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Popular Culture Review
Thomsen), a prominent scientist, enlists an American graduate student in
paleontology, Kate Lloyd (Mary Elizabeth Winstead), to help him examine a
100,000 year old “fossil.” His colleague, Dr. Edvard Wolner (Trond Espen
Seim), the head of the scientific team of twelve people which has discovered the
spacecraft, has contacted Halvorson about this incredible find. The conflict is
almost immediately established between the “pure” scientist Halvorson, who
will pursue knowledge at any cost, and the graduate student paleontologist
Lloyd who takes the more cautious path of preserving human life. This conflict
occurs in two of the preceding versions, Carrington vs. Hendry (1951 film) and
Blair vs. Norris (1938 text). Wolner immediately sides with Halvorson, while
Lloyd draws her allies from Halvorson’s assistant, Goodman (Eric Christian
Olsen) and from the ranks of the crew, the two helicopter pilots, Carter (Joel
Edgerton), a Norwegian version of MacReady and Jameson (Adewale
Akanuoye-Agbaje), and Lars (Jorgen Langhelle), the all-purpose workman and
dog handler.
The focus of the prequel quickly becomes action in contrast to the 1982
version which played heavily on suspense. On the first night in the compound,
the Thing explodes dramatically out of the block of ice, shattering the roof and
escaping into the compound. Two of the team who are searching for the alien
find it hiding under a shed. It attacks them almost immediately, killing one by
pulling him into its gullet and spattering the other with blood. The rest of the
team quickly douses it with kerosene and sets it afire with a flame thrower. The
remains are carried inside for an autopsy.
During the autopsy, Lloyd discovers that the alien was imitating the
victim’s cells. She also discovers that it can only imitate biological tissue since it
has ejected a metal brace the victim had to reinforce a broken bone. This
discovery is an innovation in the story not appearing in any other version and
playing an important role in the ensuing plot. The surviving member of the pair
who first encountered the alien is acting in a peculiar manner, appearing to be a
victim of posttraumatic stress. The scientists decide to send him to a hospital for
treatment via helicopter. Once again, Lloyd’s intuition leads her to check the
bathroom the victim had recently visited. There, she discovers blood and several
dental fillings, indicating to her that the victim is actually infected. When she
flags the helicopter, another infected member of the crew on board transforms,
causing the helicopter to spiral out of control and crash in an inaccessible area
apparently killing all aboard.
As Blair had concluded, Lloyd quickly realizes that no one should
leave the camp. In order to prevent some of the team from traveling to a
neighboring Russian camp, she enlists the only other female member of the crew
Juliette (Kim Bubbs) who seems to be on her side and has been casting
suspicion on other crew members to show her where the keys to the sno-cats are
hidden. At this point, Juliette transforms revealing the Thing’s basic form. It is
essentially a four-appendage monstrosity which retains the head of the victim
and can unleash clawed tentacles that serve as spears to pierce its victims. It can