The Thing (2011) Review

Disclaimer: Contains spoilers!

Plot Summary: A group of various international scientists gather at a Norwegian research base in Antarctica to investigate an alien craft and body found in the ice.

Review: This is actually a prequel to the 1982 "The Thing" in which we see the events that occurred at the Norwegian base visited in the original. I really don't understand why they decided to keep the exact same title as I'm sure it left many people believing this was a remake. Once again, we have a mixed bag of things (yes, things...funny!) that are good and some pretty stupid moments. Unfortunately, while trying so hard to pay attention to detail, so as not to mess with the original (which I respect), they created many plot holes! For example, we see in the '82 version that the Norwegians blew the alien ship out of the ice, but here it gets out of the ice by the "thing" starting it up. There are a few others, but this one is the most glaring of mistakes. Another problem is the "personality," if you will, of the "thing;" in the first one we see that it plays safe and stealthy creating that glorious atmosphere while in this film it is rampaging around the base going batshit crazy! The last thing that bothered me was the ease and speed that it could absorb someone; it literally only needed to touch someone, and it is absorbing them. The original established that it had to try and "eat" someone so to speak or at least get a part of itself within an organism...not just touch. I mean if it were that easy, why not just start a friendly game of tag before anyone knows what's up?! On the other hand, it is still an entertaining flick with some decent surprises and edge-of-your-seat moments. Although it pains me to see CGI effects rather than practical, this was apparently a coverup of real effects that the studio felt weren't real-looking enough; shows what they know. The ending is lame too (the scenes during the credit were a nice touch though), but the action was fun and added some more speculation as to how the "thing" ended up in the ice. It's worth a view, but watch the original instead and you will be much more pleased.

Notable Moment: When the Edvard character "falls to pieces" and the next you know you have "thing" pieces coming at you from everywhere.

Final Rating: 6/10