Rating: 
Summary: Still Holds Up Beautifully
Review: First off, on the Hawks vs Carpenter issue - suffice it to say that both versions are outstanding. As for the Hawks vs Nyby issue, any Hawks fan can tell this is his work simply from the Margeret Sheridan character; she's not so much the now-stereotypical 'strong' woman as she is quick-witted, resourceful and sensible - a Hawks trademark. And, finally restoring my sanity, comes verification that Paul Frees is in the movie, uncredited...for years I could've sworn that was his unmistakable voice issuing from Dr Voorhees, but there's no onscreen credit for him. (You sit through enough 70s trailers, you start hearing that voice in your sleep.) Many people make the mistake of assuming THE THING is a right-wing fantasy, pro-military and anti-science. It's absolute nonsense, but as we now live in a time when any positive depiction of uniformed servicemen is seen as some kind of coded hate crime, it's pathetically understandable. (Note the Tobey character deliberately disobeys orders, at the risk of a court-martial, in killing The Thing to save his friends and, quite possibly, all humanity.) In fact, the most refreshing and touching aspect of this tightly-written, beautifully-paced picture is the simple common decency and humanity of nearly every character. Even the nominal villain, Robert Cornthwaite's scientist, is shown to be misguided and overwrought, not evil. At the very end when the headline-hungry reporter, radioing in his story, protects the scientist's reputation by referring to him simply as a wounded participant, one of the soldiers commends him for his selflessness with "Attaboy, Scotty". Some fascist, huh? You put that scene verbatim in a modernday film and no doubt our more enlightened audiences would boo at the top of their lungs, demanding blood. So don't watch this expecting expecting the exploding rigatoni of the '82 edition; rather, savor it for its slowly mounting tension and deeply likable and civilized protagonists.
Rating: 
Summary: Wonderful wonderful film!
Review: I loved this movie. Not only was the plot believable, but the actors were terrific! The camaraderie among the players actually make you believe that they've worked together for a long time and that they truly like one another! There is a version of this movie that has ALL the scenes in it, that explains the broken ski on the plane incident, how close Kenneth Tobey and Margaret Sheridan really are, why the doctor acts so stupidly when the evidence is clearly in his face that the Thing is dangerous, etc etc. It's too bad that that one isn't available! But, all in all, still a great movie to watch!
Rating:
Summary: Looking forward to a DVD issue
Review: Will somebody please put this classic on DVD. I can't wait another fifty years. I gave an old vhs copy of this movie to a friend. She said she watched it with her daughter one night and they actually jumped during scenes that caught them unaware. Later, she felt foolish because she couldn't believe that an old black and white movie from the fifties had that kind of affect on her. What is taking WB so long?
Rating:
Summary: Classic science fiction film.
Review: Well, I'm glad to see that, after 100 years, this movie finally made it to the video shelf. I thought John Carpenter was my only hope. This movie is not all that suspenseful (how can it be when the monster can be scared away?) but it is a classic and rightfully so. Hawks and company have succeeded. If you don't own this then you aren't a true GUNSMOKE fan.
Rating:
Summary: it's a thing, thing
Review: a seminal film in many ways. the first 'thing' opened the door for the sci-fi explosion of the post-war era and also bolstered the fledging alliance of science fiction and horror. but unlike most of what came in it's wake, the thing is not merely a matinee potboiler. this film is also a virtual textbook of american middle class attitudes of the 50s, not only toward science and alien contact, but also toward the relationships of men in groups, men toward women, and the relationships of americans toward science, nature and religion. this is not to say that the film an intellectual gab fest, although it does rely heavily on dialogue. one of the delights of the thing is the fact that it can be taught in cinema class and you can still enjoy it as a 'movie' on the late-late show. despite the crude effects--the pacing, lighting and narrative create an eerie and uncertain atmosphere that persists despite the self-congratulatory ending. this film is also notable for the mysterious extra directorial hands, usually credited to howard hawks, based on his men in groups themes and cinematic blocking. but there are also rumors of an orson welles influence, probably due to the use of wide angles, contrasts of light and dark and low angle shots. thirty years later, john carpenter did an equally brilliant if very different rendering of the original john campbell short story. taken together, both 'things' make for one of the most instructive, original and frightening double features of american b-movie cinema.
Rating:
Summary: One of the best thrillers
Review: When this low budget film came out in 1951, it was an immediate hit. The film makers have created an intense, eerie atmosphere in which to introduce their "alien". The overlapping dialogue works well, and the relative unknown cast carries the day. A five star thriller if ever there was one.
Rating:
Summary: One of THE classic Sci Fi Films!
Review: In a age when special effects frequently overwhelm the films they are in, THE THING still stands the test of time as a textbook example of intellegence and writing. While the shocks may be diminished somewhat with the passage of time, , this movie, tightly Directed (by the uncredited Howard Hawks) and wonderfully written, still entertains, and keeps the viewer on edge. Unlike most horror films, the characters become 3 dimensional, the shocks come from the story, as opposed to cheap thrills or gross outs. And there are 3 sequences that still make viewers jump. I saw this film at a revival in 1994. The audience was set to enjoy what they thought would be a campy 50s monster flick. But within 15 minutes, they wer caught up totally,. And when one of the films big suprises happens, (for those who have not seen it, I will not give it away) this audience jumped as much as their parents did in 1951. This is, along with INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS and THEM, are the best scary science fiction films of, not just the 50s, but for all time.
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Summary: What I Really Like About 'The Thing' -
Review: - is the fact there are two female characters, neither of whom screams, faints or becomes hysterical at any point in the proceedings. The screaming, fainting and hysterics are provided by the male cast - not that they don't have every reason! Hawks was of course well known for his strong, savvy female characters.
Rating:
Summary: The Thing (From Another World)
Review: With all due respect to director John Carpenter (whose adequate screen version followed the original plot of "Who Goes There?" more closely), this '51 release tops it. Howard Hawks' masterful direction of the little known actors and Lederer's (screenplay) snappy dialogue lends a lifelike reality...it makes the viewer feel like part of the action. Dmitri Tiomkin's ("High Noon", "The Alamo", "The Guns of Navarone", etc.)eerie score rounds out the thrill. A must for the avid scifi/horror collector. I only hope that the DVD is not too far behind!Red
Rating:
Summary: Sci-Fi Classic at its best - simple, chilling and taut
Review: This is truly one of the 50s classic "invasion from space" films. Kenneth Tobey stars as an Army Air Corps aircraft commander who leads a contingent of U.S. airmen and civilian scientists who battle an alien lifeform for control of a remote North Pole scientific research station. Written in the early days of America's flying saucer paranoia, it details how the seemingly-dead occupant of a crashed flying saucer, discovered by the science crew, comes to life and terrorizes the members of the polar research station who have been cut-off from help and reinforcement by a severe polar blizzard. The alien, played by James Arness (Matt Dillon of later Gunsmoke fanme), lives on the blood of humans he kills and uses the blood to nurture his newborn young. The cast and crew of this low budget, black and white film are talented and deliver a taut, edge of your seat performance. As cited in the closing line of the film, "Look to the skies. Keep looking. Keep looking." This video is a bargain at twice the price for true, classic scifi afficianados!
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