The Thing [4K UHD]

My first encounter with John Carpenter's The Thing was back around November of 2001, where I only saw a snippet of the movie on TNT. Just my luck, I tuned in at one of the most gruesome scenes in the movie. Even at the age of 14, when I was more seasoned to creepy films, still found it too disturbing to follow through the rest of the movie, and just tuned in to something else (probably The Simpsons). I wouldn't come into contact with this movie for another eight years. In September of 2009, I went to the nearby Family Video to look for a good movie to watch. I found a copy of The Thing at the store, and looked at the description of it, and thought to myself "Hey, I remember watching a bit of this a while back." For a mere dollar, I rented The Thing and I don't regret it at all. STORY The Thing is set in Antarctica 1982 (when this movie was released), and an American research team is shocked when a Norwegian scientist lands his helicopter nearby and starts shooting at a runaway dog. Due to a language barrier and overall panicked state the Norwegian is in, he can't properly communicate to the Americans, accidentally blows up his helicopter, and shoots one of the Americans in the leg. The Norwegian ends up getting shot and the American research team takes in the dog that was fleeing from the helicopter. Things start to turn awry when MacReady (Kurt Russell) and Doc Copper (Richard Dysart) investigate the charred remains of the Norwegian research facility and bring back a mutated, humanoid corpse to their facility. CHARACTERS What I think helps make The Thing such a great movie is that the characters feel like real people. The cast is a group of men stuck in a research outpost in the Antarctic, and they certainly act like people who've been stuck in a frozen, confined place for a long time. They're not really bad guys, but they're certainly not people that are totally likeable. A lot of them are cranky, probably from being stuck in the same place out in a frozen continent. Palmer (David Clennon) sticks out as the most awkward of the bunch, since you see him smoking marijuana and rambling about some government conspiracies. While MacReady steals the show, Childs (Keith David) is probably my favorite since David is such a great actor and does a great job a playing a man with a sense of reason and is a tad against MacReady when he claims authority in the group. My only real grip with them is that they seem pretty unprofessional for a group of government researchers in the Antarctic, but this could also be that they're in a bout of downtime allotted by the government. It's also worth noting that Wilford Brimley plays Blair, a medical scientist who loses his mind in the wake of these Things taking over the crew of the research outpost. HORROR/SPECIAL EFFECTS Because The Thing is a sci-fi/horror hybrid, the horror element is extremely important. Thankfully, with director John Carpenter and special effects artist Rob Bottin working on this movie, The Thing has some of the best horror you can get in this genre. Thanks to excellent story and character development, a great location to set up the movie, and amazingly creepy monsters, this movie is replete with natural feelings of isolation, tension, and dread. Being stuck in a research center in the middle of Antarctica, not knowing that someone else in your research team might actually be a nefarious, invasive alien lifeform, this will certainly creep anyone out. Given the premise of alien lifeforms taking over other lifeforms with grizzly results, I can easily see how this movie was extremely influential to Visceral Games when they created the Dead Space series. Rob Bottin has to be one of the best special effects artists that ever worked in cinema. His animatronic monsters in this movie are some of the creepiest you'll ever see because aside from the fact that they look so disgusting, they look very realistic, too. It's crazy that this movie came out in 1982, yet the various Thing monsters in this movie look better than some of the best CGI effects available today. I don't want to give away too much of the scary parts in this movie, but one of the creepy scenes that sticks in my head the most has to be near the beginning, when that dog that escaped from the Norwegian scientists mutates in the dog pen and turns into a sheer abomination that doesn't look like any living creature of this Earth. It's funny to note that some of the materials used to bring these special effects to life, because according the documentary that came with the collector's edition DVD of this movie, Rob Bottin used a bunch of K-Y jelly to give the mutated creatures a slimy, greasy look. STORYTELLING Carpenter was at the top of his game when directing this movie, and like any director worth his salt, relies on the "show, don't tell" principle of storytelling. Only the necessary amounts of dialogue are used to give background to certain things. What really struck out at me was the scene where Blair was researching the Thing cells, and you see a computer screen depicting highly-pixelated images of the Thing cells taking over the dog cells (taken from the mutated dog's corpse) and spreading to the others. Not a single word was used to explain how the Thing cells work in this scene, yet it gave us all the information we needed to understand the Things. SOUNDTRACK Ennio Morricone's compositions in this movie are some of the best music compositions for horror motion pictures you'll ever hear. Morricone departs from his background in using a whole orchestra and uses primarily electronic keyboards to create the music here. The minimal nature of most of the tracks in the movie's score is perfect for the chilling atmosphere here, since it enhances the said atmosphere and imagery instead of distracting you away from it. The music here is so great, I actually bought an MP3 copy of Morricone's score for this movie. MATURE CONTENT This is not a movie for the kids to see. There's a good deal of profanity, some drug use, and intensely creepy monsters and gore. You see a dog mutate (with plenty of gore coming from the dog as it mutates) and attack other dogs after it mutates. There's also a scene where a man gets his arms bitten off by one of the Things and it mutates into something really ugly that I can't describe in words, you have to see it for yourself. There's also a scene of a slain dog with an ax embedded into its neck. I know that some people are pretty sensitive to seeing animals getting killed in movies, so if this is a concern for you, you may not like that scene or of the dogs getting attacked by one of the Things. FINAL WORD In John Carpenter's filmography, I think The Thing is his crowning jewel. If you love horror movies, this is a mandatory movie to have in your library. I should close in saying that sometimes, there is justice in the movie world. The Thing was originally not received well when it first came out, but thankfully it became a hit on video and has now gotten the "classic" status it totally deserves.

