Why The Thing Is The Best Sci-Fi Horror Movie Of All Time

Ennio Morricone was already a legendary film composer by the time Carpenter brought him on board The Thing. He had written famous scores for Spaghetti Westerns such as The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, as well as music for classics such as Before the Revolution and The Battle of Algiers. He was revered by many filmmakers, including Quentin Tarantino, who has used his music in a number of his films, including The Hateful Eight. Tarantino has said that The Hateful Eight owes much to The Thing, including the icy setting, the snowed-in travelers, the use of Kurt Russell in the lead, and of course Morricone's music for Carpenter's film, some of which actually ended up in The Hateful Eight.

The brilliance of Morricone's score from The Thing is in its subtlety and simplicity. It mostly consists of a repeated low-register "thump-thump" refrain, underscored by some haunting minor key synthesizer. The refrain evokes the famous two-note refrain in Jaws, as well as the literal "bump in the night" that characterizes classic horror. It also uncannily evokes a human heartbeat, perhaps suggesting the racing heartbeats of the terrified characters (and viewers), as well as hearts literally stopping. Finally, its unhurried but relentless rhythm suggests the alien itself, methodically working its way through the men, unable to be stopped. The brilliance and sheer creepiness of Morricone's dark score is one of the reasons why The Thing is the best sci-fi horror film of all time.