Damn that's a Sophie's Choice there, I'd have to lean with The Thing......just by the thinnest of margins.....
Surprisingly tough choice. 20 years ago I would have been all over Alien, which is arguably a better film with a better (my favorite living) director. But the litmus test is: which would you watch if it were on and you had to choose? The Thing, every time. It's just more entertaining. I have been watching Alien in 4K on and off over the last month and it's a gorgeous movie, no doubt, but it's also really dated by today's standards. Everyone chain-smoking in the spaceship, argument over quarantine rules, the lack of double-checking medical scans (or just automated scans) to know the guy had an alien in his guts. The Thing is just some modern dudes in the Arctic doing their best to stay alive while this monster is out there eating them. And Kurt Russel is amazing in the movie. The entire cast is better than the Alien cast except for Sigourney Weaver. As for the actual question, which is better horror, it's different. Once is action/gore/jump scares, the other is hard-core sci-fi psychological. Pick your poison.
The Thing is a great movie but I'm surprised it's leading this poll. Alien spawned a whole franchise with tons of spinoffs including absorbing the Predator franchise. I haven't seen the Thing having that large or dedicated fandom or being as influential of a movie.
The Thing is generally held in very high regard, up there with Alien. I think The Thing holds up better because it didn't kick off a franchise, it's a singular experience....
Escape from New York made John Carpenter a legend, "WHO'S THE DUKE!" Not taking anything away from the Thing but by the time he made that movie he had already made many famous movies including Halloween, The Fog and the aforementioned Escape from New York.
I don't agree that he's the GOAT but he has made some extremely rewatchable movies. Maybe top 5 director for me. Bears some thinking. That's why 20 years ago I was pure Alien as a fanboy. But at the end of the day, what do I watch more often? The Thing.
Thanks for the poll. I haven't watched The Thing in years. It is time. I did rewatch the first four Alien movies a couple months ago and agree that Alien is beginning to feel dated. (I'm probably one of the few people alive that feels this way, but Alien Covenant is arguably a better version of the original and Aliens.) What I remember of The Thing is John Carpenter made the most of its setting and Kurt Russell carried it. Until I rewatch The Thing I'm going with Alien. It's not even close in my mind, but my opinion could change.
