Cast: Kurt Russell, Wilford Brimley, T.K. Carter, David Clennon, Keith David, Richard A. Dysart
Director: John Carpenter
U.S. Distribution: Universal
U.S. Release Date: 1982
Running Time: 2:07
MPAA Rating: R
Leave it to John Carpenter to get The Thing right (again).
Movie fans tend to expect something better - or at the very least, different - when it comes to remakes. In this case, a 1951 horror classic is given a new face, and it is a visual delight.
In the new version set in Antarctica, Kurt Russell and a 12-man research team do battle against a terrifying alien with the ability to separate and replicate other living beings. After doing a wild dog act, it's on to the humans who are quickly reduced in number to a mere handful or so. If there's one thing "The Thing" hates it's fire, and before long, the survivors are blastin' everything in sight with flamethrowers and explosives.
Roy Arbogast, Rob Bottin and Albert Whitlock team up to show just how far special effects have come in the 30-some-odd years since James Arness prowled the Arctic in a monster suit.
© 1999, Delton Perrodin