Carpenter Trio: Invasion of the Individual
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The evil identity thieves in Carpenter’s films are metaphors for the
causes of the disruption that has left the world “out of joint.” The Thing is
certainly less overtly socially and politically critical in its explanation for this
disruption in the world order than the later films Prince o f Darkness and They
Live, which viciously attack urbanization and Reaganomics. However, the films
are thematically similar. The creature in The Thing has two separate metaphorical
realizations. First, many critics see the theme of The Thing to be the exploration
of “the frailty of human flesh” (Muir 103). More specifically, the creature is seen
as a metaphor for the ease with which the human body can be injured, destroyed,
or repaired, as evidenced by the fascination The Thing has with extreme close-ups
of finger cutting, burnt flesh, frozen flesh, tom flesh, and-this author’s personal
favorite-a ravenous mouth that hungrily explodes from a corpse to consume the
misplaced hand of a former comrade. Some gravity is also given to the argument
that The Thing is a film about AIDS, or other dangerous communicable diseases,
based on the nature in which the creature propagates itself. The expansion of the
thing is exponential, and, echoing the newfound fears regarding the discovery of
AIDS in the early eighties, can be spread easily by a single cell secretly invading
its host. Carpenter later explored this theme more fully in Prince o f Darkness.
Secondly, and again, less intense than the same themes as used in Prince
of Darkness and They Live, is how claustrophobia and overcrowding can drive
men to violence. Also, the eighties’ mantra of self-interest over all else drives the
theme of distrust that runs so rampant through the Antarctic research camp.
Likening the evil in The Thing to claustrophobic “cabin fever” is at least more
visually reminiscent of The Shining, both of which emphasize the remoteness of a
crisp, snow-covered setting. However, comparing the urban expansion and
overpopulation of the dirty cityscapes depicted in the later films Prince o f
Darkness and They Live, The Thing is just a more subtle expression of the same
themes. When considering The Thing in relation to Carpenter’s later productions
for Alive Films, the distrust, anger, and anti-fraternity of the Antarctic research
camp members are extreme, outward examples of what Carpenter saw as a threat
to the American society. The Thing probably handles this theme the most
smoothly and stylishly of the three films, in almost diametric opposition to the
blatant They Live, which is about as political a movie as Carpenter may have ever
made, perhaps with the exception of the somewhat a«f/-political message
conveyed in the endings of both Escape From New York, (where Snake Plisskin
destroys the president’s “world-saving” audio tape) and Escape From L.A. (where
Snake Plisskin really screws the country by rendering all electronic devices
useless).
In John Girpenter’s Prince o f Darkness, the identity thief is none other
than the Antichrist himself. However, not only are the graduate students
possessed by a religious entity, but through the narrative of the film, they discover
that the Antichrist and Christ are of extraterrestrial origin, somehow blending the