what a dipshit.

this movie is a piece of pathetic pussy poo.

although I will look in the mirror at dawn and think

"at least I didn't think that piece of crap was any good, like zombot"

That being said, though, this whole "2-disc special edition" crap is starting to get pretty annoying. As I hope we all remember, almost all DVDs used to be released as 2-discs and cost $20. Now of course, the single-disc versions cost $20 and you have to pay extra if you want anything more than just the movie. Also, all the movie rental places only carry the single-disc versions, so basically you've got to pay $25-30 to see any extra features now. I'm sorry, but there are a lot of movies that I want to see but don't want to buy (like this one - I can't imagine wanting to see it more than once, mostly because of the ending which, as the father of a 10-year-old son, I'm sure I will hate), and I always especially enjoyed checking out the extra features on good sci-fi and horror movies. I remember reading a column here bemoaning this new trend when it first started. Seems we're stuck with it though.

Though it'll never happen, I wish there was a sequel. Maybe tell the story of the soldier who runs into David. Call it The Arrowhead Project.

Off topic, but speaking of The Thing... anyone play the video game, which is a sequel to the movie? I haven't gotten too far, was wondering if it was worth my time. I really enjoyed the movie.

Reaction among moviegoers seems split 50/50, with those who hate it commenting on the weak characters and awful ending, and those who love it sometimes saying that the rest of us "just don't get it," followed by a few expletives.

I do agree with you that had this been released in black and white, a lot more critics would have put down their double latte and paid a bit more attention to the film. Ed Wood is still thought of as some kind of classic, merely because Tim Burton had the clout to shoot it in monochrome.

And to the person who mentioned The Road, after a quick bit of searching (since I hadn't heard of it), you're right, sounds like about as bleak and hopeless a story as you could imagine. Ironically though, in that story it sounds like the father is willing to do whatever it takes to protect his son, even when there seems to be no real hope of survival for either of them. This makes it sort of the flip side of the main problem so many people had with Darabont's take on The Mist.

Personally, I really dug the original Kong background. It reflected a time when most of us huddled around movie topics, sans-agenda. But that's just my opinion.

I still enjoy the site and frequent it often. Yet, from time to time, I think the original intent has been lost.

Speaking of bleak, nihilistic stories, how about A Prayer for the Dying by Stewart O'Nan. I've read some downers before, but I actually couldn't finish that one, it was so completely hopeless and depressing.

That ending, however, is something of a problem, in my opinion. While ballsy, to be sure, its very, very forced and runs contrary to what little characterization we have available to Jane's character. Why, just a few minutes earlier, the man finds out about his wife's death and mostly takes it in stride, choosing to continue fighting/trying rather than despair, but in just two to three minutes time, he and the rest of the posse throw in the towell within moments of his car running on empty. No time passes for us to see them crack. No vain attempts at chancing it are taken. The way the ending is filmed, its as though they all see the gas meter, and then say, "fuck it." This is why, even though I may be a fan of the Darabont's Chutzpah, I can't help but feel the ending is tacked on, particularly when it runs counter to the character and the film's internal logic. To me, it just seemed as though Frank thought one day, "wouldn't it be cool if..."

As for being the next thing...dunno. The reason The Thing did poorly, though, wasn't the fact that audiences and critics didn't like it. It was just that they liked ET, which, if I remember, was released at the same time, a hell of a lot more.

At least it wasn't BATMAN AND ROBIN. BATMAN FOREVER may have been shit, but at least there was an actual movie buried under there.

I haven't seen the Mist yet but will watch the B&W version first if that was what Darabont intended and the colour version after. But I bet if Frank had argued that B&W was the only way the film could be realised it would never have been made. I think we're in agreement that it's a shame but that's the way it is. My point was to challenge Moriarty's view that a B&W release would have made more money. I can't see it.