Film Review: Reviewed By Alan Jones; 4 out of 5

John Carpenter's remake of Howard Hawks and Christian Nyby's influential 1951 creature feature is a special-effects extravaganza of the highest order. In fact, the updated screenplay by Bill Lancaster (son of Burt) sticks more closely to the plot of the classic John W Campbell short story that inspired the original movie, as the occupants of a polar research station (which include Kurt Russell and A Wilford Brimley) are menaced by an alien with the ability to change its shape and impersonate its enemies. Carpenter stresses the slimy ET at the expense of characterisation, mood and practically everything else, yet it's precisely this one grisly facet that makes it such compelling science fiction. Even Alien can't hold a candle to the nightmarish images on offer here, so be warned.

Plot Summary

Science-fiction horror starring Kurt Russell. In the Antarctic, a team of American scientists discover the remains of a spacecraft near an abandoned Norwegian research station. While investigating the expedition's fate, the Americans come under threat from a terrifying alien organism.