The Thing from Another World
Year: 1951
Director: Christian Nyby
Written by: Charles Lederer
Based on: Story "Who Goes There?" by John W. Campbell Jr.
Threat: Alien
Weapon of Choice: Electricity
Color/B&W/3D: Black & White
IMDb page: 
The Thing from Another WorldYear: 1951 Director: Christian Nyby Written by: Charles Lederer Based on: Story "Who Goes There?" by John W. Campbell Jr. Threat: Alien Weapon of Choice: Electricity Color/B&W/3D: Black & White IMDb page: |
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Other movies in this series:
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Rish's Reviews
Also known simply as The Thing, The Thing From Another World tells
the tale of a group of Scientists at a research station in the Arctic who make an incredible
discovery--what appears to be a space ship buried in ice . . . including its frozen pilot.
When the alien is accidentally unfrozen, they find it decidedly unfriendly. If they don't
destroy it soon, it may spelled not only their doom, but that of the whole human race.
I was really impressed by this movie. It featured creepy, effective theremin music.
The cold of the film's locale is actually quite convincing. Coming from a chilly environment,
it often distracts and annoys me when obviously fake snow and fake cold is used in
film. In this one, though, you can sometimes see people's breath as they talk.
For some reason, the idea of a sole creature sent here to multiply and take over the
earth, though it's been the basis for countless tales, feels fresh and chilling in this one.
The creature feeds on blood! The idea of a vegetable monster is pretty unique for its
time, but unfortunately it has created the memory in many viewer's minds (mine included)
that the alien is a giant carrot. Also unfortunately, the design of the creature, as played
by "Gunsmoke"'s James Arness, is quite unremarkable. But the film is much more
about the people than the monster.
It had great dialogue, even the exposition is delivered in a clever, entertaining way. "We're
liable to become famous. So few people can boast that they've lost a flying saucer and
a man from Mars all in the same day." The phrase "Holy cats!" (which I found odd when
featured in Halloween) is repeated four times. They talk about a Howard Hawksian
comedy, and it must refer to quick, clever, overlapping dialogue. It's interesting how
many of the Fifties flicks are known by their producers' names rather than the directors'.
Oddly, the science of the film feels pretty airtight. To these untrained ears, at least. Of
course there's a scientist who wants to preserve it and/or communicate with it, rather
than destroy it. He admires the creature. I wonder if this was among the first times
that particular card was played.
Toward the end, the scientist character tries to argue that rather than kill the creature,
the men (himself included) owe it to the human race to die at the hands of the alien rather
than let the spectacular chance at knowledge slip away. Wow.
The Thing From Another World is an excellent film. Intelligent. Compelling.
Funny. I'm not going to say that it's better than the 1982
remake (though it is), but it's a fine film.
Line To Remember: "Watch the skies. Everywhere keep looking. Keep watching the
skies."
I'd Recommend It To: Every classic movie fan. This flick is so good, I might have to go
back and change my condemnation of the Fifties as the worst decade for movie Horror.
Posted: March 23, 2006
Total Skulls: 7
| Sequel | ||
| Sequel setup | ||
| Rips off earlier film | ||
| Horror film showing on TV/in theater in movie | ||
| Future celebrity appears |  |
James Arness |
| Former celebrity appears | ||
| Bad title | ||
| Bad premise | ||
| Bad acting | ||
| Bad dialogue | ||
| Bad execution | ||
| MTV Editing | ||
| OTS | ||
| Girl unnecessarily gets naked | ||
| Wanton sex | ||
| Death associated with sex | ||
| Unfulfilled promise of nudity | ||
| Characters forget about threat | ||
| Secluded location | |
|
| Power is cut | |
|
| Phone lines are cut | |
|
| Someone investigates a strange noise | ||
| Someone runs up stairs instead of going out front door | ||
| Camera is the killer | ||
| Victims cower in front of a window/door | ||
| Victim locks self in with killer | ||
| Victim running from killer inexplicably falls | ||
| Toilet stall scene | ||
| Shower/bath scene | ||
| Car stalls or won't start | ||
| Cat jumps out | ||
| Fake scare | ||
| Laughable scare | ||
| Stupid discovery of corpse | ||
| Dream sequence | ||
| Hallucination/Vision | ||
| No one believes only witness | ||
| Crazy, drunk, old man knows the truth | ||
| Warning goes unheeded | ||
| Music detracts from scene | ||
| Death in first five minutes | ||
| x years before/later | ||
| Flashback sequence | ||
| Dark and stormy night | ||
| Killer doesn't stay dead | |
|
| Killer wears a mask | ||
| Killer is in closet | ||
| Killer is in car with victim | ||
| Villain is more sympathetic than heroes | ||
| Unscary villain/monster | |
|
| Beheading | ||
| Blood fountain | ||
| Blood spatters - camera, wall, etc. | ||
| Poor death effect | ||
| Excessive gore | ||
| No one dies at all | ||
| Virgin survives | ||
| Geek/Nerd survives | ||
| Little kid lamely survives | ||
| Dog/Pet miraculously survives | ||
| Unresolved subplots | ||
| "It was all a dream" ending | ||
| Unbelievably happy ending | ||
| Unbelievably crappy ending | ||
| What the hell? |