Horror and sci-fi director John Carpenter has always maintained a contentious relationship with critics and mainstream moviegoers - despite possessing one of the largest cult followings in cinematic history. After Carpenter erupted onto the scene with his slasher masterpiece Halloween in 1978, he quickly followed suit with two very different, but equally effective, scary films: 1980's The Thing.
In The Fog, residents of a small coastal town in California are terrorized by a creeping, supernatural fog full of vengeful specters. In The Thing, a group of Antarctic researchers is terrorized by a shape-shifting, parasitic alien that jumps from host to host. While neither film received the attention it deserved upon release, both are now among the best Carpenter features from the 1980s. One question remains: does one stand out more than the other?
The Fog: Its Chilling Atmospherics
Carpenter presents The Fog as an eerie, classic ghost story. The titular mist that permeates many shots fills viewers with a creeping sense of dread as they come to realize it contains the spirits of the Elizabeth Dane's crew, a clipper ship that sank off the coast 100 years before.
This spooky ambiance establishes the perfect mood for the film, one structured around broadcasts from the local radio station, where Adrienne Barbeau's DJ character Stevie Wayne warns residents of Antonio Bay about what's brewing offshore. As night descends on the town, the possessed haze follows suit.
The Thing: Its Special Effects
While The Thing is also brooding and moody, it revels in gory practical effects. In fact, many critics found Rob Bottin's FX too shocking when The Thing was released, giving the film an unwarranted reputation for being gratuitously violent.
However, The Thing's FX are now considered classic, well-placed examples of Lovecraftian terror. Cinematographer Dean Cundey's emphasis on shadows and dim lighting maintains the illusion that Bottin's special effects are real.
The Fog: Its Revenge Narrative
In The Fog, the crew of the Elizabeth Dane returns to Antonio Bay to avenge their intentional deaths by drowning after the ship was sunk by six of the town's founders. The men then stole the gold on board the ship, which they used to develop the town.
Like the pirate narratives of yore, this simple, straightforward backstory provides a compelling context for the paranormal activity locals must contend with in the movie's present. With minimal theatrics, The Fog demonstrates the timelessness of revenge themes in horror.
The Thing: The Alien Invasion Narrative
Much of the drama in The Thing centers around the all-male research crew that turns on each other as the alien creature makes moves on them. Beyond this, though, is a reimagining of the alien invasion narrative.
There are no green Martians with ovular faces or intergalactic battles in The Thing. Instead, the invader is a formless traveler that covertly ravages humanity.
The Fog: A Focus On Implied Violence
Carpenter relies much more on implied violence than depictions of the real thing in The Fog, which contributes to the movie's deeply unsettling vibes. The characters know what's lurking in the shadows, and audiences don't need to see the monster to be terrified.
When the ghosts are revealed, it's only through glimpses or sounds. The violence is so minimal that Carpenter worried it wouldn't be able to compete with other genre films, so he added some gore during re-shoots.
The Thing: A Focus On Insane Body Horror
In order to showcase how the alien moves from body to body, The Thing employs cutting-edge body horror effects. With each jump to a new host, the true form of the monster is never revealed.
Instead, the creature's nature in The Thing is explained by exhibiting how infected of the crew are mutated by it. From stomachs that grow spiderly legs to chests that develop teeth, the human body is reduced to a slimy, mutant, genetic anomaly designed to ensure the longevity of its parasitic invader.
The Fog: The Setting
With its steep coastlines and blue waters, Antonio Bay makes for a memorable setting in The Fog. Dean Cundey's wide, slow shots highlight the beauty of the location while establishing some visual contradictions.
Even though it lies along the expansive, never-ending sea, Antonio Bay is secluded from the rest of the world - making it the perfect target for a supernatural threat. Carpenter makes sure to include scenes that emphasize how easy it is for the town to go dark without any neighboring cities being aware.
The Thing: The Setting
Snowy, wintry, and isolated, The Thing's Antarctic setting gives viewers a sense the crew is doomed from the start. Even though gorgeous mountain peaks loom in the distance, the sterile research compound at the center of the film is cold and unforgiving.
There are few means of escape; like The Fog, it doesn't take much for the characters to become completely cut off from the rest of the world. Much of the film was shot in Alaska and British Columbia, where the terrain and weather mimic conditions in Antarctica.
The Fog: Its Open Ending
With his ensemble cast in The Fog, which also includes Jamie Lee Curtis and Tom Atkins, Carpenter shows how the group band together to save itself from doom. With the help of a local priest, Antonio Bay residents figure out how to give the ghosts what they want: the gold that was stolen from them.
However, a twist ending makes it clear the ghosts might not be appeased so easily. In classic Carpenter fashion, The Fog ends on a morally ambiguous tone.
The Thing: Its Dismal Ending
As for The Thing, there is no uncertainty about the fate of the characters. After the crew implodes thanks to its alien invader, the two surviving men share a bottle of scotch while presumably waiting to freeze to death.
The characters played by Kurt Russell and Keith David exchange a few snide, futile remarks before the camera cuts to the end credits. Ultimately, The Thing refuses to provide audiences with any sense of hope about how people respond to stressful situations.
