For science fiction fans, this was a glorious day back in 1982.
This day saw the release of John Carpenter's The Thing and Ridley Scott's Blade Runner. This also was a time when theaters were much smaller than they are these days. With far less screens, the idea of the same film showing on multiple screens simply did not exist, and there were not nearly as many showtimes. The result was that I had to decide which to see first.
I opted for The Thing, since my dad was more likely to want to see that one over Blade Runner. I believe I didn't see Blade Runner until the next week.
Both of these films were massive financial flops that summer. That was probably a result of the competition (E.T., Poltergeist, Star Trek II, etc) coupled with the tone of both of these movies. But over the years, both have become classics. I liked both of these more than any of the other movies released that year.
Just this week, the local Cinemark had a 40th anniversary showing of The Thing. I couldn't resist, so off I went to see it. I dragged my wife along as well. I asked her if she'd ever seen The Thing, to which she said, well, I'm married to you, monster movie fanatic, I'm sure I have. But I actually could not ever recall her voluntarily watching this movie with me, so I had a pretty good idea how she was going to react while watching The Thing during certain scenes. The chest opener, the blood test, the shadowy figure walking past Fuchs after the lights went out, the dog, all of those. I expected reactions out of her for all these scenes, and I did not leave the theater disappointed. She shrieked out loud at all of those. And when the movie ended, the dude sitting next to us asked her, have you not seen this movie before? I couldn't help but laugh.
This day saw the release of John Carpenter's The Thing and Ridley Scott's Blade Runner. This also was a time when theaters were much smaller than they are these days. With far less screens, the idea of the same film showing on multiple screens simply did not exist, and there were not nearly as many showtimes. The result was that I had to decide which to see first.
I opted for The Thing, since my dad was more likely to want to see that one over Blade Runner. I believe I didn't see Blade Runner until the next week.
Both of these films were massive financial flops that summer. That was probably a result of the competition (E.T., Poltergeist, Star Trek II, etc) coupled with the tone of both of these movies. But over the years, both have become classics. I liked both of these more than any of the other movies released that year.
Just this week, the local Cinemark had a 40th anniversary showing of The Thing. I couldn't resist, so off I went to see it. I dragged my wife along as well. I asked her if she'd ever seen The Thing, to which she said, well, I'm married to you, monster movie fanatic, I'm sure I have. But I actually could not ever recall her voluntarily watching this movie with me, so I had a pretty good idea how she was going to react while watching The Thing during certain scenes. The chest opener, the blood test, the shadowy figure walking past Fuchs after the lights went out, the dog, all of those. I expected reactions out of her for all these scenes, and I did not leave the theater disappointed. She shrieked out loud at all of those. And when the movie ended, the dude sitting next to us asked her, have you not seen this movie before? I couldn't help but laugh.