Wednesday, October 12, 2011

The Thing (2011) Review

The Thing is not a remake but a prequel to the 1982 John Carpenter film of the same name.  Fans of the original will have problems with this film, but audiences of today will more then likely enjoy it.

I found the origin of The Thing interesting the whole how they discovered it idea.  I enjoyed the setting and most of the characters.  It's a good thing they didn't over glamorize Antarctica by placing a bunch of model-esque actors in the snow.  Seriously, that would have cheapened the film, but overall, they did a fine job with casting.

Mary Elizabeth Winstead (Deathproof, Scott Pilgrim vs. The World, Final Destination 3) is a solid actress.  She leads this film with a confidence that is not seen in many 20 something women in the horror genre.  Her character is submissive at first but inquisitiveness which only makes the almost entirely male crew pissed off at her & want to protect her, though she takes the reins and really owns this film by the end.

 My only gripe was adding in Eric Christian Olsen (Fired Up, Beerfest).  I think he was supposed to be Winstead's friend possibly a love interest, I'm not sure what they were thinking.  He's not a bad actor by any means he's just no meant to be in a horror flick as a scientist.  It's just odd.

 Also, the CG is a bit overwhelming.  Yeah, we know what the thing is studio people, but the allure of the original is what you don't necessarily see.  Horror_Guy Keenan from Bloody-Disgusting Radio hit the nail on the head when he said to me, "They stayed on the Thing's faces for far too long."  He's exactly right.  There was no scare tactic here, it's just drawn out by 30 seconds to a minute of you staring at the Thing as it attacks it's victims or as when one of the things is killed.  They just LINGER on the creature too long.  It's a bit annoying.

 The one thing (ha, ha) that I would have liked was a cameo from Kurt Russell.  But alas, it did not happen and I was disappointed.

 If you are near a Universal Studios this Halloween season you can check out "The Thing" house at Universal's Halloween Horror Nights.

 I say it's a 7 out of 10.  Not horrible, but not amazing.  Solid performances from all the actors.  Bad CGI.  But it's enough to keep you interested for 2hrs.





@JesseKozel

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