SOURCE: Gross, Linda. “The Thing: No Thing to Cheer About.” Los Angeles Times (25 June 1982): section 4, p. 15.

In the following review, Gross asserts that The Thing lacks any positive message or element of human warmth to counteract the essential nihilism expressed in the film.

The childhood moviegoing experiences—including the resulting fantasies and nightmares—of a whole generation of film makers now in their 30s are being recycled for present moviegoers.

The new films are sometimes positive (Star Wars, Close Encounters, Raiders of the Lost Ark and E.T.) and sometimes aren't.

John Carpenter's The Thing—even more than Poltergeist—may be the dark side of Steve Spielberg's E.T. Instead of providing us with love, wonder and delight, The Thing is bereft, despairing and nihilistic. It also is overpowered by Rob Botin's visceral and vicious special makeup effects.

The most disturbing aspect of The Thing is its terrible...