The Thing: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack [Soundtrack]

Ennio Morricone | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (April 30, 1991)
• Original Release Date: June 25, 1982
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Soundtrack
• Label: Varese Sarabande
• ASIN: B0000014RQ
• Also Available in: Audio Cassette  |  Vinyl
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #101,632 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Humanity (Part I)

2. Shape

3. Contamination

4. Bestiality

5. Solitude

6. Eternity

7. Wait

8. Humanity (Part II)

9. Sterilization

10. Despair

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The complete score and it is brilliant., October 8, 2001

By 

Chadwick H. Saxelid "Bookworm" (Concord, CA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Thing: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack (Audio CD)

Ennio Morricone made a few disgruntled comments about Carpenter's use of his score in The Thing. Mainly he was disappointed that Carpenter, after publicly stating he wanted a European sound to the music, simply used the music that sounded most like his own compositions. Further insult was added when Carpenter created several cues to mix in with Morricone's (even as a youngster I could clearly recognize Carpenter's work when I heard it in the film on its opening weekend).

Despite that, like the soundtrack for Dawn of the Dead, this soundtrack release contains all the music Morricone composed for the film and none of Carpenter's work. How well some of the tracks would have fit into the film, and where, is anybody's guess.

Morricone's score is, in the end, a superb effort that captures the tone and mood of the film beautifully and achieves the same level of excellence as Goldmsith's score for Alien and Williams's score for Jaws. An essential soundtrack in any library.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A great album to play on a stormy night with the lights out!, August 19, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: The Thing: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack (Audio CD)

To my mind, John Carpenter's "The Thing" would have to be one of the most misunderstood movies to have come out of the Eighties. Critics panned it mercilessly for relying far too much on special effects and for being "not very scary". They had only to listen to the music soundtrack to instantly understand what the director had in mind. The movie's central theme is not one of horror per se, but about creeping paranoia and how it affects each character as one by one they fall victim to "The Thing". Morricone's score brings that out beautifully. Each track is composed to fit in perfectly with the movie's scenes, from the beginning, "Humanity (Part 1), to the final "Despair" where all hope is lost and the two surviving characters wait to die. If you're into horror movie soundtracks this CD is really a must.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Movie - Great Soundtrack, December 6, 1999

By 

matt (Sanfrancisco, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Thing: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack (Audio CD)

This soundtrack - in my opinon - is the perfect compliment to John Carpenter's horror masterpiece , "The Thing" .The icy, creeping dread that prevails throughout the movie is hauntingly reflected in Ennio Morricone's chilling soundtrack. Minimailist , cold , morbid , and creepy - John Carpenter and Ennio Morricone together produced a classic piece of modern horror