Relive the Paranoia

Since The Thing Week is over, I figured that I would create this page so that you can easily navigate through all the Thing posts that I published for The Thing Week. That way you don’t have to sift through the actual feed. I’ll also have the links to my reviews as well as trivial stuff dealing with The Thing that I previously published. So in essence this is somewhat of a recap.

The Thing Week (6/21 - 6/27, 2010)
My Childhood Encounter
Ode to the Original
The Beauty of Puppets
A Tribute to Albert Whitlock
Knick-Knacks and Things
In Memoriam
‘Ice’ from The X-Files
The Thing Game Retrospective
Review – The Thing by Kevin Carr
Review – The Thing by Death Rocker
The Legacy of The Thing

The Thing Week (6/20- 6/26, 2011)

A Brief Look Back

Fan Made Posters

YouTube Things

A Survivor's Tale

The Comic Series

The Initial Response

Concluding Thoughts

Other Articles

Preserving the Thing

Review - The Thing (2011)

Charlie and the Thing
The Thing & The Faculty
Poster Postcards: The Thing
Review – The Thing (1982)
Top 10 Things from The Thing
Top 10 Horror Movies That Shaped Me

Thank you all and I hope to do this again sometime.

The Legacy of The Thing

Well folks, it’s been a fun ride but I must end The Thing Week. In all honesty, I probably could have made this into The Thing Month but I decided not to for time sake. As you can see, not only in my case but in other people’s cases as well, The Thing is a horror film that is very close to my heart. It’s not just a horror movie but it was the first horror movie to truly give me night terrors. It was the first horror movie that made me want to go into filmmaking. It was the first horror movie that I remember getting involved with. I can’t tell you how many times I used to play The Thing with my friends. It’s a movie that will go down in history as being the best of the best.

I want to end on a few stories that people had with The Thing. If you have been following me on Twitter, I have been asking the horror community to share their personal experiences with The Thing and surprisingly only a few answered. Though I am sort of saddened that not many people wanted to share their experience, I know that The Thing meant a lot to them. So below are some Thing stories that I would like to share.

“My asshole stepdad ushered me into the horror genre at a very young age. What sucked though was we were never allowed to pick out what WE wanted to watch. So I was a bit sheltered on the horror I watched back then. The very first movie I ever picked out by myself was 'The Thing' and I have to say... I have excellent taste. Bringing that movie home completely changed the face of horror for me. I started caring about characters and plot development and story lines and F/X. There is no doubt in my mind that my love of writing and filmmaking in general is all because of John Carpenter and 'The Thing'.”
- Gore Whore of Twisted Central

“The Thing is one of those movies that has always stuck with me ever since I saw it as little kid. I must have seen it on either video or during the early days of ghetto cable. It's just a great movie. Not just a great horror movie. It's a great story and terrifying concept. A group of regular guys just doing their jobs are confronted by a monster that can take any shape or identity in one of the deadliest and isolated environments on Earth. Brilliant and at it's core, a very simple concept. The movie still holds up and like a great book or comic book, it gets better with every viewing. The effects, the pacing, the cast are all great.”
- Alvarado/Darthbx of Devil’s Advocates Movie Reviews

“Aah, The Thing. Thanks to my horror friendly parents and their horror friendly friends, I saw this back in the 80s when I was around 11 years old. Special effects to me at this age meant a bit of blood on Christopher Lee's mouth, so this was something of an eye-opener! Right from the start this was clearly going to be a high point in my young life, but once that dog’s head split four ways it became a defining moment. I can watch this film again and again, and it will never cease to amaze me. John Carpenter may have erred since, but to me he will always be a star.”
- Dave McGuigan

“When I was nine and reading in Fangoria that he was redoing The Thing I went crazy, especially knowing that Snake Plissken would be in it. I begged my dad to take me to the drive in on opening day. When the credits rolled I was in the back of my dad's pick up truck... and I told myself... that is what I want to do with my life. It was a turning point. Because of Carpenter's Thing I went on to study film at the University of Texas at Austin (Hook Em') and earned my BS in Radio-TV-Film. Since then, I have worked and made many films. The rest is history. I don't think Carpenter and Bottin realized during production just how much of an impact this film would be on filmmakers in years to come.”
- Mr. Newerbeg

“I was 11 when I saw The Thing at the Las Vegas Drive In. I loved it of course. I consider it my 2nd favorite movie of all time behind Alien. Really you can't see a horror movie set in snow without wishing a Thing Creature is lurking around. Also, out of all the sci fi horror monsters out there, The Thing creeps me out the most. The Thing is one of those monsters that would be near unstoppable. You just couldn't beat it in real life. Fantastic, incredible, and completely possible. Terrifying.”
- Metal Alien of Outpost 31

“To this day it still bothers me. The fact that something can take control over you just bugs me. Also how isolated they were”
- Patrick Johns

So you can see how The Thing has impacted all our lives and inspired us in some cases. But what do the people who worked on the film have to say? I grabbed a few quotes that I think really typifies how great this movie is.

