Cinema
The Thing
John Carpenter · 1982
Synopsis
Antarctica, winter 1982. The twelve men of an American research station see a Norwegian helicopter arrive, whose pilot is shooting at a sled dog fleeing towards them. MacReady, the station's pilot, and Dr Copper go to see the Norwegian base: charred ruins, an enormous block of ice and the burnt corpse of a deformed humanoid form, which they bring back. The dog, put in the kennel, transforms and absorbs other dogs; the biologist Blair concludes that it is an organism capable of perfectly imitating living beings, and mistrust spreads through the group.
Context
The original story, published in 1938, had already been brought to the screen in 1951, in a version that Carpenter had seen as a child. His first big-budget film for a major studio, he entrusted the creatures to Rob Bottin, barely over twenty, who worked on them for more than a year without taking a day off and designed most of them, Stan Winston taking charge of the dog. Contrary to his habit, he left the music to Ennio Morricone, asking him to use fewer notes.
Who it is for
A film of one hour forty-eight minutes, with an entirely male cast, in which the creatures are mechanical effects.
Prizes and reception
Poorly received by critics on release, two weeks after another alien film from the same studio, it has since been reassessed as one of the best of its genre.
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