Tuesday, October 22, 2013

31 Days of Horror 4: Originals vs. Remakes DAY 22




The Thing From Another World (1951) vs. The Thing (1982)
Original
In an Arctic research station, scientists come across a crashed UFO in the ice. They soon attempt to recover the ship, but while doing so, Captain Patrick Hendry (Kenneth Tobey) accidentally destroys the craft. The only thing that is left is the UFO’s pilot, which they take back to their base.
The alien is eventually thawed out and he comes back to life.
This is a very well made flying saucier movie, not because of its effects but for its characters and plot. Yet, my biggest problem with this movie is that it always seems like they’re walking through doors. There are a lot of doors in this movie.
Given its age it might not pack the original punch that it once had, but with that said it’s an outstanding film.
Remake
The Thing is one of John Carpenter’s stunning masterpieces. This is a remake done right.
The movie focuses on a group of scientists who are braving the winter in an isolated camp deep in Antarctica.
They soon come upon an alien spacecraft buried in the ice. Near the alien craft they find a body of an alien being, which has been frozen solid by the harsh environment. This becomes a find of a life time for the group and they bring back the alien body to camp and they let it thaw out.
Soon the alien awakens and turns out its not friendly and proceeds to take over the identities of the scientists.
It’s now up to Helicopter pilot MacCready (Kurt Russell) to lead the surviving men in discovering who among them is human and who is “the thing” that they must destroy in order to all survive. Their ultimate goal is to stop the alien from spreading to the mainland and infecting massive amounts of populations.
This is truly a horror classic. The special effects might seem dated, but over all, the movie really boils down to a very impressive who can I trust and who can't I trust kind of film.
I strongly recommend this movie for anyone, who’s looking for a good scare and something that will keep you on the edge of your seat until the very end.
Note
Many of you might wonder why I didn’t include The Thing (2011), well isn’t that considered more of a prequel than a remake? Yet, if you would like my quick opinion on it, here it goes.
The Thing (2011) is not a great film. It offers a lot of cheap scares and ends up trying to do what Carpenter’s film did so well and it falls on its face. Yet, there is some things in the film that make you believe that they were actually trying but in the end it’s mostly forgettable.
So, which is better?
Between the 1951 and 1982 films, I have to go with The Thing (1982).
This film takes the ideas from the original, makes them better and gives us effects that, for the most part, still work today.
Remake Wins

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