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| I am Not an Animal! I am a Human Being! I am a Man... or am I? |
On the fourth Lynchian day of Christmas, we present John Carpenter's underrated science fiction horror masterpiece
The Thing (1982)—not to be confused with its inferior prequel of the same name released last month in movie theaters. Although not explicitly set during the holidays, the film beautifully establishes an Antarctic environment that powerfully captures the essence of winter. Like Ridley Scott's
Alien (1979) before it,
The Thing pits a group of humans against a frightening extraterrestrial invader. But in a Lynchian twist paralleling aspects of
Lost Highway (1997),
The Thing can transform itself into different creatures and people to survive among the humans incognito.
This ambiguity hints at true Lynchian terror on multiple levels as we call into question every character's identity and motives. Here Carpenter expertly swims in the same body of paranoia that Lynch's movies thrive in. And for those concerned about watching a dated horror film, you have nothing to worry about. In particular, the film's practical visual effects have not aged a day, easily surpassing the realism of today's computer generated effects. And even by today's jaded standards, the horror and gore of
The Thing still shocks and frightens. And it is always refreshing to see "man's man" actor Kurt Russell in his prime battle such a formidable enemy.
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All other movie directors and producers oughta hire hundreds of different Special Make-Up Effects Artists to make twenty-nine new 'The Thing' sequels. I hope they have all other actors to do a lot monster morphing transformation scenes.
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