I saw it in the theater back in 1982. What an awesome flick. I remember nearly shitting myself when
spoiler (click to show/hide)
MacReady gave the blood test and the fucking blood screamed and jumped out of the petri dish
And Rob Bottin is a genius. Watch the documentary on the DVD, that dude put himself through physical hell to get those effects done, not like those pussies nowadays with their CGI and their pointing and clicking.
If Kurt Russell never makes another movie, he's a solid modern-day Hollwood legend for this, Escape From New York, Tombstone, and BTILC alone. Also, if you get the chance, check out the Elvis TV movie he starred in back in 1979 - it was directed by John Carpenter, and is really theatrical quality. Russell gives a knockout performance.