Review: The Thing (2011)

The main reason that this movie works so well for us is because instead of being a remake or sequel, it ended up being a prequel.

Sure, John Carpenter's 1982 classic was itself a remake, but it was, and still is to this day, a superb Horror movie in its own right. When we heard that it was getting the redux treatment, we cringed and wished death on whomever came up with the awful idea of messing with such an absolute classic. Having now seen it though (under protest), we have to admit that we were wrong, and that the 2011 version of The Thing was a pretty damned good movie.

Yeah, it's behind you.

It bears similarities to the 1982 version, as well as having some very Alien-esque moments as well, but it's not entirely fair to call this a new version, is it? It is in fact a prequel, so really, it's its own entity. Even if it had been a direct remake, we'd be hard pressed to hate it. If you liked Carpenter's 1982's opus, there's really no reason you shouldn't enjoy the hell out of this one too. It's not as good of a film, but it doesn't have to be, because it's good enough for what it is.

Here are 10 reasons why we liked this prequel:

Mary Elizabeth Winstead- She's no MacReady, but come on man, she's way hotter than Kurt Russell, even with his epic 80's beard.

Joel Edgerton- Because he's awesome. If you haven't seen Warrior yet, you should check it out asap. Great flick.

Eric Christian Olsen- Because he's funny as hell in Fired Up, and is awesome as Deeks on NCIS:LA. And am I the only one thinking that he would make a pretty good serial killer?

Mr. Eko- Because he was one of our favorite LOST characters, and because trying to spell his real name is way harder than just spelling Mr. Eko. So... Mr. Eko it is!

The FX- Because even though they were more computer-generated than practically applied, they were still pretty awesome.

This Thing- Because the way it turned it's head was creepy.

The Oral Sex Scene- Because anytime some alien tries to ram its overpositor down someones throat, it's a good thing.

This Thing- Because what in the hell is going on here!

Whatever This Is- Because it reminds us of Christmas, and it makes us believe that aliens love Christmas too.

The Scene After The Credits- Because it was just pure nostalgia love.

This was a good addition to The Thing mythology and series; it's a great Sci-Fi creature flick, much like its 1982 inspiration was, and the fact that it's a prequel really does make it that much easier to swallow. Hopefully this movie will inspire the younger generation to seek out the 1982 version, and watch both of these flicks back to back. That really would be a pretty good double-feature. Jesus, that just made me sound old.

 B+

The Thing is available now on Blu-ray, DVD, and VOD.

Let's take a minute to admire Kurt Russel's Epic Beardness circa 1982; he looks like a sexy, bad-ass Dan Haggerty, don't you think? Minus the bear, of course.