The Thing From Another World

This shall be a review of the 1951 film, 'The Thing from Another World'. I shall also be reviewing the 2 disc edition DVD. So, without further ado...First of all, I would just like to state that it very much depends upon what you are looking for when it comes to watching this film. If you like the old 1950s American B movies, then this movie is very much so for you. However, if you seek plenty of gore and special effects, then I would suggest watching either John Carpenter's remake of this film from 1982, 'The Thing', or, indeed, the 2011 prequel film of the same name.If you like a film with plenty of dialogue, character development and a little bit of suspense, then this film is also for you.Finally, just to point this out, if you happen to have a good knowledge of the situation in the United States c. 1951, then watching this film shall really stand to you as it certainly picks up on this. This is best seen through the conflict between the scientists who wish to examine the creature, the news reporter who wishes to broadcast the story of its finding to the world, and the army who must wait for orders. Put simply, all of this evokes the feeling of the post Hiroshima/Nagasaki world within the film in the sense that people became very much afraid of what they did not understand and how things that we do not understand are perhaps best left alone. Basically, that is the main point of this movie as a whole. All in all, it makes for a very good one.With this 2 disc edition of the film, you get the original black and white version with a commentary track by John Carpenter and the colourised version on the first disc. Both of these versions are excellent, and this is especially the case with the colourised version of the film. It really is like watching a brand new film - the little things you notice are just fantastic! Then, on the second disc, you get a remastered version of the original black and white feature. For me, this was worth the extra bit of money alone. I mean, forget Blu Ray - the quality of this version, for a DVD, was absolutely incredible. An excellent purchase all round, in my opinion.So, to finish up, with 'The Thing from Another World', it all very much depends upon what you are looking for. If you love a classic 1950s American B movie, then this is definitely the one for you. If you prefer gore and special effects, consult something else entirely as you will not find it here. Lastly, if you are a fan of this film and want to get the best of all worlds, I highly recommend this 2 disc edition DVD. An excellent and essential purchase!Thank You for reading this review. I hope it helps.

Absolute classic

The Thing from Another World is set at The North Pole and finds a bunch of US airmen, scientists and a journalist getting more than they bargained for when they investigate a space craft frozen in the ice.What is most striking about the film is its basic human story of team work, the pulling together during a crisis, this theme is a big shift from the short story by John W Campbell Jr. (Who Goes There?) Where that story and later John Carpenter's wonderful remake focused on paranoia and mistrust, this film is something of the "polar" opposite (literally) as regards the group in peril. It bears all the hallmarks of producer Howard Hawks, who clearly influenced Nyby's direction. The script, with its pros and cons of military and scientific society, is very much of its time, blending po-faced observations with straight backed joviality. But this all works in the film's favour and helps define it as one of the most important science fiction pictures ever made.Along with the other major sci-fi movie of 1951, The Day the Earth Stood Still, "The Thing" firmly brought the visitor from outer space idea into the public conscious. But where the former film intellectualised its alien visitor, resplendent with a message of worth, the latter is about terror, pushing forward the notion that the visitor here is a monster that wants to drink our blood and attempt World domination. No major effects work is needed here because one of the film's bright spots is only glimpsing the creature (James Arness) in little snippets, and this after we are made to wait for some time before things kick off. This begs us to think for ourselves as regards this stalking menace. Putting us firmly with this intrepid group of people, and we want to see them survive and we care if they do succeed.The low end budget doesn't hamper the atmosphere or flow, in fact Nyby, Hawks, cinematographer Russell Harlan and music maestro Dimitri Tiomkin, work wonders to ensure there's a level of authenticity to the Arctic base and that peril is never far away. Not hindered by many of the clichés that would dominate similar themed genre pieces that followed it, film neatly taps into fears that were to become prevalent as the 50s wore on. It may not be perfect, but a genre star it still be, so watch the sky tonight indeed. 9/10

Good old classic film

One of the best old films I’ve seen