Artist The Thing

Though ostensibly a remake of the Howard Hawks sci-fi classic from 1951, John Carpenter’s The Thing goes for more visceral scares as it isolates a research team in the Antarctic and turns loose a murderous alien parasite. Upon arriving at their post, the research team (led by Carpenter muse Kurt Russell) is startled to find a circling helicopter shooting at a dog; when the helicopter goes down, the Americans discover the animal’s roots at a Norwegian outpost nearby that’s been completely destroyed. Turns out the titular "thing" has the power to take over its host—and it's spreading, threatening to wipe Russell and crew out.

Updated 03/24/2010