<span class="SFPTagline"> From SCIFIPEDIA </span>

The Thing
Release Date	June 25, 1982
Genre	Sci Fi, Horror
Director	John Carpenter
Screenwriter	John W. Campbell Jr. (story) Bill Lancaster
Stars	Kurt Russell Wilford Brimley T. K. Carter David Clennon Keith David Richard A. Dysart
Studio	Universal Pictures

John Carpenter's The Thing (1982), as well as Howard Hawks' earlier version in 1951, are based on "Who Goes There?," a story by the famous editor John W. Campbell, which originally appeared in 1939 under his pen name, Don A. Stuart.

In a way, the story is a re-telling of H. P. Lovecraft's At the Mountains of Madness—set in the Arctic (rather than the Antarctic as in Lovecraft) and emphasizing the horror of contact with the truly alien.

The story involves the discovery of an alien intelligence, buried for 20 million years in the Arctic ice, a life-form both telepathic and able to change its shape. The central aspect of its horror hinges on not knowing who among the team that discovered the alien is human, and who is not.

This version is noted for its special effects, particularly when the alien may not be fully transformed.

External Links

• The Thing at IMDB.com
• The Thing at MRQE.com

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