This will not be a long winded review at all. John Carpenter’s The Thing is a horror classic and for years I have heard people asking for a sequel. In 2011, we got a prequel. This may have been a better idea. I bought a used copy of the DVD back in 2012 at some point, cheap. I didn’t expect anything from it and I had friends that scolded me for even wanting to watch the prequel. Others called blasphemy, but let us remember…the Thing from 1982, John Carpenter’s the Thing is a remake. Why not see what the prequel had to offer. Nothing is sacred anymore, movies, video games, comics…you name it, there will be a remake or a sequel and sometimes a prequel. If there is a movie and it has a cult following, Hollywood likes to cash in as much as they can, sometimes it backfires. This prequel, did not fair well in the theater, not making its budget back, so…sometimes, we the fans spoke. But was it the right decision?
The movie takes place, days before the 1982 classic. A paleontologist Kate Lloyd (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) is recruited by Dr. Halvorson to investigate an alien spacecraft is discovered beneath the Antarctic ice at a Norwegian research base. They find the ship and a being frozen in ice. They are back to excavate the being, keeping in the ice. But Dr. Halvorson drills into the ice to get a sample. Eventually the Thing breaks out of the ice and wreaks havoc.
There are some problems with this one. A lot of the plot barrows from the Thing. But how could it not. We have a movie that the “monster” can transform into anyone. The original they did a blood test to tell who was human and who was the thing. They tried to something similar but it was sabotaged. During the coarse of the movie we find the Thing cannot duplicate things like fillings, so that is what they use in this one.
But with all of the similarities, it was entertaining to watch. I do feel it was very unnecessary movie. The 1982 the Thing was a little more mysterious and now we know about the ship and what happened right before. It was not a bad movie, the ending was actually the best part. It leads right up to the very beginning of the classic. That part was really charming to me, I really enjoyed that and I was ready to watch the Thing again.
I knew this would happen, but there is more CGI than I would like. It makes sense and gives film makers the chance to do things, nearly impossible. That was one of the best things of the 1982 movie, practical effects. To me, it made the movie ahead of its time. CGI didn’t look too bad overall.
I like this prequel, it has its faults, but it works very well. If you’re one of those fans who can’t handle the fact a prequel was made, don’t watch it. But I suggest checking it out, I may buy the Blu Ray. Who knows, The Things from Another World was released in 1951, The Thing in 1982 and this 2011, maybe 2042 we will finally see a sequel. I actually thought this was going to serve as the sequel before I saw the trailer.
What did you think?
IMDB.com rates it will a 6.2
I give it a slightly better rating of 6.6
