When is a ripoff of The Thing not a ripoff? When it changes just enough for plausible deniability. Alien Hunter did not change enough. In fact, it even reused footage from John Carpenter’s version of The Thing.
Released direct-to-video in 2003, Alien Hunter was directed by Ron Krauss from a screenplay by executive producer J.S. Cardone, a prolific b-filmmaker in his own right.
Alien Hunter stars James Spader as cryptologist Julian Rome, who is sent to a remote Antarctic research base after a mysterious signal is detected. After finding the location of the signal’s source, out in the middle of the frozen wastes, an object is found buried in the ice, just like in The Thing. Also just like in The Thing, the researchers chip out the surrounding ice into a block, and haul the whole thing back to base. There, debate ensues about what to do with this object, as it’s clear to everyone but one dissenting researcher, Dr. Straub (veteran performer John Lynch), that this object is alien in origin.
Here is where the film breaks away from The Thing. Not to do anything original, mind you, but just enough that it’s not cribbing so much from either John W. Campbell Jr’s original novella, or the two film adaptations released up to that point.
The characters may have the object in storage, now, but it’s still broadcasting the signal. While most of the group is in the storage room trying to crack the object open, now revealed to be a pod of some sort, Rome is working on deciphering the signal. In a bit of technobabble that explains how it all works, it’s revealed that the message 
is a simple warning, reading, “DO NOT OPEN.” But, of course, it’s too late. The pod opens, causing an explosion that whittles down the cast to more manageable b-movie levels. Then, things get worse.
The pod had been carrying a deadly pathogen that melts flesh, Indiana Jones-style, in a matter of seconds. But, again, this is used solely to whittle down the cast even more. Many characters have plot armor sufficient to get them to the final act, regardless of whether or not any of it makes sense. Oh, and there was an alien inside the pod, who has now revived and is wandering throughout the station.
The film becomes the typical cat and mouse tale of scientists hunting alien and vice versa, only this flick doesn’t make it clear until late whether or not the alien is a bloodthirsty monster, or merely misunderstood. The biggest threat to the characters isn’t the alien, or the unknown pathogen, but the government. Unbeknownst to those in Antarctica, the powers that be have known about alien visits, and the danger of the pathogen, for decades, so they enlist a Russian ballistic submarine to send up a nuclear ICBM and take care of the problem. So, there’s a flesh melting disease, an alien with mysterious intentions, and now a ticking clock.
In more deft storytelling hands, this would make for an exciting movie. But, the shamelessly derivative first act is tough to get past, and everything after is half-baked, either because of budget or just mediocre filmmaking. The cast was fine, though. James Spader always seems to play even-tempered characters, which can make it look like he’s mailing in lines on occasion, but that’s just his style. What he’s always going for is cool, intelligent consideration of events, and this role fits him well. Lynch was also good, although his character was far more obtuse than is believable. Even Olympic gold medallist Carl Lewis does a decent enough job in his role.
Alien Hunter is an anonymous sci-fi horror flick. It doesn’t do a remarkable job telling either its own story, or the one it steals from. It’s the kind of film that’s best when one has low expectations, and is suffering from the kind of brain fog that prevents one from enjoying something worth watching. It falls well into the bottom half of the Index, where dwell movies I barely remember seeing, much less writing about. It displaces Beyond the Trek at #397. Yuck.