The real brain-twister is trying to decide who got changed where and when. I understand there’s even a website dedicated to puzzling it out.
To get the full effect, you need to watch it alone. At night. In the dead of winter, with at least six inches of snow on the ground.
I know you gentlemen have been through a lot, but when you find the time, I’d rather not spend the rest of this winter TIED TO THIS FUCKING COUCH!
One of the best Carpenter movie soundtracks ever! Morricone’s THUMP THUMP THUMP at the beginning is fantastic!
Althouigh I do love the Christian Nyby/Howard Hawks original, I really do love the 1982 version. It’s incredibly faithful to the original John Campbell short story “Who Goes There?”, except that it goes past the hopeful ending of the story tio an ambiguous downer ending. Great effects, though, and a script by Burt Lancaster’s son(!) If you watch it on DVD you can see the animated footage that was thrown out becauswe it didn’t quite match the style of the rest of the film (except for a couple of seconds tghat were used in the film).
TRUE STORY: A few months after I started working, my boss took a sabbatical to lead asn expedition to Antarctica. Despite this coolness, he had been an annoying guy, so we chipped in to give him a gift for his trip. They were taking a ship down to Antarctica, and would have plenty of time with the VCR, so we gave him a tape of the 1982 version of “The Thing”.
You know, I wish you hadn’t posted this. I lay awake part of last night trying to place a couple of the infection timings.
And as a result I now see that Wilford Brimley was infected at least before he wigged out and started destroying the base. The Wilford/thing was trying to get itself isolated so it could work on its spacecraft undetected, and in the process isolate the outpost and make the helicopter available for parts. It hung a noose up conspicuously in the shed to convince the others that it was still loony and should be kept locked up.
I would watch The Thing but I’m a big wuss and can’t do it on my own.
First thing when I get my hubby back, we’re sitting down & watching it I think.
I disagree. I think he was infected after he was sent away and the infect-er did it as well as got him a bunch of techno-goodies. Otherwise how did all the equipment get down there? And was the tunnel already there or did it rig a melter?.
There’s also questions like: would it replicate knowledge? Does it copy memories? Injuries, if applicable?
I blame John Carpenter’s The Thing for making me watch Annie. I went to see the original when it came out at a theater close enough to my apartment to walk instead of drive. A friend was supposed to meet me, but got a better offer, so I foolishly watched the movie by my (young, impressionable) self. Afterwards, there was no damn way I was walking home in the dark alone, so in desperation I went into the next theater and watched “Annie”.
I was able to walk home afterwards, but my brain eased it’s Thing-trauma by overlaying with the only slightly less horric images from Annie.
Criminal misuse of Albert Finney.
It certainly must have been able to replicate knowledge, to some degree. It could speak English, which is one of those things most unthawed alien creatures have a hard time with. It also know enough cultural elements to enable it to fit in seamlessly with the rest of the station (“Windows! Why are you putting that spoon in your ear that way?” “Why? Am I doing it wrong?”) You’d think it’d pick up some memories as well.
By the way, I agree with Love Rhombus
[spoiler] Wilford Brimley’s character was un-hijacked when he started wrecking things – the whole point was to cut them off from contact and prevent a call for help that would bring others to the station. The Thing wouldn’t want to do that. It was only forced to build the saucer – in the story it’s actually more like a flying belt – after that option was closed to it, and it had to get out on its own.
As for how it got the parts and dug the hole – it was a shape-shifter. It could assume whatever shape it needed to ooze through the slats or the windows of the hut, or to easily dig a hole in the ground. [/spoiler]
There was a non-gore scene that still is pretty good in the horror category:
Wilford/Thing is infecting Donald Moffat’s character in the back of the generator room, with his hand covering Moffat’s mouth. No screaming, no gore, but still, creepy to me.
I pretty much Agree. Though…
[spoiler] I could see how during his study he could have been infected.
Here’s an odd thought. Sometimes it appears whoever is a THING doesn’t realize it until set off by something (electroshock paddles, blood tests etc).
For example look who uttered the infamous line “You’ve got to be fucking kidding me” Sure, it could have been an act, but by uttering that he alerted everyone else to the presence of the other THING not good for self preservation.
Perhaps, Brimley was infected, but didn’t know it until alone in the cabin and prepared to kill himself he “awoke” was there anything that indicated he had been visited by one of the others? [/spoiler]
I don’t think it was capable of becomming ooze. When it was escaping after getting part of itself flamed by Kurt Russel in the dog kennel, it grew powerful arms and smashed it’s way out of the kennel through the roof. It didn’t turn to ooze and seep out.
It’s awesome. Get a PS2 or Xbox if you have to play it.
Hey, EVER notice how the Big box office hit of that year doesn’t generate half as much discussion on this board… Yeah I’m looking at you E.T. Your glowing assed finger nearly buried two favorite films of mine because they were dark and had no cutesy kids or whimsy
Didn’t mean that it couldn’t. It’s just got a limited imagination – it always seems to use parts it’s seen before. If you look close, you’ll notice this in most of the transformations.
In any event, I didn’t literally mean ooze – I meant that it could adopt a thinner form to squeeze through tight spaces.
Hey, come on, kingpengvin, turn on your heartlight!
Speaking as a fellow wuss, I recommend you taking a deep breath and watching it. If you watched and liked Alien and its spawn (ha!), you’ll like this one. It’s truly a classic. If I did it, you can do it!
For example, did it copy a weak heart, or was it faking a heart attack?
Ahhh Arrrggg grumble grumble… Maybe for some Reese Pieces…