The Thing (2011) takes place just before the events of The Thing (2011). To antagonize confusion, Universal decided to stick with the same title—verbatim. So kind of them.
It’s 1982. While conducting lab research on prehistoric remains, and listening to the delightful tunes of Men at Work, Kate (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) is recruited into joining a research team in Antarctica that has unearthed a frozen creature not of this world. Before she can consult her loved ones, Kate is whisked across the globe. The expedition is anything but routine when the creature awakens from slumber and begins to hunt the crew.
The characters serve their purpose in that they are here to die. Again, today’s filmmakers get it wrong. Characters need multiple facets in order for the audience to react. It’s important for each character to have a history, motive, and/or personality. These are traits that humans carry with them and shape their being. When an underdeveloped character faces peril, no one cares. Conversely, Kurt Russell’s MacReady of The Thing (1982) poured a drink into a computer after it beat him at chess. This act of aggression shows and attitude that is missing from the protagonists of this new version.
Billed as a prequel, The Thing (2011) goes through many of the same scenes, in the same environment, with the same type of people. It might as well be a remake, which is what the title suggests. The biggest difference in plot is in getting to briefly explore the creature’s spaceship.
The visual effects are now a computer equation. Gone are the need for complex puppets and molds (though unless I’m mistaken there are a few seen here). Horrific transformations as the creature fuses with victims are now a render away. All the visuals are serviceable and some as convincing as one would want to see, but to me the closest door to reality involves application of actual objects. Sure the razor-toothed mouth moves more realistically, but the teeth are more telling than dentures.
I’ve never seen a movie make less use out of its exotic locale. Though there is casual talk of it, no one actually gets cold. Heck, Lars even sits on top of the excavated creature as it’s driven toward the research facility. Of course this is better dealt with in the ’82 film of the same name, so there isn’t a lot of point in watching an inferior retelling. That ’82 film was in of itself a remake, but radically different than The Thing from Another World (1951), with far more graphic violence and fresh creature design. We learn from The Thing (2011), if anything, that horror isn’t as fresh on the second helping. **
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