I have wanted to write about this for a very long time, but I did not at first because, in the back of my mind, I thought some people might not get it. But I have realized, who cares about the opinion of others, especially if all they are good at is bashing others and keeping people uninformed? Haha…. So, I have come to the decision that I should not hold back what is in my heart because being able to write intelligently with passion is a rare gift that should be shared with everyone who visits the entertainment section of this website. No one deserves to be in the dark or not part of the mix of things. I treat all readers as equals in my mind.

Now that I have gotten that out of the way, with my little token of wisdom or cheesiness, whatever it may be, haha…. If you have yet to watch “The Thing” (1982) starring Kurt Russell, then you are missing out on a lot! This sci-fi horror masterpiece of the grotesque, the ugly, and the disfigured order is a must-watch for everyone, especially if masterfully crafted sci-fi horror is your thing. While “The Thing” leans more towards its sci-fi elements, the alien itself is a constantly changing menace, a shapeshifting entity that has no permanent form until the very end, when we see it become this abomination of alien gruesomeness, coolness, and ugliness. Haha…. Seriously, this movie is a trip!

If you want to scare your friends or give them many jump scares or possibly barf! Haha… Make them watch “The Thing” and witness what it can do to many moviegoers because if there is one movie right now at the top of my head that is best to be watched with family or friends or both, as long as you are all old enough and let us not forget mature also, naturally, I would recommend this movie. After all, I know when a movie is in a different sphere of quality that puts it in a whole new classification in itself, and you can bet that ‘The Thing’ is that for sure.

Historically, “The Thing” was released during a time when Hollywood frowned upon films that embraced such ugliness, yet I believe it is ugly in a good way! This may sound like a contradiction, but “The Thing” deserves all the praise it has received since its release in the early 1980s. It revolutionized practical effects, the use of puppetry, and special effects like never before. The team behind these practical effects, led by the genius Stan Winston and others, truly made this film worthy of its accolades. To me, it was Oscar-worthy to win at least that category.

Hey, it’s much better than pretending to act against CGI, such as what happened with the prequel to “The Thing” in 2011. To put it bluntly and yet so eloquently, that movie sucked because they scrapped the idea of using practical effects when all the puppets were already ready to be utilized for the movie, which was a critically wrong move on their part, and they admitted that. A ton of fans of “The Thing” (1982) were disappointed they did not go the practical effects route because the puppets looked much, much better than the ones they used decades ago. Proof: more often than not, going “old school” in movie making is still the way to go, especially if it belongs to the sci-fi horror genre.

Now, getting back to where we were. Forget what the snobbish film critics said—they hated it so much that they advised moviegoers not to watch it, quickly relegating “The Thing” to the ranks of gutter trash within the sci-fi horror genre, suggesting it was only fit for rentals and regional screenings. In my view, the universal negative response from critics stems from a mix of ignorance, arrogance, and a lack of awareness. As a film critic, shouldn’t you be open to all film genres? Shouldn’t you be able to set aside your personal biases and narrow-mindedness when reviewing films? That’s just my perspective, shared by countless others who see “The Thing” as a remarkable achievement in cinema. But the mischievous side in me always got a kick out of watching the disgust on the faces of such respected film critics as they “try” to give a (modest) review of “The Thing.” Haha….

I remember the first time I watched “The Thing” at home. At first, I wasn’t sure what I was getting into, but I knew enough about Kurt Russell as an actor that I felt comfortable watching it on VHS. It was a decision I’m glad I made. Despite being a modestly low-budget film directed by the master of horror, John Carpenter—who also composed the original score—there was anticipation that this movie would become a box office hit. Given John Carpenter’s track record with previous blockbusters, it seemed like a smart move for the studio to adapt “The Thing” into a more modern version of its original film and the novel it was based on. Having a solid leading man like Kurt Russell added to the belief that “The Thing” would at least perform well. Well, at least on the bright side, the acting of Kurt Russell was superb, but that did not help in box office ticket sales.

A scene from “The Thing.” Image courtesy of Universal Pictures

Indeed, all of these expectations were justified by the movie studio because they did their analytics, advanced scouting of what would be the best time to put out their newest film, and the target demographic it would be best for. However, when the film finally premiered in Hollywood, the reception was anything but spectacular. Instead of a grand success, it felt more like a thud or even a dud. Both film critics and many moviegoers struggled to react to it positively. Many viewers were left feeling grossed out by the film. And I was one of them at home. Haha… But I saw something that many other more articulate young moviegoers saw at the time: I saw a revolution in practical effects happening right before my eyes.

Yes, the centerpiece of “The Thing” was this ugly alien creature with no specific or permanent appearance, which all the more made this great to watch because it added to the mystery, the suspense, and the thrills of not knowing what form it could take next. Imagine being stuck in Antarctica as all of these people were when the alien creature began killing them one by one. It’s terrible, you might as well be stuck on the moon battling this thing because these are impossible odds to go up against. Especially since “The Thing” can perfectly mimic the physical appearance of its infected human hosts, there was no knowing who was an alien creature in hiding; they would only know at the very last minute when suddenly the person’s face would separate in half and eat its human targets face, or the patient’s stomach would explode and eat the person’s arms off, or when the infected human suddenly has amazing strength to throw you across the room.

All of these scary, crazy, and surreal scenarios made “The Thing” such a moving piece of sci-fi horror in terms of its pacing, storytelling, and direction that the film itself rarely got boring, and that is a cinematic quality about it that is much celebrated now because “The Thing” has gradually transcended from becoming a cult hit to being a fan favorite and rightfully has become a treasured piece of film history for all of its glorious achievements in practical effects and more.

There are times when the saying or belief is accurate that a movie only gets its due recognition and appreciation after many years have passed since its original release in the cinemas; in the case of “The Thing,” this is 100 percent true. So, imagine how long it took for this film to be appreciated for its positive cinematic qualities and the revolution it kickstarted in terms of practical effects.

On a little side note, I do not think there were ever toys made for “The Thing”; I even think the toy makers found the different forms of “The Thing” alien too ugly to be made into toys. Hmmm. In those years, that was always a bad sign because more often than not, films that belong in the top genres, which includes sci-fi and horror, had toys as part of their marketing.

Hands down, to this day, this is one of the greatest sci-fi horror movies ever made.

So, watch it and give it a try because there is nothing worse as a moviegoer, a film critic, and a casual viewer at home than to only watch the kind of films you know. And by the way, nothing major has been spoiled. Watch “The Thing” if you dare! Haha….