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each aiming to defeat the other through subterfuge and sabotage. [133] [134]
In April 2023, it was announced that The Thing and characters from the film
would be featured in the upcoming video game, Funko Fusion , set to be
released in 2024. The game is set to include R.J. MacReady , Childs and Dr.
Copper. [135] [136] In November 2023, it was announced that The Thing would be
featured in the video game, Pinball M . The Thing Pinball, a table based on
the film, was released on November 30, 2023. The table includes R.J. MacReady
and various other elements from the film. [137] [138] Thematic analysis [ edit
] The central theme of The Thing concerns paranoia and mistrust. [139] [140]
[141] Fundamentally, the film is about the erosion of trust in a small
community, [142] instigated by different forms of paranoia caused by the
possibility of someone not being who they say they are, or that your best
friend may be your enemy. [143] [141] It represents the distrust that humans
always have for somebody else and the fear of betrayal by those we know and,
ultimately, our bodies. [141] The theme remains timely because the subject of
paranoia adapts to the age. The Thing focuses on being unable to trust one's
peers, but this can be interpreted as distrust of entire institutions. [144]
Developed in an era of cold-war tensions between the United States and the
Soviet Union , the film refers to the threat of nuclear annihilation by
mutually assured destruction . Diabolique ' s Daniel Clarkson Fisher notes
that MacReady destroys the chess computer after being checkmated , and
similarly vows to destroy the Thing, even at the expense of the team. [145]
The Cold War-style isolationism hurts the group, while a lack of trust
destroys it. Screen Rant ' s Michael Edward Taylor draws allusions between The
Thing and the accusatory Red Scares and McCarthyism , as the film conveys an
anti-communist fear of infection of civilized areas that will lead to
assimilation and imitation. [140] [145] Slant Magazine ' s John Lingsan said
the men display a level of post- Vietnam War (1955–1975) "fatigued
counterculturalism" – the rejection of conventional social norms , each
defined by their own eccentricities. [142] The work of writer H. P. Lovecraft
was an inspiration for Carpenter's work. The shapeless, undefinable Thing has
been compared to Lovecraft's indescribable, otherworldly forces. [146] The
Atlantic ' s Noah Berlatsky said that unlike typical horror genre films, women
are excluded, allowing the Thing to be identified as a fear of not being a
man, or being homosexual. [139] Vice ' s Patrick Marlborough considered The
Thing to be a "scathing examination" of manliness, noting that identifying the
Thing requires intimacy, confession, and empathy to out the creature, but
"male frailty" prevents this as an option. Trapped by pride and stunted
emotional growth, the men are unable to confront the truth out of fear of
embarrassment or exposure. [144] Berlatsky noted that MacReady avoids
emotional attachments and is the most paranoid, allowing him to be the hero.
This detachment works against him in the finale, which leaves MacReady locked
in a futile mistrust with Childs, each not really knowing the other. [139]
Nerdist 's Kyle Anderson and Strange Horizons ' s Orrin Grey analyzed The
Thing as an example of author H. P. Lovecraft 's cosmic horror . [147] [146]
Anderson's analysis includes the idea of cosmic horror in large part coming
"from the fear of being overtaken," connecting it to Lovecraft's xenophobia
and Blair's character arc of becoming what he most fears. In contrast,
Anderson compares Blair to MacReady, who represents a more traditional
Hollywood film protagonist. [147] Grey describes the creature as fear of the
loss of self, using Blair's character as an example. Discussing The Thing in
the context of the first of three films in Carpenter's " Apocalypse Trilogy ",
Grey states the threat the monster poses to the world "is less disconcerting
than the threat posed to the individual concept of self." [146] The Thing
never speaks or gives a motive for its actions, and ruthlessly pursues its
goal. [148] Den of Geek ' s Mark Harrison and Ryan Lambie said that the
essence of humanity is free will, which is stripped away by the Thing,
possibly without the individual being aware that they have been taken over.
[149] [150] In a 1982 interview, when given the option to describe The Thing
as "pro-science" like Who Goes There? or "anti-science" like The Thing from
Another World , Carpenter chose "pro-human", stating, "It's better to be a
human being than an imitation, or let ourselves be taken over by this creature
who's not necessarily evil, but whose nature it is to simply imitate, like a
chameleon." [70] Further allusions have been drawn between the blood-test
scene and the epidemic of HIV at the time, which could be identified only by a
blood test. [14] [151] Since its release, many theories have been developed to
attempt to answer the film's ambiguous ending shared by MacReady and Childs.
[152] Several suggest that Childs was infected, citing Dean Cundey's statement
that he deliberately provided a subtle illumination to the eyes of uninfected
characters, something absent from Childs. Similarly, others have noted a lack
of visible breath from the character in the frigid air. While both aspects are
present in MacReady, their absence in Childs has been explained as a technical
issue with the filming. [153] [154] During production, Carpenter considered
having MacReady be infected, [155] and an alternate ending showed MacReady
having been rescued and definitively tested as uninfected. [52] Russell has
said that analyzing the scene for clues is "missing the point". He continued,
"[Carpenter] and I worked on the ending of that movie together a long time. We
were both bringing the audience right back to square one. At the end of the
day, that was the position these people were in. They just didn't know
anything ... They didn't know if they knew who they were ... I love that, over
the years, that movie has gotten its due because people were able to get past
the horrificness of the monster ... to see what the movie was about, which was
paranoia." [152] However, Carpenter has teased, "Now, I do know, in the end,
who the Thing is, but I cannot tell you." [156] Legacy [ edit ] Retrospective
reassessment [ edit ] In the years following its release, critics and fans
have reevaluated The Thing as a milestone of the horror genre. [40] A
prescient review by Peter Nicholls in 1992 called The Thing "a bleak,
memorable film [that] may yet be seen as a classic". [157] It has been called
one of the best films directed by Carpenter. [36] [158] [159] John Kenneth
Muir called it "Carpenter's most accomplished and underrated directorial
effort", [160] and critic Matt Zoller Seitz said it "is one of the greatest
and most elegantly constructed B-movies ever made". [161] Trace Thurman
described it as one of the best films ever, [162] and in 2008, Empire magazine
selected it as one of The 500 Greatest Movies of All Time, [163] at number
289, calling it "a peerless masterpiece of relentless suspense, retina-
wrecking visual excess and outright, nihilistic terror". [55] It is now
considered to be one of the greatest horror films ever made, [160] [164] and a
classic of the genre. [165] Several publications have called it one of the
best films of 1982, including Filmsite.org , [166] Film.com , [167] and
Entertainment Weekly . [156] Muir called it "the best science fiction-horror

