Editorial Review:Description:Members of an Antarctic research team are killed off by a frozen alien they uncover.
Amazon.com essential video:With its modest special effects, lean plot, and small cast of lesser stars, this 1951 thriller remains a sturdy blueprint for fusing horror and science fiction. The formula has been employed countless times since, fleshed out with more extensive and elaborate production values, and manned by higher profiled marquee names, but the results have yet to improve on
The Thing from Another World, Howard Hawks's lone foray into sci-fi.
The story begins as military airmen are dispatched to a remote Arctic research station where scientists have detected the crash of a spacecraft. An effort to retrieve the saucer-shaped vehicle fails, but the team returns to the station with the frozen body of its sole occupant. When the extraterrestrial pilot is accidentally thawed, the crew, headed by a tough-talking pilot (Kenneth Tobey), grapples with a massive, chlorophyll-based humanoid (James Arness) thirsty for blood and in no mood for galactic diplomacy.
Hawks takes only a production credit for this low-budget exercise, but his filmmaking style transcends Christian Nyby's nominal direction: rapid-fire, overlapping dialogue, an ensemble of comrades whose professionalism is tempered by wisecracks, and unsentimental female characters (embodied by feisty romantic interest Margaret Sheridan) recall Hawks's signature works, while propelling the plot over any potential gaps in credibility. It's hardly surprising, then, that
The Thing from Another World remains among the most influential science fiction movies ever shot, or that it remains exciting entertainment a half century later.
--Sam Sutherland
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The Thing from Another World Movie Review from The Massie Twins
Directed by Christian Nyby and produced by legendary Howard Hawks, The Thing From Another World is a masterly science-fiction film based on the short story "Who Goes There?" written by Don A. Stuart. Later remade by John Carpenter as a horror film, this 1951 classic remains a thrilling example of creative filmmaking and spine-tingling science fiction.
In the North Pole, a group of military personnel and a reporter (Douglas Spencer) leave the base to investigate mysterious activity near an isolated research facility. Discovering a fascinating spacecraft that crash landed in the ice, the group uses thermal charges to unearth it, but accidentally destroy it instead. Locating one of the UFOs passengers thrown from the explosion, the scientists insist that it be brought back to the lab to run tests and research. Without delay, the frozen spaceman thaws and wreaks havoc on the unsuspecting scientists and soldiers, who must battle distrust and differing opinions on how to handle the deadly creature.
Paranoia is shown differently in the film and is more faithful to the source material than Carpenter's vision. The Army group and the scientists are constantly at odds, not because of the fear of the creature assimilating one of the crew, but because they have opposing ideas on how to manage the terrifying new discovery. Carpenter's variation has the Thing capable of taking over the body of anything it touches, constantly changing its appearance and shape-shifting as a form of camouflage and defense.
James Arness stars as the towering creature, and while he's menacing and lethal, his design is nowhere near as gruesome or horrifying as the mutating atrocity from the remake. The Thing in both films is equally deleterious, and here it is actually more intelligent. It is not a creature that could have traveled as a plague aboard another alien spacecraft, but a being that could have been the original pilot.
The most noticeable difference between the two films is that one is purely science-fiction, and the other clearly leaps into the realm of horror. Suspense is stimulated in similar ways, as the crew is isolated in the harsh arctic environment, but Carpenter's chameleonic, effects-heavy monstrosity actually outdoes its predecessor in sheer visual appeal and spontaneity. The Thing From Another World uses clever dialogue and many more individuals to create a complex setting, but nothing can beat the dark corridors and writhing tentacles witnessed in the remake. With a much larger group of potential targets, The Thing From Another World has a surprisingly small body count, chiefly because it doesn't dwell on constant death, and obviously because of the stricter sense of censorship that existed when it was originally released.
Excellently adapted and tightly directed, this film is an amazing example of science-fiction that stands the test of time. With amusing dialogue, a brains vs brawn subtext, the frightful isolated setting, and first-rate action, The Thing From Another World was voted onto AFI's Top 100 most thrilling films list and is a shining example of 50's science-fiction.
- Mike Massie
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A hit from the old days
This black and white was made in 1951, the year before I was born. I saw it on the big screen when I was very young and it scared the snot out of me. I still love it, especially Ken Tobey. He was in a bunch of these. The remake was great with better sound and special effects. I have a world-class McIntosh theater system so I can appreciate modern technology. I still love films like this one and even the color Hammer films because they are SO successful at that whole suspension-of-disbelief thing. Very moody. Watch this and Kiss of the Vampire for your Halloween double feature. Turn down the lights and have some popcorn ready ...
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DC-3's and Thermite Bomb's, Not To Mention Blood Thirsty Plants!
Old Time Horror. Yes The Original real Deal. "Keep Looking To The Skies" First make of this classic horror tale that debut's (Matt Dillon) as the "Monster". Arctic research station uncovers alien frozen in ice after space ship crashes and is destroyed by thermite bombs. Real serious good vocabulary speaking military types fight off alien invasion around 1950's. Now a part of my collection before the price goes up!
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The Thing - The Best!
Decent DVD of what I consider the best of the 1950's horror films. It doesn't have all the bells and whistles of other DVD's, but it does have a crisp copy of the film and nothing seems to be missing. So sit back and enjoy the movie. And keep watching the skies!
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The Thing
This movie is a true classic. It's well written, directed, and the acting is superb. I love the light-hearted banter among the characters.