For those of you who possibly don't follow the entertainment industry as close as the rest of us online bloggers due, consider this a "SciFi Public Service Announcement" for today: Shout Factory's release of John Carpenter's The Thing (1982) hits stores and online outlets today. For those of you looking to pick up a copy, you can easily get one from Amazon.com right here. (And -- for the record -- no, I'm not set up to receive any promotional kickback from the retailer as are some website; I just like to keep my readers informed of SciFi happenings as a courtesy. You wanna reward me? Then buy my book, Rainville, from Amazon.com. That's my thing.)
In any event, I've held back from offering my thoughts on The Thing over the years, largely 'cause I'm well aware that I'm in the minority. In short, I never quite enjoyed the flick as much as I have other features from Carpenter: sure, it's good, but in my humble estimation it's a very far cry from his true highwater mark, that being Escape From New York. The Thing seems a bit loaded down with excess for me, and perhaps I'd feel differently with a slimer edit that focused the narrative a bit tighter as some scenes play on too long (with less reward than deserved) to my untrained eye.
Still, kudos to Shout Factory for continuing to do the work they do with these older releases; they've a fantastic track record at loading up their discs with extras, many of which may have been seen before but have either disappeared from other releases or may've fallen through the cracks entirely. Fans wanted something more for the buck -- especially in the case of double or triple-dipping -- can rest assured that a release from Shout Factory is a cause for celebration.
As always, thanks for reading ... and live long and prosper!
In any event, I've held back from offering my thoughts on The Thing over the years, largely 'cause I'm well aware that I'm in the minority. In short, I never quite enjoyed the flick as much as I have other features from Carpenter: sure, it's good, but in my humble estimation it's a very far cry from his true highwater mark, that being Escape From New York. The Thing seems a bit loaded down with excess for me, and perhaps I'd feel differently with a slimer edit that focused the narrative a bit tighter as some scenes play on too long (with less reward than deserved) to my untrained eye.
Still, kudos to Shout Factory for continuing to do the work they do with these older releases; they've a fantastic track record at loading up their discs with extras, many of which may have been seen before but have either disappeared from other releases or may've fallen through the cracks entirely. Fans wanted something more for the buck -- especially in the case of double or triple-dipping -- can rest assured that a release from Shout Factory is a cause for celebration.
As always, thanks for reading ... and live long and prosper!
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