Movies in the same timeframe similar to THE THING

ALIEN 1979: 
"In space no one can hear you scream"

Props to Ridley Scott for giving us a truly great Alien horror film.
The trailer itself says it all. It plays with sound and fast paced images to make the viewer feel uncomfortable while viewing, without showing a single alien.

Sadly enough Carpenter pulled a few ideas from the trailer stated below in the USP and without a shade of coyness attempted to trump it.

POLTERGEIST 1982:
"It knows what scares you"

A true ghost story within the confines of the stereotypical suburban house. The main selling and marketing points for this one is the realness of it.

The beautiful home and the green grass is the American dream, but now that dream has become a nightmare.

Also it is Steven Spielberg. They thought it was important to put that in the trailer... Which it absolutely was. producers knew even at that time the his hands were made of gold.

THE EVIL DEAD 1981:


Starts off a very similar way to The Thing: with a recorded message about the scariness that is yet to come.

The Evil Dead's marketing went for the shock factor, with all of the blood and guts and gore that was shown in the preview. It attracted a specific kind of audience.

Also the film had a very graphic novel feel to it. Almost comic book and grotesque humor to it.

USP Blogging assignment.
Unique Proposition:


You think you've seen terror? Do you think you've felt fear? Nothing can be compared to The Thing. From visionary director John Carpenter comes the "ultimate in alien terror" If you thought aliens where scary in space, wait until they come here to our planet to cause chaos wearing our bodies as camouflage. Kurt Russell stares in the visually striking film with never before seen special effects, so real you might forget you're watching a movie.

Out in the frozen lands of the arctic, man is the warmest place to hide.

The techniques used to market this film were various. First off the Tag line "The ultimate in alien terror," was a direct hit on Ridley Scott's Alien which released in 1979. John Carpenter had really only one good sci-fi horror movie to beat and the tag line calls it out.

Also starting the trailer with a mock distress call coming from the American Arctic base made the situation feel real. He discloses just enough information to scare you, but not enough to give away the story.

They stole something that was actually in the Alien trailer. Placing another tagline at the end "Man is the warmest place to hide." Reminicent of Alien's "In space no-one can hear you scream."

The Thing (1982)

A group of American scientists at a post in Antarctica stumble upon an alien life form that can clone living people. It is up to the human will to survive this foreign threat.

I have seen the film, many times

The Crew and Cast

Directed By John Carpenter

Executive Producer Wilbur Stark

Associate Producers: Larry J. Franco, Stuart Cohen

Cast

Kurt Russell

Wilford Brimly

This film did not circuit any festivals

The film has the Ultimate THING fan site

www.outpost31.com

The film also has a review website with most critics reviews

http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/1021244-thing/

The angles for marketing were simple. Besides the trailer and posters. I think that the name was the best marketing ploy they used.

THE THING... What thing? It is such a broad word. When you couple that with the trailer and posters you get nothing but suspense, terror and mystery.

SCREEN SHOTS