The Thing from Another World

Inspired by a (mediocre) novella by John W. Campbell Jr. (“Who Goes There?” – 1938), Christian Nyby brings us what for all intents and purposes might be considered a cornerstone of the decade’s sci-fi, a sort of widely plagiarized how-to manual of rules and guidelines for approaching confrontations between humans and extraterrestrial invaders and for depicting the ensuing clashes on the big screen.

“The Thing from Another World” is decidedly a notch above its countless imitators and followers though, and credit goes to the legendary Howard Hawks’s oversight. Although officially credited only as a producer, he peppered the story with brisk, witty repartee straight from 1940s comedies (relying heavily on rapid-fire, overlapping dialogue), skillfully blending tension and fast-paced action within a context that was already highly original and evocative. As far as the message that comes across, the film is commonly cited as a typical example of Cold War paranoia, featuring an elevated level of scaremongering. (The film’s final admonition has become iconic: “Keep watching the skies!“). The subtext, emblematic of 1950s sci-fi films, equates the era’s flying saucer hysteria with the Red Scare and the threat of nuclear war.

With that in mind, we can’t help but notice the disparity in how the film portrays the military and scientists. The former, responsible and duty-bound, will go to any extreme to ensure the survival of those they’re dedicated to protect. The latter, rash and willing to do anything in the name of science (“Knowledge is more important than life“), take refuge behind an ostensible rationality that smells of fanaticism. And the press? Like in every good example of propaganda, it ends up siding with the army.

The cast was adequate for the task: Kenneth Tobey’s captain was strong and resolute, while Robert Cornthwaite’s Dr. Carrington, with his blank stare, monotone delivery, and repetitive speech, “treats” us to a character brimming with a doggedness that verges on idiocy. Sparse but effective special effects, although James Arness’s alien makeup makes him look more like a Frankenstein’s monster than a “super-carrot” (“On the planet from which our visitor came, vegetable life underwent an evolution similar to that of our own animal life…“).

Originally filmed in black and white, but a colorized version was subsequently released on home video.