A research team in Antarctica is hunted by a shape-shifting alien that assumes the appearance of its victims.A research team in Antarctica is hunted by a shape-shifting alien that assumes the appearance of its victims.A research team in Antarctica is hunted by a shape-shifting alien that assumes the appearance of its victims.
- Awards
- 5 nominations total
Wilford Brimley
- Blair
- (as A. Wilford Brimley)
Thomas G. Waites
- Windows
- (as Thomas Waites)
Adrienne Barbeau
- Computer
- (voice)
- (uncredited)
John Carpenter
- Norwegian (video footage)
- (uncredited)
- Director
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaJohn Carpenter has stated that of all his films, this is his personal favorite.
- Goofs(at around 1h 20 mins) Although Fuchs has told them that the alien organism is highly infective, they don't care about sharing the same knife to get their blood samples.
- Crazy creditsThe title of the movie is revealed in the same style as in The Thing from Another World (1951). The effect was achieved with a plastic bag placed on a stencil that was melted by a heat source placed below it.
- Alternate versionsCBS edited 12 minutes from this film for its 1986 network television premiere.
- ConnectionsEdited into Deep Freeze (2001)
- SoundtracksDon't Explain
Music by Billie Holiday (uncredited)
Lyrics by Arthur Herzog Jr. (uncredited)
Performed by Billie Holiday
Courtesy of MCA Records
Featured review
You're stationed at an isolated outpost in Antarctica when a helicopter arrives intent on shooting a dog it had been pursuing across the tundra. Things get out of hand and the occupants of the chopper have their ability to pursue curtailed, more permanently than they'd like. Not too long after this carnage it becomes apparent that the pursuing shooters had a pretty good reason for wanting to remove the dog from the land of the living as the dog turns out to have the same aspirations as its pursuers, albeit in various guises, transformations, metamorphoses and reconfigurations.
While this was made in 1981 it remains to this day one of the greatest and most engaging pieces of horror movie making that has ever been created.
While this was made in 1981 it remains to this day one of the greatest and most engaging pieces of horror movie making that has ever been created.
Details
- Release date
- Countries of origin
- Languages
- Also known as
- La cosa del otro mundo
- Filming locations
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $15,000,000 (estimated)
- Gross US & Canada
- $19,857,465
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $3,107,897
- Jun 27, 1982
- Gross worldwide
- $20,630,135
- Runtime1 hour 49 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 2.39 : 1
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