“It’s also, basically, the lack of trust that’s in the world now. We see it all over. Countries, people – we don’t trust each other anymore. We don’t know who to trust. We’re with somebody that we think maybe they’re our loved ones and they may attack us. That’s what The Thing is.”
- John Carpenter, Director

“It’s a good film, and it’ll survive for that reason.”
- John Lloyd, Production Manager

“Any makeup effects guy in the world that you talk to will say, ‘I got into that business because of that movie. Because of John Carpenter, because of Rob Bottin’s brilliant makeup effects.”
- Greg Nicotero

I also want to thank the two people that contributed, be it on purpose or coincidence, to The Thing Week. Thanks guys!

Midnight Movie of the Week #25 – John Carpenter’s The Thing
from the blog: From Midnight With Love

The Thing
from the blog: Obscure Emotion

Ultimately all good things must come to an end and this is the end of The Thing Week. I hope you, my fellow Islanders, had a great time reading my numerous Thing posts. I’m thinking about doing another Thing Week in a few months time so if you have any suggestions or remarks on this week, please feel free to tell me.

As a great film once said, “Watch the skies, everywhere! Keep looking. Keep watching the skies!”

The Thing Week: Ice from The X-Files

As many of you know I am a huge X-Files fan and well before I even started The Thing Week I went through all the seasons of the show and watched every episode. One episode I cam across in the first season stood out because it reminded me of The Thing and that episode is called ‘Ice.’ Low and behold, ‘Ice’ was a direct adaptation, of sorts, of The Thing as well as Who Goes There? The episode was very well-received by X-Files fans however, though I thought it was good… I don’t think it’s one of the best episodes of the season.

The basis of writing this episode came from Glen Morgan who read about a group of men in Greenland that dug up something in the ice that was about 200,000 plus years old. For Thing fans, it’s easy to see where the episode borrowed from The Thing and Who Goes there and Carter (Creator of The X-Files) himself stated that his biggest influence was The Thing. The basic concept of the episode is about Mulder, Skully, three scientists and a helicopter pilot trapped in an isolated research station with a parasitic alien worm that uses the human body as a host. The episode relies on trust and paranoia to make the audience feel uncomfortable and claustrophobic.

While looking up some information on Ice’s relation to The Thing I found a few interesting facts that Carter put in to make this 45 minute tribute complete. While looking through the credits of the episode I noticed a character named Campbell, which I initially thought was a tribute to John W. Campbell and my speculation was correct. Graeme Murray designed the complex in which the episode took place and coincidently he designed the entire complex in Carpenter’s The Thing. This next observation is not really backed up but is more of a personal observation; Dr. Hodge (played by Xander Berkeley) bares a striking resemblance to Palmer (played by David Clennon) in The Thing.

‘Ice’ does a great job showing the intense paranoia between all the people in the complex. It manages to keep that tension between people in such a short amount of time. The complex is also very claustrophobic and with the mentioning of the heat, it makes the audience member get psychologically hot as they are trying to figure out who is who. I absolutely enjoyed the characters and I was pretty depressed that Bear died because he seemed like the strong character in the beginning. Hell, the episode didn’t really have that much gore and still accomplished a surreal and nightmarish reality. I think the problem that I had was the pacing; it just seemed a little off and ultimately made the episode a little rushed.

Much like The Thing, The X-Files uses science to explain how things work with the parasitic worm and the explanation is so fascinating but the only difference is that the worm is a little less aware than the Thing. To me, like many other times, it’s very interesting to see the roots of The Thing as well as Who Goes There extend into other sci-fi and horror realms.

"Before anyone passes judgment, may I remind you, we are in the Arctic"
- Fox Mulder

The Thing Week: In Memorium

With The Thing reaching it’s 30th anniversary, I thought it would be nice to take a look back and reflect on some of the most talented people who passed away since the movie opened. It’s always sad when somebody great dies and it’s even sadder when that person is connected to something that you truly cherish. If it weren’t for these people, The Thing would have never made it past the ‘idea’ stage and if it did, it wouldn’t have been what it is today. Here are some of the great people who worked on The Thing that passed away since then. They truly will be missed.

