The Thing

Neither a sequel nor a remake, this Thing is a prequel to John Carpenter's same-titled 1982 horror thriller, based on 1951's The Thing From Another World, which was inspired by John W. Campbell Jr.'s classic 1938 novella Who Goes There? Set in Antarctica, circa 1982, the story follows a group of Norwegian explorers who discover a deep crevasse containing a huge spacecraft piloted by an alien, encased in a block of ice. Arrogant scientist Sander Halvorson (Ulrich Thomsen) recruits paleontologist Kate Lloyd (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) to help with defrosting in order to examine tissue samples, and a bizarre killing rampage ensues. The survivors eventually realize that the extraterrestrial is a shape-shifter, attacking human prey and absorbing their DNA, before replicating the victim's appearance—until the next mutation. Predictably, this leads to serious anxiety and paranoia since no one really knows who among them is the morphed monster. Adding to the panic over the mounting carnage is confusion caused by a blinding snowstorm. Directed by Matthijs van Heijningen Jr., The Thing serves up creepy, claustrophobic, and even comedic elements, but as the film moves along it also grows increasingly more inconsistent and incoherent. Optional. [Note: DVD/Blu-ray extras include audio commentary by director Matthijs van Heijningen and producer Eric Newman, “The Thing Evolves” production featurette (14 min.), deleted scenes (9 min.), “Fire & Ice” (5 min.), and trailers. Exclusive to the Blu-ray release is the “U-Control” picture-in-picture viewing option with interviews and behind-the-scenes footage, as well as bonus DVD and digital copies of the film, and the BD-Live function. Bottom line: a solid extras package for a subpar remake.] (S. Granger)