each aiming to defeat the other through subterfuge and sabotage. [133] [134]

In April 2023, it was announced that The Thing and characters from the film

would be featured in the upcoming video game, Funko Fusion , set to be

released in 2024. The game is set to include R.J. MacReady , Childs and Dr.

Copper. [135] [136] In November 2023, it was announced that The Thing would be

featured in the video game, Pinball M . The Thing Pinball, a table based on

the film, was released on November 30, 2023. The table includes R.J. MacReady

and various other elements from the film. [137] [138] Thematic analysis [ edit

] The central theme of The Thing concerns paranoia and mistrust. [139] [140]

[141] Fundamentally, the film is about the erosion of trust in a small

community, [142] instigated by different forms of paranoia caused by the

possibility of someone not being who they say they are, or that your best

friend may be your enemy. [143] [141] It represents the distrust that humans

always have for somebody else and the fear of betrayal by those we know and,

ultimately, our bodies. [141] The theme remains timely because the subject of

paranoia adapts to the age. The Thing focuses on being unable to trust one's

peers, but this can be interpreted as distrust of entire institutions. [144]

Developed in an era of cold-war tensions between the United States and the

Soviet Union , the film refers to the threat of nuclear annihilation by

mutually assured destruction . Diabolique ' s Daniel Clarkson Fisher notes

that MacReady destroys the chess computer after being checkmated , and

similarly vows to destroy the Thing, even at the expense of the team. [145]

The Cold War-style isolationism hurts the group, while a lack of trust

destroys it. Screen Rant ' s Michael Edward Taylor draws allusions between The

Thing and the accusatory Red Scares and McCarthyism , as the film conveys an

anti-communist fear of infection of civilized areas that will lead to

assimilation and imitation. [140] [145] Slant Magazine ' s John Lingsan said

the men display a level of post- Vietnam War (1955–1975) "fatigued

counterculturalism" – the rejection of conventional social norms , each

defined by their own eccentricities. [142] The work of writer H. P. Lovecraft

was an inspiration for Carpenter's work. The shapeless, undefinable Thing has

been compared to Lovecraft's indescribable, otherworldly forces. [146] The

Atlantic ' s Noah Berlatsky said that unlike typical horror genre films, women

are excluded, allowing the Thing to be identified as a fear of not being a

man, or being homosexual. [139] Vice ' s Patrick Marlborough considered The

Thing to be a "scathing examination" of manliness, noting that identifying the

Thing requires intimacy, confession, and empathy to out the creature, but

"male frailty" prevents this as an option. Trapped by pride and stunted

emotional growth, the men are unable to confront the truth out of fear of

embarrassment or exposure. [144] Berlatsky noted that MacReady avoids

emotional attachments and is the most paranoid, allowing him to be the hero.