The movie itself is five stars, one of the best sci-fi horror films ever made. The 4K transfer on this UHD DISC is excellent on every level. There were previous 4K releases by other studios, but this Paramount release, in my opinion, is by far the best. So many 4K movies can be way too bright, or lack a classic film texture. This 4K of THE THING by Universal is the best this movie has ever looked! Amazing amounts of detail, and color. I remember this movie as a dark,, murky looking film. It is not. This is movie is beautifully shot and now, thanks to this disc, full of color! The black levels are dark, but full of detail and the whites are never bleached out. The sound is nicely mixed with big explosions that never over-power dialogue. I never once had to adjust the volume while watching this film (the way I do for so many overly-loud mixed films.) Wish it had more extras, but i found the making-of documentary to be really good, as well as the commentary track by John Carpenter and Kurt Russel. Buy this 4K over the Blu-ray or the DVD. You'll be glad you did! And if you don;t have a 4K player, what are you waiting for?

Movie 1 of 1982 and 91 overall in my journey through films of my lifetime. When I started this retrospective "The Thing" was a movie I had in mind as justification for the effort. From the outset I'll just say that this movie exceeded my expectations by bounding degrees. I could not have begun to imagine that this movie was this good. In the first season of "The X-Files" there was an episode that mimicked "The Thing" and I really didn't like that episode. In fact I never watched another episode of "X-Files" to this day. So when the prospect of watching "The Thing" came up I passed. My history with this movie doesn't end there though. In the 80's that family I spoke of in a different, earlier review had cable on all day. I would see scenes from "The Thing" on there periodically and it scarred the heck out of me. The practical effects are great even today but back them, as a child, it looked like a documentary. The highest compliment I can give this movie is that it is just a great story. I'm so dissapointed to read that it was a flop but at least it withstood the test of time. The sound effects and music were great for any time period. I was expecting dated synth but it was far from it. There may have been synth but it was so well done I didn't notice. Another compliment I'll pay this is that it's the best Lovecraft inspired film I've ever seen. I recently saw "The Color Out of Space" with Nicolas Cage and it was abysmal in my opinion. It suffered from similar issues but where they differ greatly is the quality of the story telling. So what criticisms could I share? Well I'm not a fan of the UFO at the beginning. In fact I think it proves my point I made in "Escape from New York" that Carpenter has a raw imagination. This can be a good thing too but I'm listing this as a bane. Why did we absolutely have to know that the creature was a space alien? It would have enhanced the story to leave the origins of the creature to the imagination of the audience. Another issue I had is directoral. Shot after shot lingered far too long on the creature. Again, imagination is the key and the effects would have looked even better in flashes, hints, and suggestions. I remember my dad explaning (years before "The Thing") what made "Jaws" so scary: you never saw the shark. My dad was right and I'm kind of surprised Carpenter didn't understand that. These are small gripes though. The good far exceeds the bad in this movie. Pros -great story -Lovecraftian feel -horror done right -incredible special effects Cons -over explains -lingering shots of effects A note on computer scenes in 70's and 80's movies. Still an area where the public knew so little that the imagination could run wild for film makers. The scene where the computer is diagramming and calculating the alien infection is almost nonsensical to me. I laughed out loud because this computer, in the middle of Antarctica, is the most advanced AI ever conceived. Story, especially cinematic story, needs gravity and the computer scene was creative exposition to accomplish this. One could get away with this back then but I'm very curious what a younger person today would thinking about this scene. We are aware now that computers just don't work this way. We still do this today to one degree or another though. Computer modeling is done for predicting virus outbreaks to weather changes. These models are far more often wrong than right and yet our imaginations make us think they have credence. It would be folly to laugh too hard at their efforts back then because we still hold computers to unrealistic standards.

