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Scientists at an Arctic research station discover a spacecraft buried in the ice. Upon closer examination, they discover the frozen pilot. All hell breaks loose when they take him back to their station and he is accidentally thawed out!Written by
KC Hunt <khunt@eng.morgan.edu>
Scenes from this film are featured in John Carpenter's Halloween (1978) when characters, Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis), Tommy Doyle (Brian Andrews), and Lindsey Wallace (Kyle Richards) watch the film on TV Halloween night. As mentioned in another trivia entry, Carpenter later remade The Thing From Another World as The Thing in 1982. See more »
Goofs
As the flying saucer explodes, the camera tilts up to follow the blast, revealing the top of the Arctic backdrop built around the set. See more »
Quotes
Dr. Arthur Carrington:
[about the carrot]
Its development was not handicapped by emotional or sexual factors.
See more »
Crazy Credits
Only technical and production credits precede the film, no acting credits. See more »
Alternate Versions
The original 16mm U.S. television syndication prints were a slightly abridged 85 minute version. About 1980, when Turner acquired the RKO library, the syndication prints were replaced with the 79 minute re-release version. This shorter re-release version was also used for the initial video and laserdisc releases as well as the pay-tv and "colorized" versions. See more »
The Thing, released in 1951, is the original hostile alien movie, a must-see for fans of sci-fi and horror.
Major director Howard Hawks (Sergeant York, The Big Sleep, Red River, Rio Bravo) produced it but some sources (Leonard Maltin) credit him as co-director. Christian Nyby, a film editor for Hawks, is officially credited as the director. Whoever directed it, The Thing is an impeccably crafted movie. It's considered as a Grade B movie, probably because of its subject matter, but it's one of the best Grade B's along with Them and Invasion of the Body Snatchers.
A group of scientists at the North Pole discover something buried in the ice. Unknowingly they bring back part of it to the camp for study.
The acting is solid and the characters are given great dialog. Kenneth Tobey is the take charge Captain Patrick Hendry. Robert Cornthwaite is great as the slightly nutty Dr. Carrington. Douglas Spencer as Scotty is fun as the wisecracking reporter always looking for a photo. Margaret Sheridan is Nikki the shapely love interest. James Arness plays The Thing monster. With an ensemble cast of supporting actors. Be sure to rent the DVD version because it has a few scenes between Tobey and Sheridan that were always cut for TV and VHS probably because they were considered a little too racy for the time although now they are just cute.
The film has held up well for over fifty years. The film's contributors were seasoned professionals who had worked on major films. The screenplay by Charles Lederer (Mutiny on the Bounty, Ocean's Eleven, Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, His Girl Friday) is full of crisp dialog. The black and white cinematography by Russell Harlan (Red River, Witness for the Prosecution, To Kill A Mockingbird, Run Silent Run Deep) makes everything look right. The prolific film composer Dmitri Tiompkin provides a very eerie, theremin-based score.
After 50 years this movie rightly earns the label of classic.
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The Thing, released in 1951, is the original hostile alien movie, a must-see for fans of sci-fi and horror.
Major director Howard Hawks (Sergeant York, The Big Sleep, Red River, Rio Bravo) produced it but some sources (Leonard Maltin) credit him as co-director. Christian Nyby, a film editor for Hawks, is officially credited as the director. Whoever directed it, The Thing is an impeccably crafted movie. It's considered as a Grade B movie, probably because of its subject matter, but it's one of the best Grade B's along with Them and Invasion of the Body Snatchers.
A group of scientists at the North Pole discover something buried in the ice. Unknowingly they bring back part of it to the camp for study.
The acting is solid and the characters are given great dialog. Kenneth Tobey is the take charge Captain Patrick Hendry. Robert Cornthwaite is great as the slightly nutty Dr. Carrington. Douglas Spencer as Scotty is fun as the wisecracking reporter always looking for a photo. Margaret Sheridan is Nikki the shapely love interest. James Arness plays The Thing monster. With an ensemble cast of supporting actors. Be sure to rent the DVD version because it has a few scenes between Tobey and Sheridan that were always cut for TV and VHS probably because they were considered a little too racy for the time although now they are just cute.
The film has held up well for over fifty years. The film's contributors were seasoned professionals who had worked on major films. The screenplay by Charles Lederer (Mutiny on the Bounty, Ocean's Eleven, Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, His Girl Friday) is full of crisp dialog. The black and white cinematography by Russell Harlan (Red River, Witness for the Prosecution, To Kill A Mockingbird, Run Silent Run Deep) makes everything look right. The prolific film composer Dmitri Tiompkin provides a very eerie, theremin-based score.
After 50 years this movie rightly earns the label of classic.