John Carpenter talks about "The Thing from Another World" (1951) directed by Christian Nyby & Howard Hawks. Unfortunately it is not the best picture quality.
The most terrifying science fiction pic ever made. The camp's isolation, the wind, the snow, the creature's blood thirstyness, and the ingenuity of the scientists and Air Force members, makes it No. 1.
I liked the 1951 version so much that I had to write a follow up. The THINGS from another world by Dan F Brereton. The alien being a plant based life form is brilliant.
I was born in 1974. I remember seeing The Thing From Another World on Cinemax (of all places) when I was 10. Normally, 50's movies didn't really scare me. The Thing did. I remember telling my dad I saw it, and he basically just told me he didn't want to hear it. He was 10 himself when he first saw it and it literally traumatized him. He didn't even like to talk about it, it scared him that bad. To this day, I always joke with him about it. I've tried to get him to watch the remakes with me to no avail. His answer every time; "HELL NO!"
I must of Watch this movie 100 times or more I remember channel 9 when I was a young kid it was called million movie and they had us playing all week long every night
What I loved about the 1951 version is that the Thing isn't an evil maniac, like it was depicted in the later version. The 1951 Thing was just a intelligent and determined being, who was only trying to survive. Yes, he killed people, and sled dogs. But only because he had to do it. And when you think about it, this is actually quite a rare concept in sci-fi movies.
My take on the creature in the 1951 version is that the creature did not plan on coming to the planet, at least the way it did, but when loose, it killed and started creating more of itself using human blood. Now, whether it had an irrational hatred for humans and other beings is anyone's guess. It cannot be stated that self-preservation was the only motive to kill other beings. That is pure speculation, which you also get from Carpenter's version. We don't know the motives of the creature once let loose other than it replicates itself in other beings.
It’s really more of a conversation about the original so he can’t go too far off topic since it’s a tv interview that’s playing between scheduled movies, not an in depth interview. He might have even brought it up and it could have been edited out
Apart from the actor's effort in the acting, 1951 has never done anything in particular to be fascinating, at least to me. It's less of a "Oh no, there's an extraterrestrial being trying to kill us!" horror, but more or less "Oh no, there's humans and I'm a helpless walking brick!" thing. Not once the alien feels intimidating in the 1951 version. It's shot, crushed, mauled, burned, electrocuted to a crust, not to mention the movie only having about 10% of the plot from the original book. I love how much John appreciates it though, even though his version is definitely superior.
@@Nanu67-e9j The character writing and special effects are fantastic but where it has really not aged well at all is the tension wich is the backbone of horror, the movie is very transparently unwilling to kill any named character and the monster is just not scary so theres never any reason to get invested, i wish i could have been part of the generation that could see this movie for its merits back then but im just not. though i admit calling it garbage was hyperbolic back then but saying that its better than the first halloween? No, thats nonsense
@@yurdi_yuri It's still a great movie today. There isn't a single SF/horror filmmaker who emerged in the Seventies or Eighties who wasn't inspired by it.
Sometimes remakes are not an improvement on the original or even worse but Carpenter's remake of the Thing is not only better but it was the best horror/ sci- fi film ever!
It takes a film maker like Carpenter with respect for the source material, but not to the point of putting it on a pedestal. Picasso said that good artists borrow, great artists steal - I'd say that the best of the best know what to steal!
No, it's the most overrated science fiction/horror film ever, the favorite movie of cultural illiterates who think only in terms of special effects and gore.