Bill Lancaster
(1947 – 1997)
Screenwriter, The Thing

John W. Campbell Jr.
(1910 – 1976)
Writer, Who Goes There?


Charles Hallahan
(1943 – 1997)
Actor, ‘Norris,’ The Thing


Jed
(1977 – 1995)
Actor, ‘The Dog Thing,’ The Thing


Stan Winston
(1946 – 2008)
SFX on Kennel Scenes, The Thing


Albert Whitlock
(1915 – 1999)
Special Visual Effects, The Thing

Mentor C. Huebner
(1917 – 2001)
Production Illustrator
Conceptual storyboard artist, The Thing

Wilbur Stark
(1912 – 1995)
Executive Producer, The Thing

Henry Larrecq
(1910 – 2005)
Art Director, The Thing

Warren Hamilton Jr.
(1933 – 2009)
Sound Effects Editor, The Thing

All of these men had since worked on other great movies and TV shows following The Thing and led really great lives. They will be missed but they will not be forgotten.

Credit for this article must be given to Outpost 31 since they came up with the concept originally. I just added my own touch to it.

The Thing Week: Ode To The Original

The Thing from Another World debuted in 1951 and generated a slew of positive reviews and comments but people back then didn’t realize that this little sci-fi film would cause so many inspirations and open the door to a new style of filmmaking. It also sparked a huge controversy over who really directed the film as opposed to who is listed under the credits. From what went from a short story to one of the greatest sci-fi films of all time to becoming one of the greatest horror films of all time, The Thing From Another World aka Who Goes There has a brilliant track record.

Who Goes There found it’s way into Astonishing Stories in 1938 and it found its way into the Science Fiction Hall of Fame. It was adapted in 1950 by Howard Hawks and Christian Nyby. However, a controversy sparked when the director was credited to Christian Nyby and not Howard Hawks. It’s easy to see the Hawks style filmmaking throughout the film but yet Nyby apparently directed and edited it. It’s a debate that has been circulating around sci-fi and horror fans alike and it has been speculated that Hawks let Nyby take the credit so that he can gain Directors Guild recognition. Some people say that Nyby directed but he was kept under strict restraints by Hawks, either way it seems like Hawks is getting the credit.

However, the legacy of The Thing From Another World is the filmmaking style, which was coined by Hawks. There were elements in the film that had never been seen before in a sci-fi film and those included the tight editing, the witty dark humor, and the overlapping dialogue, the reoccurring them of man vs. nature that Hemingway pioneered and the role of men in terms of taking action instead of talking. These aspects would later be seen in some of Hawks’ other films as well as films from modern day directors. The roots of some of the best sci-fi horror films trail all the way back to The Thing From Another World. That film opened the door to sci-fi films as well as alien and sci-fi subcultures and if it weren’t for that film, studios would have been hesitant to release 1953’s War of the Worlds.

This film inspired a few films directly both in the early days of filmmaking and in the modern era of film. In 1966 Francis Lyon brought us Destination Inner Space, which was a direct adaptation of The Thing From Another World only this time it took place underwater instead of in the Arctic. In 1958 It! The Terror From Beyond Space was released and took the paranoia and the claustrophobia of The Thing and made it a near space odyssey. Ridley Scott as stated that The Thing From Another World was one of is influences for Alien as well as It! But I think Roger Ebert states this concept in a better way:

“Its most obvious influence is Howard Hawks’ ‘The Thing’ (1951), which was also about a team in an isolated outpost who discover a long-dormant alien, bring it inside, and are picked off one by one as it haunts the corridors. Look at that movie, and you see ‘Alien’ in embryo.”
- Roger Ebert

The idea of a group or a team of people fighting off a dangerous predatory alien in a confined or secluded place is all too familiar within the sci-fi and horror realm. It doesn’t even have to be an alien but rather a stalker or a killer. Films like Predator or even Halloween both have these aspects and especially Friday the 13th. It took the ‘red herring’ shock that Hawks Incorporate in this film to the extreme. The teens would open all the doors not finding anything until the last door only to find the killer standing there. It’s arguable that even if a film doesn’t directly credit The Thing From Another World as an influence, it inadvertently credits it by using Hawks’ technique. In fact, films like Close Encounters of the Third Kind and ironically E.T. were influenced by the ’51 classic.

The film, in 2001, made it into the National Film Preservation Board and was labeled ‘culturally significant.’

Further Reading:
The Thing From Another World on DVD Journal
America's Most Heart-Pounding Movies
1950's Sci-Fi on Time Magazine
The Thing From Another Wold on Time Magazine

Sources:
The Thing From Another World aka The Thing on Moria
Alien (1979) on RogerEbert.com