What did you think about the recently released prequel to 'The Thing'?

One of my favorite all time movies is the 1982 science fiction horror film, “The Thing.” Many of you will be familiar with this movie, which was directed by John Carpenter and starred Kurt Russell and Wilford Brimley. Based on the famous 1938 science fiction novella, “Who Goes There?” by John W. Campbell Jr., it’s about a group of scientists and military officers in Antarctica who come in contact with a shape-shifting alien that’s been frozen for thousands of years beneath the polar ice.

Just the other day, I got the chance to finally watch 2011’s “The Thing,” which is actually a prequel to the 1982 movie. The prequel, which is Rated R, was directed by Matthijs van Heijningen Jr. and was also based on Campbell’s novella. The movie stars Joel Edgerton, Eric Christian Olsen, Ulrich Thomsen and Mary Elizabeth Winstead.

The prequel was released in U.S. theatres on Oct. 14, 2011 and was released on DVD on Jan. 31. I rented it through NetFlix. Despite how much I enjoyed the movie, it didn’t do well at the box office. Shot on a budget of $38 million, it brought in box office revenues of around $27.4 million. The movie has been nominated for Best Horror/Thriller Film and for Best Make-Up in this year’s slate of Saturn Awards. This year’s Saturn Awards results are still pending.

I enjoyed the original and prequel for a number of reasons. I love the Antarctica setting and the strong Lovecraftian elements in both movies. For anyone who has ever read H.P. Lovecraft’s 1931 novel, “At the Mountains of Madness,” you’ll recognize a number of similarities between that novel and these movies.

Both movies also contain strong elements of mystery and paranoia. You don’t know who to trust and you can’t always tell who’s been turned into an alien. The original movie seems to be stronger when it comes to the level of paranoia, but the prequel isn’t far behind.

As I mentioned before, both of these movies is based on an old John W. Campbell Jr. short story that was originally published in the August 1938 edition of “Astounding Science-Fiction” magazine. Interestingly, this novella was also adapted into another movie in 1951 called “The Thing From Another World.”

I have to admit that I’ve never read Campbell’s short story or watched “The Thing From Another World.” I hope to remedy that very soon. I’ve got “The Thing From Another World” at the top of my NetFlix queue, and you can read “Who Goes There?” for free at a couple of places online.

I really enjoyed 2011’s “The Thing,” and I would recommend it to anyone in the reading audience who enjoys a good science fiction or horror movie. I especially recommend the prequel to anyone out there that’s a fan of the 1982 original. You will not be disappointed.

In the end, what did you think of the 2011 version of “The Thing”? Did you like it or dislike it? Why? Which is your favorite, the original movie or the prequel? Why? Let us know in the comments section below.