 (16 January 2006)

What makes 'The Thing' such a great film is that you appreciate it more and more every time it is viewed. What sounds like a fairly average monster confrontation, it achieved so much better due to its way of thinking:
"Less is more.... but when you want more, you go over the top!"
It may not be expected but there are actually few monster scenes during 'The Thing'. Suspense is drawn and a huge amount of time is given for the characters to develop, particularly the way they interact with one another. As well as each member being very believable, you can imagine that such a team actually exists. As with the more well known 'Alien', seeing the characters goof around by eating, playing pool and the like draws you into the experience far deeper than just letting an actor play a stereotype. Some of the script is also hilarious, such as the captains suggestion on the couch.
Once the scene has been set, the fairly sedated start wakes up with one hell of snarl. You have never seen any monsters before like this, not ones which look so realistic. Todays audience is constantly bombarded with CGI effects, to the point where we can instantly tell when they are being used. 'The Thing' is 'Old School' with its effects, displaying some truly unbelievable anamatronics. For todays audience, we are able to spot the flaws in these effects, but at the time I imagine that the audience would of been absolutely stiff in their cinema seats. To put it straight, these are some of the best effects ever to grace a film. Its worth bearing in mind that 'The Thing' was beaten to the Oscar for special effects by 'E.T, the Exrta-Terrerestral'. Hmm.
Saying this, we all know effects don't make a film. But they certainly add to the atmosphere. If the film was remade with CGI effects, it just wouldn't have the same effect. The film also stands head and shoulders over other horror films due to the 'Who did it?' element that is maintained throughout. You will be constantly guessing who 'The Thing' really is, adding another physiological element to the film.
However, there are some aspects which stops 'The Thing' from being truly great. The music throughout is fairly dire, and laughable when you give it attention. The ending to the film is also quite a disappointment, snatching a satisfying conclusion just from the viewer at the last minutes. When viewing the film as a whole however these points are particularly minor, especially considering what this film has going for it.
'The Thing' is a film that will not leave the viewers memory for a long time, and is one you will certainly be telling your friends you watched last night. There isn't anything else out there quite like it, which is a crying shame. If all horror films were more like 'The Thing', the world would be a better place...