MJB SCRIPT REVIEW | THE THING
- michaelbrand01
- Mar 15
- 5 min read
โ๐ข๐ธ ๐ฐ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฒ๐ฝ, ๐ท๐๐๐ ๐๐ผ๐ ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐บ๐ฒ ๐ป๐ผ๐โฆโ | ๐ ๐๐ ๐ฆ๐ฐ๐ฟ๐ถ๐ฝ๐ ๐ฅ๐ฒ๐๐ถ๐ฒ๐ - ๐ง๐๐ ๐ง๐๐๐ก๐
Haha! Yeah baby!! Classic Carpenter! Classic horror/sci-fi! Classic scenes! Ooooh, gonna get the fire on the go and some marshmallowsโฆ; THE THING.
Plot in a nutshell: A research team in Antarctica hunt a shape-shifting alien that assumes the appearance of its victims. But with the creature able to assume the image of anyone it touches, paranoia settles inโฆ
You can tell when youโve met someone whoโs watched John Carpenterโs The Thing. You just mention the film and then watch their eyes glaze over as a smile forms. If you get the movie (and you really need to), itโs just a stonking piece of filmmaking. I would argue easily Carpenterโs best. But like all good things, it has to have come from somewhere. So here we are, taking a dive into the legendary source of this section of the filmic Nile; the script.
So, what did I learn from THE THING?
1. Dialogue - Itโs guys doing guy talk, in a tough situation. Thereโs bravado. Thereโs bullshit. Thereโs the need for order and there is a TON of doubt (self or otherwise). All of it believable, all of it heightened. These guys, whether they like it there or not, would rather be somewhere else and the alien just emphasises that, ramping up emotion. The dialogue works in tandem to deliver what the action directions shouldnโt in a masterful manner. Cracking piece of script for analysing a group of guys and their group interaction.
2. Actors - though you are unlikely to see them these days, some of the cast breakdowns at the start of the script are rather handy. They can give you a rough idea of the sort of character that youโre looking for, and maybe even search out if youโre looking to work out which role you would like to audition for.
3. Actors 2 - All guys here, though Iโd argue (again) that you could easily cast this based upon character emotions and purposes alone. Macready is a stand out as a defiant anti-hero (read anti-wants-to-be-a-hero), but each of the characters have their merits. As an ensemble piece, there are some great little scenes and I would argue (like Insidious) that this has some cracking scenes to run role play or read throughs with. Some fun scenes for warming up performance practice and some definite improv exercise material.
4. Action Directions - interestingly, considering there is a difference of 40 years or so between this and my previous review The Maltese Falcon, the script starts with a cast list breakdown too. Of its time, these days I donโt think mentioning a characters colour is particularly important. The characters are cast how they are cast, as far as Iโm concerned. I would like to think it should be left open to interpretation. But the basic breakdowns, racial suggestions aside, are really concise and actually quite useful. For the actors.
5. Action Directions 2 - Just like a mad cross between the styles of The Matrix and Insidious, this script gets its genre. It keeps things simple. Rather than dazzle you with technical speak, it just walks you through the environment and its happenings in a workmanlike manner. You get it. You can see it. But there is also a sense of dread in the simplicity. No hope here. Just sterile clinical walls with zero hugs available. Itโs empty, devoid of feeling this place. So you get the uneasy feel for this location. Quite understated and brilliantly used.
6. Story - so this is not an original story, per se, but rather a remake of the 1951 classic โThe Thing From Another Worldโ (itself a cracking piece of cinema). It is also not the final draft, but still has some fascinating scenes (including a snowmobile chase with escaped dogs which is particularly fun). But, as with all great horror and science-fiction, it pits every day Joeโs against an unknown source. I believe the very best science-fiction does not necessarily have creatures intent on being evil, but rather they are just intent on being themselves. And if their genetic design or existence is based upon committing acts that we consider evil, then that can class them (depending upon your view) in the category of โmonsterโ. But I think it is so much more exciting to write a story based around a creature that is simply trying to survive, rather than deliberately out to eviscerate everyone. Purpose is the key thing here, and this story fulfils it. Very similar to its science fiction sister, Alien, what is key to the story here, is the building of paranoia. Pitting these characters against each other. Where there were slight crevices and the odd chip in relationships at the start of the story, here they turn into vast ravines with everything on the table, including murder, by as early as midway. This is humanity at its very best and very worst. So story wise, this is a cracking playground to play out these elements. A bunch of paranoid guys try to find a creature that may look like one of them. Itโs so catchy, itโs ridiculous. The lesson here is definitely to watch out for that tingling down your spine when you can sum up your plot in one sentence and it make you feel as good as that one does.
7. Finale - have to admit, this is where things get a bit weaker for me. This particular draft has what feels like a CGI creature chasing everyone around the compound. I would love to have known how they wouldโve kept up with this draft back in the early 80s when CGI wasnโt around. These days, you can come up with anything and put it to paper, but itโs a great lesson for writing a finale with some kind of a budget in mind, if thatโs what you have to do. But for me, this finale doesnโt work because it comes down to McCready on his own and his dialogue just doesnโt click. The dialogue in the rest of the script really hums. But here, it just sounds cliche and tacky. Iโm glad they changed it and Iโm really glad they eventually settled on the ending that they did. Because this one feels a bit weak. Apart from the two hander between Childโs and McCready on the last pages, which is still chilling, yet brilliant.
A fascinating draft, with some highs (the snowmobile chase of escaped dogs) and lows (McCreadyโs finale) that didnโt make it into the final draft. But still a very strong draft, with some tense moments and cracking ideas. The whole thing feels like a novel that you just canโt put down. Riveting and at times bewildering with everything thatโs going on. Which is how it mustโve felt for the characters in this story.
So get yourself settled, a nice glass of something to drink and donโt feel compelled to have an inflatable mannequin with you when you give this a read;)
Link to the script:
Comentarios