This was a excellent movie they did a wonderful job putting it on 4k I was amazed at how good the picture was for a old movie well worth it and buying and watching it over and over again

Here it is. The movie that has become my all-time favorite. It's John Carpenter's "The Thing". I've seen this movie so many times. I own it twice on DVD, I own it on Blu-Ray and I even have a copy on the now defunct HD-DVD format. I regret not seeing it in the theaters back in 1982. I don't know why I didn't go. I was certainly old enough to appreciate it. Instead, I saw "E.T.". I got swept up in happy little alien fever. I went with the crowd. All I had to do was wander over to a differnet screen and watch Carpenter's creation in all its paranoid glory. Sigh... As with all good movies, music, or books, I experience something new every time I view it. I keep trying to piece together how the Thing spread throughout the camp. I keep looking for clues. Like when Blair performs an autopsy on the recently roasted Thing. While he's presenting his thoughts on what the Thing is, he absent-mindedly taps his pencil eraser on the steaming carcass, crosses his arms and brings the pencil eraser perilously close to his mouth. Then he makes a talking point by waving the pencil in the air and ever so briefly...it touches his lip! Did he infect himself? Is it too late?!?!? Has the Thing spread itself to Blair?!?! These kinds of moments fill the movie. It so suspenseful and so paranoid. And the isolation is torture. You know they all have nowhere to go. All those nameless men. Well, they aren't nameless, it's just that it's hard to remember them all. And the strange thing about it is, we still seem to care about them. I think that's because Carpenter has done such a masterful job of building the suspense through threat and isolation that we can't help but subconciously put ourselves into their places. There are so many great scenes. The opening helicopter-chases-dog scene. The horror of finding the Thing in the dog pen. The death and subsequent transformation of Norris. Wow! Is it gory! And in this particular case, I think the gore is absolutely necessary. That's kind of the knock on this film. The gore has been classified as extreme. And it is. But this is a story about such a faceless, out-of-this-world beast that it all seems so appropriate. And those effects. I don't think I need to say anymore than others have already posited about the very special practical effects by Rob Bottin. They have to be the best I've ever seen. Then there's the "blood test" scene. All of the men at the Antarctic station volunteer to give a blood sample and then have it tested, while tied to chairs, to see if it reveals which of them are actually the "Thing". One by one, a heated copper wire is placed into a petri dish of blood from each one of the men. Seeing the smoke rise from the wire when its touched to the dish of blood brings some relief. Will the next dish be Thing-free? You'll have to watch it and see for yourself. The setup and execution of this scene is one of the most intense and frightening things I've ever watched. I am very happy that this film has found it's place thanks to Home Video. It's now considered a Horror/Sci-Fi classic. It is without a doubt my favorite Horror movie, perhaps my favorite monster flick and quite possibly my top SciFi feature. It's that good. I don't understand why this Blu-Ray doesn't contain all of the extra features that are on the Collector's edition DVD. I think the "Making of" documentary is added as a picture-in-picture offering, but there's plenty of room for all of the other extras as well.

