The Thing (2012) Review

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Synopsis:

It’s not human…yet.

Antarctica: an extraordinary continent of awesome beauty. It is also home to an isolated outpost known as Thule Station. There, a crew of international scientists has unearthed a remarkable discovery. But elation quickly turns to terrifying paranoia in the thriller The Thing, as the group of researchers encounters something inhuman that has the ability to turn itself into an exact replica of any living being.

Review

The Thing. Ah the age old “Creature Feature”. They are quite a dime a dozen these days, so I was rather pleased to see that this motion-picture was coming out and furthermore it being a prequel and not another remake. For those of you who don’t know, this originally was made in 1951 (under the title, The Thing from Another world) from a 1938 Novella and then was remade in 1982 by John Carpenter, which is the more widely known version. I am a big fan of said film and it really is a true classic. With that in mind, I was slightly concerned if the director would be able to pull it off. I am quite happy to announce, it was very enjoyable and ties in nicely to the remake.

The film begins with a traditional method of introduction to the characters to give us a better understanding of where the cast stand. The acting is decent all round and everyone fits well. I especially liked our Heroine and felt she portrayed her part most grand indeed! There is a bit of foreign language spoken that they don’t use any sub titles for, but I think it adds to the film. One of the main highlights of this movie (apart from the creature), is the feeling of paranoia. It was rife in the remake and I am very glad it comes through superbly in this addition.

It plays a big part to what the film brings across as scary, as being paranoid can be a frightening experience on its own, especially when put in a certain situation or not knowing who people are or how they will react. The story stays reminiscent to the 82’ motion picture of the same name, be it in the score or the classic old school Universal sign that appears in the beginning of the movie (not to mention a nice tribute to a certain scene that only viewers who have seen the previous version will notice). They really do try make it feel like you are living what happened all those years ago.

With 99% of the flick being in Antarctica, there are some beautiful shots of the mountain ranges and lots of the fluffy white stuff, with the other 1% of the film residing inside the outpost where our cast are living. It doesn’t vary a lot, but you should definitely feel as though you are far away from civilisation, in the middle of nowhere, without much help (or someone to hear you scream) – that alone can be quite daunting.

Creature features can go two ways in how they like to use their effects, be it either CGI or Prosthetics/Body Suits to portray our star monster. This film goes for the latter. Personally I really enjoyed the graphics. They could have been done a little better in certain parts, but are still great to watch, giving us some truly gruesome scenes. I feel the way the “Thing” is portrayed, a body suit wouldn’t have done it much justice, we needed a fast, lean, mean, killing machine and…we get one!

At the end of the day, “The Thing” is an ominous tale that is pulled off very well, giving us an inside to what actually happened leading up to the 1982 film. It has likeable characters who you actually want to win, above average effects and decently paced story that shouldn’t bore you at all and definitely keep you thinking. I kept on wanting to see how it would end! If there are any downfalls to be said, it’s that a few scenes can be predictable. The film has been unable to gross any profit thus far making $30 Million on a budget of $35 Million, which is quite sad really. Be sure to stay seated once the movie has fade to black, for it is not over just…yet.

Worth the watch if you are a fan of horror and would like your own opinion on the movie, interested in watching a horror with bit of a difference or a fan of the 1982 film…you could actually watch them back to back as one long horror.

Trailer

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