"The Thing from Another World" (1951) Film Screening

About The Thing from Another World:

In this classic early sci-fi hit, an Arctic research team discovers a spaceship buried in the ice and accidentally thaws out the frozen monster inside it. Produced and co-written by the legendary filmmaker Howard Hawks, The Thing from Another World substitutes the shape-shifting alien of John W. Campbell, Jr.’s source novella “Who Goes There?” with the 6’ 7” actor James Arness as a hulking advanced form of plant life. Though most of the “man-in-a-rubber-suit” monster movies of the 1950s are difficult for contemporary audiences to accept as scary—or credible—this film was nightmare fuel for 1950s kids and beyond.

About The Thing: The story of twelve men trapped in a remote Antarctic research station who accidentally allow a shape-shifting alien to infiltrate their group, taking them over one by one, plays like Agatha Christie by way of Alien. The special effects created by 22-year-old make-up artist Rob Bottin are a prime example of how scary, funny, and surprising the practical effects of this era could be. Though not a hit when released in the crowded sci-fi/fantasy summer of 1982, this film has gone on to become one of the most influential, critically lauded, and beloved films in the horror and sci-fi genres. Its popularity has spread as effectively as the titular Thing itself, as new audiences discover it and new generations connect just as deeply to its ageless themes of paranoia, distrust, the transmission of communicable diseases we don’t fully understand, and the ultimate fear that what we most hold true might be a lie. 

Screened back to back as part of the Somerville Theatre's Great Remakes series. 

Tickets:
$16 general admission for single feature; $18 for double feature.

Location: Somerville Theatre