Great movie and Price!

I watched John Carpenter’s The Thing on 4K UHD with the new DTS:X soundtrack on my 7.2.4 Dolby Atmos system, listening right at reference level (0.0dB). This is a major step up from the Blu-ray version, especially in terms of video quality, though the new audio mix isn’t quite the immersive showpiece some might expect. Video Quality: The 4K transfer is outstanding, Universal’s remaster shows real respect for Dean Cundey’s cinematography. Film grain is intact and cinematic, black levels are deep without crushing detail, and the Arctic palette looks natural. The HDR grading adds depth and contrast but wisely doesn’t overdo it, it still feels like The Thing, just sharper, cleaner, and more film-accurate. Compared to the Blu-ray, it’s night and day in sharpness and texture fidelity. Audio (DTS:X): Here’s where opinions will vary. The new DTS:X track is good, dynamic, clean, and far better balanced than older DTS-HD MA tracks, but it’s not as aggressive in its use of height channels as some modern Atmos or DTS:X mixes. Rear and surround effects (howling winds, creaking outposts, off-screen movement) are well-placed and atmospheric, while overhead cues appear mainly during intense moments like the flamethrower scenes or helicopter sequences. The low-end is deep and controlled, giving the score and creature effects weight without overpowering dialogue. But if you’re expecting a full “ceiling-shaking” overhaul, this isn’t that. It feels like a respectful update, a faithful preservation of the film’s original sonic character with added space and clarity, rather than a total reimagining. Final Thoughts: This is still the definitive home release of The Thing. The picture alone justifies the 4K upgrade, and the DTS:X mix, while conservative, enhances immersion without betraying the film’s atmosphere. It’s a strong technical achievement, not a reference demo disc and that’s perfectly fine for a classic like this. Note: Listened at reference level (0.0dB) on the following system: AVR: Denon AVR-X4500H (pre-outs to external amps) Amps: Emotiva & Monolith power amplifiers Speakers: ELAC Debut 2.0 series (F5.2 fronts, C6.2 center, A4.2 Atmos modules, surrounds and heights) Subwoofers: Two REL T/1003 10” subs Player: Panasonic UB420 4K UHD Compared to streaming, the 4K disc is in another league cleaner HDR, more dynamic sound, and zero compression artifacts. It’s a must-own if you love this film, even if the DTS:X track stops short of being revolutionary.

Love this movie it’s a cult classic, watched it as soon as it arrived.

O melhor filme do John Carpenter e um dos melhores filmes de terror na minha opinião. Essa edição 4K está impecável, para quem não tem a TV certa, ou aparelho para rodar em 4K, também vem com o Bluray normal.

Llegó sin ningún detalle y rápido al otro día, es una excelente versión , se ve espectacular en pantalla 4k , trae un documental donde el director y todos los involucrados en la película cuentan el proceso de creación, todo subtitulado en español

Oubliez le prequel/reboot et jetez vous sur ce monstre du film fantastique/horreur qu'est The thing, paranoïa et effets gores mais surtout et toujours John Carpenter épaulé par kurt russell

No hay mucho que decir, la pléicula es buena. Sobre la presentación, no incluye demasiados extras, solo lo justo. Lo recomiendo.

One of my all time favorite movies added to my collection. Can't imagine what the audience in 1982 felt like, definitely were not ready for it. Didn't succeed at the time but became a cult classic and continues to live on. Great cast with a great storyline filled suspence and gore. Featuring awesome makeup and special effects for it's time plus a killer soundtrack by Ennio Morricone. Highly enjoyable in hi-def picture and sound.