- Directed by Christian Nyby, Howard Hawks
- Written by Charles Lederer, John W. Campbell Jr
- Stars Kenneth Tobey, Margaret Sheridan, James Arness
- Run Time: 1 Hour, 27 Minutes
- Link: https://amzn.to/3hfJOZQ
Synopsis
We see a sign that says we’re in Anchorage, Alaska. A man goes into a place with lots of relaxing military men off duty. Ned Scott is a newspaperman and a newcomer to Alaska, and he doesn’t like the cold. Some of the men talk about Dr. Carrington and his team doing some kind of scientific work near the North Pole and possibly a plane crash up there, two thousand miles north. The general orders Captain Hendry to go up to investigate and be back by tomorrow night.
The plane takes off, and they land without any trouble. They’re greeted warmly by the staff at the base, and we get a bit of a look at the base and the people there. Hendry confronts Nikki, Carrington’s secretary, as the two used to be an item, and may be again.
Hendry meets Carrington, and they explain to him about something that crashed into the ice. They thought it was a meteor at first, but it wasn’t because its course changed. It’s 48 miles away, and they use Hendry’s plane to investigate. As they approach, their compass goes crazy, so they know they have found it.
Whatever it was, it crashed into the ice, slid to a stop, and then melted into the ice and mostly buried itself. They soon learn that the “airplane” is actually a “flying saucer,” perfectly round. Mr. Scott wants to report this immediately, but Hendry says this is too big and needs to stay quiet for now. They plant Thermite to melt the ice. Something goes wrong, and the saucer explodes with all its secrets. However, they do manage to find a body in the ice; the “man” down there is eight feet tall. They load it onto the plane in a chunk of ice and bring it back to the base.
Carrington wants to defrost and examine the body, but Hendry forbids it until the military gives approval. A storm is coming in, so they have to prepare for that, which is a distraction. Speaking of distractions, Nikki ties Hendry’s hands behind his back and forces him to drink alcohol while she kisses him.
They take turns watching over the frozen block, which is clear enough to see the creepy man-like thing inside. One of the men is creeped out and covers the ice with a blanket, not realizing it’s an electric blanket. The ice melts…
Everyone investigates, and the monster has gotten outside and is being attacked by the sled dogs. By the time they get outside, they find two dead dogs… and an arm. There’s no blood inside the arm; it’s not like us, more like a vegetable. This might be why the bullets didn’t stop it earlier. It must come from a planet where plants evolved like animals did here. It also has seed pods in its skin.
Carrington says it’s superior to us in every way. As he monologues, the arm starts moving and absorbs the dog blood that was on it. All the soldiers grab their guns and the search is on.
Carrington and the scientists find a dead dog, drained of blood, in the greenhouse. He thinks it’ll come back but doesn’t tell Hendry. It does return, and injures Dr. Stern and kills two others. They open the door and The Thing is standing right there. They manage to barricade the door and set up guards.
Carrington quickly changes his tune and starts to see the monster as an enemy to be defeated. The buds from the hand, when fed with blood, have grown into baby Things; this problem will spread like crazy if it gets to a plentiful “food” supply. He compares the little plants to newborn children. Nikki shows the reports to Hendry, who receives orders from the general not to harm the creature.
They can tell from the Geiger counter that the thing is moving, and they come up with a plan to burn it with kerosene. They pour on the kerosene, and it burns really well, but runs off into the icy wilderness. One of the scientists suggests frying him with electricity next time, so they set up a trap. Suddenly, all the heat in the base stops working; the creature must have sabotaged it. How smart is this thing?
Hendry wants to destroy the creature, but Carrington still insists that it’s better that they all die than to destroy the knowledge they could get from the alien. The monster comes in, but Carrington turns off the generator. There’s a quick fight, and Carrington goes to talk to the monster. The monster listens and then knocks him aside. They turn on the juice, and the lightning flies, frying the creature. It burns into a little pile of ash. They burn the little plants in the lab afterward. Nikki and Hendry plan on having a happy ending while Scott reports on the alien invasion story, “Keep watching the skies!”
Commentary
Comparing this to the film from 1982, a lot had changed in thirty years. The north pole became Antarctica, and the technology had improved a lot. There were several female characters in this that were completely omitted in the less-romantic remake. This film had Dr. Carrington, who plays a sort of human antagonist for some of the film, while the remake had a bunch of individual characters of variable likability.
This one leaves out the idea that the creature is a shapeshifter, as it resembles more of a Frankenstein-type humanoid creature.
There are a lot of ideas thrown around here, everything from alien bacteria and life forms that survive freezing to alien metal and the idea that maybe the thing could even read their minds. This was one of the most influential science-fiction and horror films of all time, and has been cited by numerous major directors as an influence.