Isolated, Cold, and Paranoid
I guess I have a thing for scifi horror that explores what happens when creatures are thawed from within ice
There’ve been a bunch of sci-fi horror stories over time that have used the setting of a team of researchers or explorers who are somehow trapped or isolated in a cold environment like the Arctic or Antarctica who then find themselves faced with a creature that is slowly taking over or killing the people in the group.
It’s made for some fun storytelling, but also can connect to some real world science. Some of my favorite entries in this realm are the short story Who Goes There? (the basis for The Thing), the X-Files episode “Ice”, and the film The Thaw.
The Thaw
Written and directed by Mark A. Lewis, The Thaw (2009) is a science fiction horror film that intertwines ecological catastrophe, parasitic horror, and human vulnerability, creating a narrative that is as thought-provoking as it is terrifying. Starring Val Kilmer as Dr. David Kruipen, a shady climate scientist studying the effects of global warming, and Martha MacIsaac as his estranged daughter Evelyn, the film warns of the potential dangers lurking beneath the melting permafrost.\
The plot revolves around the discovery of a well-preserved woolly mammoth that contains parasitic organisms that had been trapped along with the mammoth in the ice for thousands of years. Dr. Kruipen’s team finds the preserved mammoth during a research expedition in the Canadian Arctic, where warming temperatures have caused significant glacial melting. When members of the team become infected, Kruipen contacts his daughter Evelyn and asks her to bring a group of university students — including Freddie (Kyle Schmid), Ling (Steph Song), and Atom (Aaron Ashmore) — to the base for what is supposed to be an educational experience.
Upon arrival, the group finds the base abandoned and eerily silent. Soon, they discover that one of Kruipen’s team members has succumbed to a bizarre illness, and they realize the extent of the threat. As the parasite spreads, paranoia sets in, exacerbated by poor decision-making and a subplot involving the infected Freddie (which is probably the most “cringe” part of the story), who then becomes antagonistic and threatens the group. The narrative builds toward a desperate fight for survival as they attempt to quarantine the parasite and escape before it spreads further. As the team fights to survive, the film’s underlying ecological message becomes clear: nature, once disturbed, can strike back in devastating and unpredictable ways.
The film has a pretty low audience score on Rotten Tomatoes (at 23% on the popcornmeter with over 1,000 ratings). However, I have to wonder how much of this is based on a real analysis of the film as opposed to those who are politically opposed to messages about the potential threats of climate change.
For instance, this is just one of many comments left by those who opposed the film apparently more for its larger societal message:
Global warming religious hysteria built on the flimsiest of science. No plot of substance. This isn’t a movie it’s a propaganda sermon.
But not all who left comments thought it was so terrible. Here’s one comment from another viewer who had a more positive take (and seemed to be reviewing the film rather than emotionally reacting to its message):
The Thaw: The Thing meets The Andromeda Strain with a healthy dose of realism in this low budget horror flick set in the Canadian Arctic, where scientist Val Kilmer (in a heavily phoned in performance) and team discover a newly-thawed woolly mammoth filled with newly-thawed deadly parasites. The pros: a surprisingly realistic (at first, at least) plot, a bleak setting and simple but effective special effects. The cons: weak acting, predictable characters and continuity problems — the parasites kill some bad actors instantly, while others seems to (frustratingly) linger forever. Your skin will be crawling by the time the credits role. B-
I, for one, found The Thaw to be a fun watch. It wasn’t groundbreaking by any means, and many of its plot elements can be found in other stories as I’ll explore below, but there is some real science that can be connected to what they show in the film.
The X-Files: Ice
The Thaw appears to have borrowed rather heavily from The X-Files episode Ice (Season 1, Episode 8) from 1993.
In “Ice,” Agents Mulder (David Duchovny) and Scully (Gillian Anderson) are sent to investigate an isolated Alaskan research base whose team members have died under mysterious circumstances. The team of geophysicists who had been stationed there had been studying an ancient ice core sample believed to be 250,000 years old. The agents set off along with a physician Dr. Hodge (Xander Berkeley), toxicologist Dr. Da Silva (Felicity Huffman), geologist Dr. Murphy (Steve Hytner), and the team’s pilot Bear (Jeff Kober) to explore the base and determine what had happened.
Upon arrival, the team encounters a feral dog with black nodules under its skin and erratic behavior. After Bear is bitten, he quickly falls ill and develops similar symptoms. When Bear becomes violent and dies, an autopsy reveals a parasitic worm burrowed under his skin, capable of controlling its host. As paranoia grips the team, they discover that the worm originated from the ancient ice core and may even be extraterrestrial in origin (because, of course, it’s X-Files). In the end, they survive the parasitic infection and the shadow government destroys the remnants of the research base, leaving Mulder frustrated at the lost opportunity to study the ancient organism.
The Thing and Who Goes There?
Both The Thaw and Ice explore themes of isolation, paranoia, and the dangers of organisms long dormant in extreme environments. Both also feature the idea of invasive parasites that manipulate their hosts and turn allies into threats, creating tension that forces characters to question who they can trust.
