The Thing

Released Oct 14, 2011

1h 43m

Horror

Sci-Fi

Mystery & Thriller

List

34%

Tomatometer

174 Reviews

42%

Audience Score

25,000+ Ratings

After Norwegian researchers discover an alien ship buried in the ice, paleontologist Kate Lloyd (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) joins the team at the isolated Arctic outpost to investigate. She finds an organism that appears to have perished in the crash eons ago but, in fact, is about to awake. Freed from its icy prison, the insidious life-form goes on the attack. Paranoia spreads like wildfire among the crew as they fight to survive against a creature that assumes the shapes of its victims.

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Critics Consensus

It serves the bare serviceable minimum for a horror flick, but The Thing is all boo-scares and a slave to the far superior John Carpenter version.

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Roger Moore

Tribune News Service

For a creature feature set on the South Pole, it lacks urgency, or even a sense that it's very cold in Antarctica.

Rated: 1.5/4

Jan 1, 2013

Full Review

Sara Michelle Fetters

MovieFreak.com

It reduces things to nothing more than a highlight reel of terror, none of it particularly scary even if what is being presented is done so with a fair amount of skill.

Rated: 2/4

Jan 27, 2012

Full Review

Charlotte O'Sullivan

London Evening Standard

This isn't the real Thing; keep it at bay.

Rated: 2/5

Dec 2, 2011

Full Review

Matt Brunson

Film Frenzy

It’s actually a prequel to the 1982 movie, leading one to wonder why they didn’t more accurately name it The Thing: The Beginning, The Thing: The Early Days or even I Was a Teenage Thing.

Rated: 2/4

Apr 27, 2023

Full Review

Brian Eggert

Deep Focus Review

Van Heijningen’s new film can’t decide if it wants to elaborate on Carpenter’s version or pay homage to it, and that indecision is where the fault lies.

Rated: 2/4

Mar 7, 2023

Full Review

Keith Garlington

Keith & the Movies

This prequel to John Carpenter’s 1982 horror classic manages to capture enough of the shocks and paranoia of its predecessor to be successful.

Rated: 3/5

Aug 25, 2022

Full Review

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Audience Member

Without a doubt, the first one is better. It had more mystery to it and was even more brilliant with its practical effects. Plus the scientists weren't as stupid as I remember them being in this movie. Most of these guys were just awful characters to get behind and some of them you didn't even mind when they died! The special effects/CGI was a bit cheapened by the darker scenes at night with less lighting. However, there were some scenes that were genuinely terrifying to watch and the weird shapes and monstrous appearances of these creatures really were creative and pretty scary. In this way, the movie did its job and provided me with a bit of a thrill. Also, I found the very end of the film interesting where it tied itself into the beginning of the original one and acted as a prequel with the helicopter chasing the dog which I didn't see it as when I first watched it. I thought it was a separate remake movie!

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

07/14/24

Full Review

Jeff T

I don't understand why SO many people don't seem to understand that this is a PREQUEL to the original Carpenter film. It's not a remake, it's not a reboot, it's an origin story. Why all the reviews bashing it as a terrible remake? Understanding what it is, it's a great movie. The ending plugs nicely into the beginning of Carpenter's film. The fact that it's a prequel limits what could be done with thr story.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

06/30/24

Full Review

Audience Member

Just stop. Stop with the unthoughtful remakes.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

06/28/24

Full Review

Руслан Г

Кіно сподобалося. Отримав велике задоволення. Спецефекти на висоті- все мене вразило для високої оцінки

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

06/14/24

Full Review

Ryan W

What a classic 'The Thing' was. This remaster might be a shadow of the original, but it's a fantastic one at that.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

06/07/24

Full Review

Elisabet A

A classic terror movie

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

05/27/24

Full Review

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Matthijs van Heijningen Jr.

Director

Mary Elizabeth Winstead

Dr. Kate Lloyd

Joel Edgerton

Carter

Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje

Jameson

Trond Espen Seim

Edvard Wolner

Ulrich Thomsen

Dr. Sander Halvorson

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The Thing: Official Clip - The Thing Reveals Itself