The Thing
"Not all of us are human." - Kate
release year: 2011
genre: horror/sci-fi
viewing setting: home Bluray 12/22/15 and theater, 10/16/11
synopsis: The three days immediately prior to the events of the first movie are explained here, as a Norwegian camp finds and excavates a space ship and its frozen occupant…a creature that not only isn't dead, but wants to kill everything around it.
impressions: This movie could be called a remake, though it's a prequel. Whatever the case, it's pretty good. It does copy a lot of elements from the original, but it's also suspenseful and (to an extent) unpredictable in its own right. There are plenty of scares and surprises, and a lot of gore. The monster effects had more CGI than the original, but I didn't find myself analyzing or criticizing any of the special effects - they worked just fine. I did have a minor issue telling some of the characters apart, as bearded guys in heavy clothing and often covered with frost do tend to look alike. The filmmakers here should get a nod for the little touches that made this prequel attach perfectly to the other movie.
something this movie has that no other movie has: A creature with two heads/faces half-melted together.
acting: Mary Elizabeth Winstead is the American scientist who comes to Antarctica to help the Norwegians with their discovery. Joel Edgerton and Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje are American helicopter pilots. Ulrich Thomsen is the head Norwegian guy, and he's a jerk. After that, the rest mostly merged together for me, into a big group of potential victims.
final word: A fine prequel that stands on its own.
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