Of course, this connects these stories to some of the greatest sci-fi horror of all time in The Thing from 1982.
In John Carpenter’s The Thing, a group of American researchers stationed at a remote Antarctic outpost are plunged into paranoia and terror when they encounter a shape-shifting alien life form capable of imitating any living being. The film begins with the team, led by R.J. MacReady (Kurt Russell), investigating a nearby Norwegian research base, where they find everyone dead under mysterious and violent circumstances. They soon discover that the Norwegians had unearthed an extraterrestrial organism frozen in the ice for over 100,000 years. The creature, thawed and unleashed, has the horrifying ability to absorb and replicate any biological organism it encounters.
Back at the American base, chaos ensues as the team realizes that any one of them could be the alien in disguise. As trust deteriorates and paranoia spreads, MacReady takes charge, attempting to test each team member to determine who has been infected. The alien proves nearly impossible to contain, using deception and violence to evade capture while systematically eliminating the crew. The tension crescendos as the survivors face the realization that they must destroy the creature at all costs, even if it means sacrificing themselves. The film’s haunting ending leaves viewers with uncertainty, as MacReady and fellow survivor Childs (Keith David) sit together in the freezing cold, unsure whether either of them is truly human (this scene has led to so much speculation!)
The Thing itself has a prequel film, The Thing (2011), which honestly might be the best setup prequel ever (they made sure to not only recreate the Norwegian base as it appeared in the 1982 film, but also set up explanations for all of the horrible deaths that are later found by MacReady and team). There’s also another film from 1951 called The Thing From Another World that shares similar inspiration as The Thing. And that inspiration was John W. Campbell’s 1938 short story Who Goes There?
The overall story of Who Goes There? Is very much the same as what we see in The Thing (with some slight differences — the scientific knowledge and technology of 1938 is much different than what we had in 1982, but they also made some changes in the overall story).
Who Goes There? is a seminal work of science fiction and horror, exploring themes of paranoia, identity, and the existential terror of an invisible threat. All these years later, many people have now drawn into question the person who John W. Campbell was. While he was super influential in the development of science fiction and printing the works of authors like Isaac Asmiov, Arthur C. Clarke, and Robert Heinlein, he also shared a lot of ideas that can be considered racist and sexist. Still, Who Goes There? is a worthy read for its early exploration of these themes.
Ancient Organisms Coming Back to Life and Alien Invasions
While all of these stories are really about the isolation, paranoia, and uncertainty of the situations they present, I love the idea of there being a creature thawed from ice after some long time that then drives the stories forward. But could it be possible that creatures frozen in ice for a long time could come back to life and cause us harm?
Recent discoveries have shown that viruses, bacteria, and even multicellular organisms can remain viable for thousands of years when preserved in ice or salt deposits.
For example:
In 2014, scientists revived a 30,000-year-old virus from Siberian permafrost, proving that ancient pathogens could potentially remain infectious under the right conditions.
In 2021, researchers revived microscopic Bdelloid rotifers after they had been frozen for 24,000 years in Siberian permafrost.
In 2023, researchers announced that they had revived a tiny roundworm after it was frozen in Siberian permafrost 46,000 years ago.
Salt crystals have preserved bacteria for hundreds of thousands and even hundreds of millions of years, with studies suggesting that some microorganisms could theoretically “wake up” if conditions allow.
So not only is it quite possible for ancient organisms, even potentially pathogenic to humans, to be frozen in ancient ice, but it’s also possible for them to be viable after thawing in some cases.
These stories also connect with questions about contact with alien creatures. Could it be possible that some alien biological functions would be able to overwhelm our ecosystems or even eradicate life as we know it? Sounds terrifying, but even more terrifying is the fact that we have to accept that this is possible. We don’t know yet what it will be like if and when we meet beings who’ve evolved on entirely different worlds. While there are some good arguments for why they might not be harmful for us to interact with, the sheer potential for them to cause severe harm is reason enough to be cautious in our astrobiological explorations of the solar system. We especially would want to be very careful should we ever come in contact with an extraterrestrial artifact or spacecraft, as we have no way of known what would happen to us or our world should we interact.
The way that stories like Who Goes There?, The Thing, Ice, or The Thaw explore concepts of pathogenic beings (even aliens) being frozen in ice and then being revived is mostly focused on telling gripping horror stories, but they also are a good reminder that the truth is always stranger than our fiction. We ought to be careful when it comes to what our hotter futures through climate change will hold. And we ought to be cautious if and when we interact with alien life forms. Something truly horrible could happen to us otherwise. And it would be made all the worse if we were isolated in a cold environment with a small group of people we’ve discovered we can’t trust.
This writing was originally shared on Medium. Due to preparations for some travels in Iceland and abroad, I’m currently reworking my writing schedule. I’d especially love to know what kinds of short writings you might enjoy from me in the weeks and months to come. It’s, as always, such an honor to share this journey on The Cosmobiologist with all of you!