It seems like Hollywood has little to offer as of late except for remakes and sequels. When Mattijs van Heijningen Jr. was given the go ahead to make the 2011 installment of “The Thing,” a lot of people shook their heads in disgust – assuming it would be a remake of the 1982 classic. Fortunately, Heijningen chose to make a prequel to John Carpenter’s masterpiece instead, focusing on the fate of the Norwegians.

The film does a nice job of setting up future events as well as giving us some new thrills. There is a lot of attention to detail in the story as there are no cell phones or other modern technology, which keeps it loyal to being a prequel. Not only is the cast believable, the effects and the soundtrack are fantastic. There are a few jump scare moments that are rather satisfying at times.

The film’s only problem is that it does not give enough closure. For example, we know the crew in the film dies because it’s a prequel. It shows how events get set up for the next film but does not show everyone perish, leaving plot questioning for some people. It is not a big deal, but some are going to gripe about it.

The best part of “The Thing” is the special effects. The creative team took a lot of time and patience to enhance the creature effects Carpenter gave us all those years ago. The thing itself looks awesome and eventually becomes terrifying when it starts transforming into the crew members.

“The Thing” prequel lives up to the hype as it delivers the thrills and tones of isolation that the 1982 version was going for. Certain “things” may be questioned, but it is all a matter of opinion.