The Thing 1982

Well when there is nothing on at the local cinema its time to revisit the old blu ray and DVD collection. Last weekend and before the big Christchurch Quake I was in the mood for a little classic horror. I had just managed to get the blu ray version of John Carpenters classic 1982 remake or I prefer re imagining of the Thing.
Unfortunately the timing of this classic films release was awful putting it up against ET a film which offers a more positive take on alien visitation.
I remember my first introduction to this tale was Howard Hawkes original 1951 movie which took a more classic route with the source material. ie a almost Frankenstein like alien monster. But as a classic it had its own iconic moments which John Carpenter tipped his hat too. Such as the men measuring out the circumference of the saucer they discover in the polar ice.
What Carpenter did was instead of revisiting Hawkes movie wholesale he went back to the source material John W Campbell Hr "Who Goes There?" and turns up the idea of being taken over and the paronoia that would take over those trapped with the creature.
The last version of this I had on HD DVD prior to that DVD. Yes I backed the wrong format in the disc wars of three years ago. Well in my defence I had an X BOX and the HD DVD drive was a lot cheaper to purchase than a blu ray player. The Blu ray is superb nice natural grain giving a very film like appearance. Colours rich very much a product of its time.
Revisiting this classic after almost 3 years I allowed myself to get sucked up in the story again, brilliantly adapted by Bill Lancaster ( yes Burt Lancaster's son) To the point when the infamous blood test scene came up I leapt out of my skin. That's a sign of good horror and a reminder why CGI may not always be the way to go. In fact the Wolf-man remake is a perfect example of practical effects over digital. They had Rick Baker do the make-up for the title beast but the transformation was digital. How ridiculous was that, American Werewolf still stands out as a remarkable transformation scene.
  Rob Bottin of course did the practical effects and in this film they are a total force to be reckoned with and after viewing remain in the minds eye.Kurt Russell is once again the tired anti hero, though I would say more a survivor than hero, tired and jaded and more than a little pissed with life and this alien invasion isn't progressing his day well.
 Well sometime this year, the prequel will be released, focusing on the initial discovery at the Norwegian base. I'm sort of excited but i wonder how it will pan out. It has pretty big boots to fill but has a promising cast and first release images look interesting. But you know digital and practical effects will be on the table this time and I wonder if it will be a marriage made in heaven or hell.