Which is better?
Which version is better? This version or John Carpenter's? Or would you consider them completely different movies? I haven't seen this unfortunatley.
Take off every Zig
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MovieChat Forums > The Thing from Another World (1951) Discussion > Which is better?
"The remake, in my opinion, substitutes gore for suspense"
That is an absolutely ridiculous comment. You could not be more wrong.
cobra commander
The Thing is an adaptation of a book, not a "remake" of The Thing from Another World.
I don't know why people complain about the gore in The Thing. It is fairly minimal and not that disturbing.
And people keep mentioning Alien. Wasn't that influenced more by http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0059792/ ?
semantics...the 1951 film was,in fact,the adaptation,using a different title and
changing many of the plot lines of campbell's short story"who goes there?"..although carpenter's version stays much closer to campbell's story,he DID choose to you the title"the thing",and in some interviews referred to it as a re-make... i agree that the gore was a necessary feature of the film and shouldnt be criticized...its true that alien was influenced by "it-the terror
from beyond space".. i think some people see the similarities in that alien had
creatures that would internally "possess" its hosts,like the shapeshifting creature in the thing(although i think its a stretch)
What, are you talking about the creature now? That was all Rick Baker.You're thinking of the wrong guy CGruber01, Rob Bottin did the special f/x for The Thing, not Rick Baker. Both are certainly two of the best at what they do though.
The original "The Thing" is the basis for a lot of great sci-fi Horror movies today. Can you see the strong influences it had on sci-fi series' like the Alien movies? People trapped in a remote location with a killing machine. Even down to useing the Gieger counter to build suspense like they used the motion detectors in "Alien" and "Aliens". A lot of current directors like Scott, Cameron, Spielburg, etc. had to have been influenced by this movie because you see so many of its' elements in movies made today. The original "The Thing" is one of the best sci-fi classics there is.
And people keep mentioning Alien. Wasn't that influenced more by http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0059792/ ?
Yeah, c david 13 is right packerclay, Mario Bava's Terrore nello spazio (aka Planet of the Vampires) was the major influence on Alien. Though The Thing from Another World did have a bit of an influence on it.
The biggest problem I had with the '82 remake is the lack of resolution at the end of the film. I know that the IMDB board for the remake has tons of discussion going on about what Carpenter meant, but you came out of the theater shaking your head.Carpenter didn't do it to himself, the ending had nothing to do with The Thing flopping. Most people do point to the fact that E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial was released only two weeks before and it's more optimistic and lighthearted approach to aliens is what hurt The Thing. That my or may not be true. Also usually counted towards the The Things flopping is the decline of horror movies at the time. Either or any way, i think it's safe to say the it's ending didn't make it flop.
Either have the humans win or lose. Don't give us a tie or leave the ending in doubt.
Granted, it was an original ending -- not resolving the conflict. But I didn't like it. -CK427
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Exactly. The theatre I was in, the audience booed when the screen went black and the credits came up. Carpenter (so I've heard) had filmed an ending where Russel's character (MaCready) has just gotten the blood test results back, and he's human. I don't know what was supposed to happen with Chiles. But he changed the ending for whatever reason. The remake remains in my top ten films of all time despite the ending-which I DESPISED as well. THAT'S the REAL reason it bombed when it was released-and it's a damn shame that Carp did it to himself. I CANNOT STAND films that have no resolution, and I have to believe the majority of film buffs/moviegoers feel the same way.
The ending was left ambiguous for a reason, to keep you guessing/unsure. Did they die of exposure, was one or both infected, did they get rescued? It's all left to the imagination. It's sorta similar in concept to the old film idea, what's not shown is more frightening, because it leaves it to your imagination.
Anways, i prefer The Thing to The Thing from Another World. I'm not gonna say which is better though, because that's really just a matter of opinion and both are great films. I think this thread would've been better suited to be about "which you prefer" rather than "which is better"...
Da Bears share
I am sure most people here will mindlessly say the 80's Carpenter version,
but I have to strongly disagree.
First, the Carpenter version has not characterization. The effects are
great, or were great when I saw them, but they spent so much time and
money on those stupid things that could never exists that they movie was
the worse for it. It is also dark and hopeless like everything modern
seems to be made now. Modern people, young people are so depressed and
dejected, this is where it all comes from, everything in modern media
is dark and hopeless and negative.
The old version had some real character conflicts going on along with
some romance and buddy stuff. It was charming to see the Captain woo his
girlfriend through this thing, and tension between the scientist and the
rest of the crew, and the xealot and the people who just wanted to survive.
The older version also has a positive ending, and a warning, it teaches
something in other words, it tells you that the universe is full of unexpected
things but that people can vanquish them by sticking together - the very
idea of civilization.
The newer version just says there is something out there that is going
to get you no matter what. That is how all Carpenter's movies are, they
are all trash, except for the small distraction and entertainment value
you get from seeing far out effects.
I much prefer the older version, I actually saw it as a kid and it had
a huge influence on me for science fiction and technology. As good as
the effects are in today's movies Hollywood really shortchanges people with
all the razzle dazzle flashing effects without any real story.
Well, that's my opinion, I'm sure I am in the minority ... but I am
right so I don't care! ;-) People usually do not even care to see the
thing, but they still watch the classic version "The Thing From Another
Planet" and will for a long time.
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