You can take your pick on what the best sci-fi horror movie ever made is.Perhaps you’re partial toRidley Scott’sAlien, or maybe you thinkJamesCameron’sfollow-up,Aliens, is better. More modern examples, likeA Quiet PlaceandAnnihilation, are up there too, but if you’ve never seen perhaps the greatest of them all, you’re in luck, becauseJohn Carpenter’sThe Thingis now streaming for free on Tubi.IfAliensis arguably the rare sequel that improves on the original, then 1982’sThe Thingis the rare reboot that surpasses what came before. In 1951,Christian NybydirectedThe Thing From Another World, and although it was a great ’50s monster movie, Carpenter recrafted the story into a visual shockfest that left audiences stunned. Over 40 years later, it still wows people when they watch it for the very first time. Or even the 10th.
‘The Thing’ Made Showing the Monster Scarier Than Not
There is a convincing argument to be made that not showing the monster in a horror movie is way more effective than letting us see the horror in all its glory. What we can imagine is far more terrifying than what a director and special effects team can put on screen. As proof, look no further thanJaws. You don’t even need to see the shark to be scared. Just a shot of someone in the water,withJohn Williams' score in the background, is enough to have you clenching the arms of your seat. A quarter of a century later,The Blair Witch Projectbecame one of the biggest horror movies ever madewithout showing us the witch even once.
1951’sThe Thingdid this well too, hiding the monster in the shadowsfor most of the movie, but it sort of fell apart with the end reveal that showedJames Arnessin lumpy prosthetics. That same approach couldn’t be used for the reboot.The Thingis, after all, about an alien coming to Earth that infects its hosts and replicates them. We needed to see what it was capable of, sowith the genius of Rob Bottin, Carpenter’s version delivers some of those most shocking practical effects you’ll ever see. The alien is shown repeatedly in full light, twisting into impossible shapes that make you want to run away screaming.
In 2011, Hollywood attempted a prequel with the same name, and while it’s a fine enough movie,it falters because of the horrible decision to use CGI for the monster. Never does the alien in this version ofThe Thingfeel real. Carpenter’s movie will make you squirm though, because you can almost reach out and touch the monstrosity.
The Message of ‘The Thing’ Is Just as Powerful Now
All films, especially horror, are political, andThe Thingis a prime example of this. The original came out in the 1950s, with Communism having become America’s boogeyman, making us think that no one could be trusted, because anyone, even our own friends, could be one of “them.” That paranoia wasn’t effective for the 2011 movie, but it was sure there in the early ’80s, whenwe were still afraid of Communists and Russians, with the Cold War as part of our daily lives.
Every Performance in John Carpenter’s ‘The Thing,’ Ranked
“If I was an imitation, a perfect imitation, how would you know if it was really me?
WatchingThe Thingall of these years later is still as impactful.The COVID pandemic was filled with distrust of everyone around us. An infection had spread, and no one knew who had it without a test to confirm it. We have learned to live with that distress, but our deeply divided political climate has highlighted another. With so many wanting to divide us into two opposing groups, not just Americans butthe whole world is gripped with deep paranoia, fear, and anxiety. It’s not difficult these days to fear the other side just as much as we might a shape-shifting monster.
Audiences Are Still Debating the Ending of ‘The Thing’
There is one more thing that has given John Carpenter’s film an enduring legacy. The 1951 original was a simple monster movie, but in the 1982 film,the paranoia and distrust were excruciating because anyone could be the alien. We couldn’t even trust our very own hero, R.J. MacReady (Kurt Russell). With his cool hair, charisma, and bravery, he might’ve felt like a badass hero, but could he be infected too? Carpenter repeatedly showed the audience that no one was safe, and he drove the point home with his purposely frustrating ending.
Without giving it away, only a few men remain alive in the last scene ofThe Thing. We hope that the alien is dead, but with how our survivors look at each other,they wonder, and we wonder too, if it lives on inside one of them.It’s unnerving how Carpenter chooses to wrap up his iteration, but it putsthe themes of the movie front and center.InThe Thing, paranoia reigns, and no one can be trusted, from the beginninguntil the bitterly cold and cruel end. If you’ve yet to watch it, rectify this as soon as possible. Just like everyone else who has seenThe Thing, you’ll never be able to shake yourself free from its hold.
