It took several decades, but John Carpenter's 'The Thing' has finally established itself as a horror/sci-fi classic, and perhaps...just perhaps...the best movie the acclaimed director ever helmed. It has had a number of quality home video releases over the years, but this new Shout Factory Blu-ray set manages to stake claim as the definitive home video version of the film. It has a great new transfer, a new audio track, and enough bonus features to keep you occupied should you ever find yourself stranded in the Antarctic.

First though, a short recap for the uninitiated. The movie is set at an American research center in Antarctica, where 12 men are manning a research station (What are they researching? Doesn't matter!). The movie opens with a Norwegian helicopter approaching the station and one of its passengers leaning out the side of the chopper taking shots at one of the station's sled dogs. The helicopter lands and the stranger continues to try and shoot the dog, but one of the station's men kills the man first. Why was he taking shots at the canine? The Americans decide to send a few of their personnel to the Norwegians' station to investigate.

The investigation team is led by R.J. MacReady (Kurt Russell), who is sort of the leading man of this movie's ensemble for no other reason than – hey – he's played by Kurt Freakin' Russell! The Norwegian camp has been burned to the grown, with everyone seemingly dead – including the frozen corpse of a man who appears to have slashed his own wrists. MacReady and the men around him soon learn that they are dealing with an extraterrestrial being...and one that can take the shape of any animal form around it, including human.

It goes without saying that the alien being starts going after the humans at the Americans' base, and the remainder of the movie focuses on the distrust between all the men there...wondering who might have been taken over already and who might be next. 'The Thing' also concludes (or better yet, doesn't conclude) with a great ambigious ending that probably ruined its chances of making in a box office sucess in 1982, yet cemented its destiny to become a classic in the sci-fi/horror genre.

Of course, what makes 'The Thing' so entertaining to watch, isn't so much its sci-fi scenario or even the fact that the movie revels in a bit of blood and gore – which was considered pushing the limits of taste back in 1982, but frankly seems on the tame side by today's movie standards. No, the real reason 'The Thing' has stood the test of time is because of its psychological drama and because the movie smartly cast really good actors across the board, rather than focusing on only hiring good actors for the larger roles. It's a movie that knows characterization is the key to engaging storytelling...something you'd think the powers-that-be in Hollywood would eventually figure out, but they're just as clueless now as they were back in the 1980s as to what makes a movie 'work'.

Chances are if you're reading this review, I'm essentially preaching to the choir. You already know how good 'The Thing' is and just want to know if this Collector's Edition is worth investing in. Rest assured it is. Not only is it easily the best home video release this movie has gotten to date, it's a strong contender for the best Blu-ray release of the year. Don't be paranoid...trust me on this one.

The Blu-Ray: Vital Disc Stats

Shout Factory's Collector's Edition of 'The Thing' emerges on Blu-ray in a standard Elite keepcase, which houses two 50GB discs. The flip side of the keepcase's slick seen from inside the box features the original theatrical artwork, while the front of the keepcase's slick as well as the slipcover that slides overtop features new artwork by Paul Shipper. There are no front-loaded trailers on either disc, with the main menu of the movie disc featuring a montage of footage from the movie in the middle of the screen, bordered on all sides by Shipper's artwork. Menu selections run horizontally along the bottom of the screen. The bonus disc is designed a little differently, with a white background and a trio of sections (one on the left, one on the right, and one on the bottom) for the listed bonus features. These overall sections are labeled 'Interviews', 'Featurettes', and 'More of The Thing').

The Blu-rays in this release are Region A locked.