I am velvety-smoothReview is BELOWI am veltely smooth, too
_______
DVD: Thing From Another World, The (1951)
 
       
Review Rating:   Standard  
...back to Index
T to U
   
Label/Studio:
Warner Bros 
 
Catalog #:
T6686
 
...or start from scratch
A
Region:
1 (NTSC)
Released:

August 5, 2003

 

 

 
Genre: Science-Fiction / Horror  
Synopsis:
When a U.F.O. is found entombed in prime Alaskan ice, scientists and a small military team bring the remains of an alien humanoid back to the base, only to discover the creature isn't ready for the pickle jar yet.  

 

 

Directed by:

Christian Nyby
Screenplay by: Charles Lederer
Music by: Dimitri Tiomkin
Produced by: Howard Hawks
Cast:

Margaret Sheridan,  Kenneth Tobey,  Robert Cornthwaite,  Douglas Spencer,  James Young,  Dewey Martin,  Bob Nichols,  William Self,  Eduard Franz,  Sally Creighton,  James Arness

Film Length: 87 mins
Process/Ratio: 1.33 :1
Black & White
Anamorphic DVD: No
Languages:   English (Mono)
Subtitles:   English,  French,  Spanish
 
Special Features :  

Theatrical trailer for "The Thing From Another World"

 
 
Comments :

As detailed in George Turner's excellent production chronicle in the January 1991 issue of American Cinematographer, “1951's Prize Fight” began as an astute move to cash in on the science-fiction genre that was enjoying increasing success in literature and bug-eyed monster movies. Hawks bought “Who Goes There?” – a 1938 short story by Don A. Stuart (a.k.a. John W. Campbell, Jr.) – and produced the film through his Winchester Productions as part of a large budget, 2-picture deal with RKO, with “The Big Sky” completing the deal.

Hiring a cast of largely unknown actors – James Arness had appeared in a few small roles, and a handful of independent features before he stepped into the immortal TV show “Gunsmoke,” in 1955 – Hawks basically established a small ensemble cast that wouldn't dominate the tightly written screenplay; the end result, more than 50 years after its original release, it's a classic sci-fi thriller with an engaging story and creepy ambience. The ‘ring-around-the-saucer, duplicated in John Carpenter's 1982 remake, still elicits the perfect nervous giggle in audiences, while snappy, yet naturalistic dialogue, with nervous characters interrupting each other, keeps the audience on edge while a hulking alien looms outside.

Warner Bros' DVD includes the well-used re-release trailer – interesting for the final graphic that obscures the creature's face under a metallic helmet typical, styled like a 1940s comic book – and yes, this version of “The Thing” has that ‘bondage' scene; no spoilers here, but it's a playful, odd little head-scratcher that certainly establishes the dogged determination of Kenneth Tobey (the de facto hero of the film) with sexy ex-model Margaret Sheridan. (And if her cocky jabs at Tobey ring familiar, it's due to Hawks' regular scribe, Charles Lederer, who penned the immortal character Hildy, in Hawks' viciously hysterical “His Girl Friday,” back in 1940.)

George Turner's article also mentions the deliberate darkening of scenes with the creature to mask its face – something that wasn't followed in subsequent video issues and those old, grainy TV prints; the DVD's transfer is rather faithful to the original approach, though with Arness prominently on the DVD cover – no stills of the creature were used in the original publicity campaigns – and in light of his immortal “Gunsmoke” legacy, it's hard separating the actor's western persona from his rare participation in a sci-fi thriller.

 

© 2003 Mark R. Hasan

Bzzz-bzz-bazzz-brzzoom!
_IMDB Entry________Script Online _________Fan/Official Film site________Cast/Crew Link
_IMDB Detailed Entry_______Scripts available online ________Fan/Official Film Site__________Additional Related Sites
____Amazon.com __________Amazon.ca _________Bay Street Video_______Comparisons_
__Amazon.com info____Amazon.com info____Basy Street Video info______Compare Different Region releases_
_Soundtrack CD__________CD Review__________LP Review__________Composer Filmog.
Soundtrack Album_________Soundtrack Review_______Yes, VINYL_________Composer Filmography/Discography at Soundtrack Collector.com
Brrr-boooshi-bzz-bazzah!
 
 
Vrrfpt-Voot-Voot-Voot!
 

Site designed for 1024 x 768 resolution, using 16M colours, and optimized for MS Explorer 6.0. KQEK Logo and All Original KQEK Art, Interviews, Profiles, and Reviews Copyright © 2001-Present by Mark R. Hasan. All Rights Reserved. Additional Review Content by Contributors 2001-Present used by Permission of Authors. Additional Art Copyrighted by Respective Owners. Reproduction of any Original KQEK Content Requires Written Permission from Copyright Holder and/or Author. Links to non-KQEK sites have been included for your convenience; KQEK is not responsible for their content nor their possible use of any pop-ups, cookies, or information gathering.

 
__