The Thing (1982)

User Rating:

8.1/10   

Director:

John Carpenter

Writers:

John W. Campbell Jr. (story)
Bill Lancaster (screenplay)

Release Date:

25 June 1982 (USA)

Genre:

Horror | Mystery | Sci-Fi | Thriller

Tagline:

Man is The Warmest Place to Hide.

Plot:

Scientists in the Antarctic are confronted by a shape-shifting alien that assumes the appearance of the people that it kills.

Plot Keywords:

Dog | Helicopter | American | Alien | Scientist

Awards:

3 nominations

US TV Schedule:

Thur. July 16

8:00 PM

MAX

Cast

Kurt Russell	...	R.J. MacReady
Wilford Brimley	...	Dr. Blair (as A. Wilford Brimley)
T.K. Carter	...	Nauls
David Clennon	...	Palmer
Keith David	...	Childs
Richard Dysart	...	Dr. Copper
Charles Hallahan	...	Vance Norris
Peter Maloney	...	George Bennings
Richard Masur	...	Clark
Donald Moffat	...	Garry
Joel Polis	...	Fuchs
Thomas G. Waites	...	Windows (as Thomas Waites)
Norbert Weisser	...	Norwegian
Larry J. Franco	...	Norwegian Passenger with Rifle (as Larry Franco)
Nate Irwin	...	Helicopter Pilot

Also Known As:

John Carpenter's The Thing (USA) (complete title)

Runtime:

109 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Norwegian

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.20 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby (35 mm prints) | 70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints)

Certification:

Germany:18 (SPIO/JK) | Finland:K-16 (1999) (uncut) | Finland:K-16 (1989) (cut) | Finland:K-18 (1982) (cut) | Finland:K-15 (DVD rating) (2004) | Germany:16 (original rating) | Iceland:16 | Finland:(Banned) (original rating) | Portugal:M/12 | Argentina:18 | Netherlands:16 | Denmark:15 | New Zealand:R16 | UK:15 (re-rating) | Australia:R | France:-12 | Hong Kong:III | Ireland:18 | Italy:VM18 | Norway:18 | Singapore:M18 | South Korea:(Banned) (original rating) | South Korea:18 (re-rating) | Spain:13 | Sweden:15 | UK:18 (video rating) (1987) | UK:X (original rating) | USA:R | Germany:BPjM Restricted

Filming Locations:

Kimberley, British Columbia, Canada

Company:

David Foster Productions

Trivia:

At a horror convention Q&A session in 2008, Keith David (Childs) was asked if he ever knew who, at the very end of the movie, was infected with the alien. He smiled and said, "Well, I don't know about (Kurt Russell), but it sure as hell wasn't me."

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: Right after Fuchs yells on the intercom to turn the music down and we see his request ignored by Nauls in the kitchen, the following scene that slowly dollies from right to left in the empty medical room, the moving wheels of the dolly and a man in a light blue shirt pushing the dolly are clearly seen in the reflection of bottom and top pane of glass of the stainless steel and glass medical cabinet. Especially visible on the Blu-ray version.

Quotes:

Childs: You're gonna have to sleep sometime, MacReady.
MacReady: I'm a real light sleeper, Childs.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in The Many Masks of Michael Myers (2007) (V)

Soundtrack:

SUPERSTITION

One of the best scary films I've seen

Hitting the video store late on a Saturday when all of the current films were unavailable, we ran across The Thing in the "classic" racks. I've seen this film at least twice before and truly enjoyed seeing it again. If it lacks plot or character development, the premise is frightening enough to make it an engrossing film. The gross-out special effects don't hurt either. For me, The Thing ranks with Alien as one of the best scary films I 've seen.