This detachment works against him in the finale, which leaves MacReady locked

in a futile mistrust with Childs, each not really knowing the other. [139]

Nerdist 's Kyle Anderson and Strange Horizons ' s Orrin Grey analyzed The

Thing as an example of author H. P. Lovecraft 's cosmic horror . [147] [146]

Anderson's analysis includes the idea of cosmic horror in large part coming

"from the fear of being overtaken," connecting it to Lovecraft's xenophobia

and Blair's character arc of becoming what he most fears. In contrast,

Anderson compares Blair to MacReady, who represents a more traditional

Hollywood film protagonist. [147] Grey describes the creature as fear of the

loss of self, using Blair's character as an example. Discussing The Thing in

the context of the first of three films in Carpenter's " Apocalypse Trilogy ",

Grey states the threat the monster poses to the world "is less disconcerting

than the threat posed to the individual concept of self." [146] The Thing

never speaks or gives a motive for its actions, and ruthlessly pursues its

goal. [148] Den of Geek ' s Mark Harrison and Ryan Lambie said that the

essence of humanity is free will, which is stripped away by the Thing,

possibly without the individual being aware that they have been taken over.

[149] [150] In a 1982 interview, when given the option to describe The Thing

as "pro-science" like Who Goes There? or "anti-science" like The Thing from

Another World , Carpenter chose "pro-human", stating, "It's better to be a

human being than an imitation, or let ourselves be taken over by this creature

who's not necessarily evil, but whose nature it is to simply imitate, like a

chameleon." [70] Further allusions have been drawn between the blood-test

scene and the epidemic of HIV at the time, which could be identified only by a

blood test. [14] [151] Since its release, many theories have been developed to

attempt to answer the film's ambiguous ending shared by MacReady and Childs.

[152] Several suggest that Childs was infected, citing Dean Cundey's statement

that he deliberately provided a subtle illumination to the eyes of uninfected

characters, something absent from Childs. Similarly, others have noted a lack

of visible breath from the character in the frigid air. While both aspects are

present in MacReady, their absence in Childs has been explained as a technical

issue with the filming. [153] [154] During production, Carpenter considered

having MacReady be infected, [155] and an alternate ending showed MacReady

having been rescued and definitively tested as uninfected. [52] Russell has

said that analyzing the scene for clues is "missing the point". He continued,

"[Carpenter] and I worked on the ending of that movie together a long time. We

were both bringing the audience right back to square one. At the end of the

day, that was the position these people were in. They just didn't know

anything ... They didn't know if they knew who they were ... I love that, over

the years, that movie has gotten its due because people were able to get past

the horrificness of the monster ... to see what the movie was about, which was

paranoia." [152] However, Carpenter has teased, "Now, I do know, in the end,

who the Thing is, but I cannot tell you." [156] Legacy [ edit ] Retrospective

reassessment [ edit ] In the years following its release, critics and fans

have reevaluated The Thing as a milestone of the horror genre. [40] A

prescient review by Peter Nicholls in 1992 called The Thing "a bleak,

memorable film [that] may yet be seen as a classic". [157] It has been called

one of the best films directed by Carpenter. [36] [158] [159] John Kenneth

Muir called it "Carpenter's most accomplished and underrated directorial

effort", [160] and critic Matt Zoller Seitz said it "is one of the greatest

and most elegantly constructed B-movies ever made". [161] Trace Thurman

described it as one of the best films ever, [162] and in 2008, Empire magazine

selected it as one of The 500 Greatest Movies of All Time, [163] at number

289, calling it "a peerless masterpiece of relentless suspense, retina-

wrecking visual excess and outright, nihilistic terror". [55] It is now

considered to be one of the greatest horror films ever made, [160] [164] and a

classic of the genre. [165] Several publications have called it one of the

best films of 1982, including Filmsite.org , [166] Film.com , [167] and

Entertainment Weekly . [156] Muir called it "the best science fiction-horror