In Loving Memory of John Hurt (1940 - 2017)
*CONTAINS SOME SPOILERS*
If you have not seen Alien I highly encourage you to see it 100% then come back and read what I have to say!
*Directed by Ridley Scott
*Starring Sigourney Weaver, Tom Skerrit, John Hurt, Harry Dean Stanton, Yaphet Kotto, Ian Holm, Veronica Cartwright
The Plot: A space crew is making their way home towards Earth when all of a sudden they receive a distress signal from an unknown planet. They investigate said planet, find an abandoned spacecraft and then aboard the craft they find a field of alien eggs. One of those eggs opens up causing a creature to latch itself onto one of the crew members and is then brought aboard the ship. It then kills that crewmember, sets loose and the crew must find a way to kill it before it kills them.
One of the reasons why you’ll hear Ridley Scott regarded as one of the greatest directors of all time is because of films like this. Alien is truly a magnificent film and is one of the best films to mold together with the genres of sci-fi and horror. It’s one of the greatest sci-fi films, one of the greatest horror films and one of the greatest films of all time period. It changed the game for space adventure cinema due to being released just a couple years after Star Wars in 1979. 2001 was a more cerebral space adventure, Star Wars made the space adventure more action packed and Alien made it more terrifying. So many films over the years owe it all to this film and rightfully so. As a sci-fi film, the spectacle definitely holds up to today’s standards. Right down to the practical effects, the production design and creature animatronics it really puts the viewer in that claustrophobic atmosphere and with so many thrills involved it really adds to the viewing experience.
As a horror film, those sci-fi elements complement the terror you experience as you’re watching this movie. I was blown away by the practicality of this film in terms of effects and production design compared to today’s standards, but also by how the scary moments are handled. Each scene is paced brilliantly and when you think the scene is gonna go in a certain direction and scare you a certain way, you fall for a fake scare that’s not cheap by any means. Before you know it the tables turn when you least expect it and the scare has meaning.
I love the scares in this movie and even though my recent viewing was a rewatch and not a first time viewing, I really wish time traveling existed just so I could go back in time to 1979 and actually see audiences in a theater reacting to these brilliant scares for the first time. Speaking of frightening elements the alien creature in this movie, the Xenomorph, is one of the best creature designs in all of cinema. This thing is so intimidating on screen and one of the most terrifying designs ever for a horror movie creature. I couldn’t even imagine how scared out of my mind I’d be if I was ever alone in a small space with that creature lurking around. Talk about nightmare inducing!
Another major strength this film has is its cast. There was a really good ensemble cast put together for this film and judging by how the film showcases their different personalities and occupations on the Nostromo, that tells you everything you need to know about these characters. Each of the actors play out their roles incredibly well and in their performances convey the rightful amount of distress in this horrid situation. By far my favorite performance in this film and it’s probably the most obvious is Sigourney Weaver as Ellen Ripley. The point where all her crewmates have been murdered and she has to escape the ship on her own while also trying to detonate the ship was one of the most heart-wrenching scenes I’ve ever seen in any film. She made this character have a strong onscreen presence and to see how she eventually blows that nasty demon alien out of space was a truly liberating moment because we felt the pain she was going through as we did for the rest of the crew. By far these were very strong elements in this film.
I also thought the cinematography was superb and the composition for a majority of these shots did remind me of 2001, but for the intense look of this film, I thought it worked so well. The editing also added to the intensity of the more frightening scenes. There were so many iconic scenes in this film and the way they were paced and displayed on screen made them feel so important, but as a whole made the film worthy of a film in the sci-fi and horror genre. Everything about this film that was orchestrated by director Ridley Scott made for a really thrilling, original and memorable piece of cinema that will last for all eternity. Alien has a perfect sci-fi look and feel while also having impactful scares and characters that feel important and matter to this horror story. To a lot of viewers, myself included, it is truly one of the greatest films ever made.
The Alien reviews aren’t over yet before the release of Alien: Covenant. For this upcoming week stay tuned for my review of the sequel Aliens directed by James Cameron. Very much looking forward to talking about that one. Until then for more updates follow me on my social media pages:
Facebook.com/thealexcorey
Twitter and Instagram: @alexjcorey
Thank you all so much for taking the time to read my review! I wish you all the best and be sure to see some movies and all that good stuff!
Take care. :-)
*CONTAINS SOME SPOILERS*
If you have not seen Alien I highly encourage you to see it 100% then come back and read what I have to say!
*Directed by Ridley Scott
*Starring Sigourney Weaver, Tom Skerrit, John Hurt, Harry Dean Stanton, Yaphet Kotto, Ian Holm, Veronica Cartwright
The Plot: A space crew is making their way home towards Earth when all of a sudden they receive a distress signal from an unknown planet. They investigate said planet, find an abandoned spacecraft and then aboard the craft they find a field of alien eggs. One of those eggs opens up causing a creature to latch itself onto one of the crew members and is then brought aboard the ship. It then kills that crewmember, sets loose and the crew must find a way to kill it before it kills them.
One of the reasons why you’ll hear Ridley Scott regarded as one of the greatest directors of all time is because of films like this. Alien is truly a magnificent film and is one of the best films to mold together with the genres of sci-fi and horror. It’s one of the greatest sci-fi films, one of the greatest horror films and one of the greatest films of all time period. It changed the game for space adventure cinema due to being released just a couple years after Star Wars in 1979. 2001 was a more cerebral space adventure, Star Wars made the space adventure more action packed and Alien made it more terrifying. So many films over the years owe it all to this film and rightfully so. As a sci-fi film, the spectacle definitely holds up to today’s standards. Right down to the practical effects, the production design and creature animatronics it really puts the viewer in that claustrophobic atmosphere and with so many thrills involved it really adds to the viewing experience.
As a horror film, those sci-fi elements complement the terror you experience as you’re watching this movie. I was blown away by the practicality of this film in terms of effects and production design compared to today’s standards, but also by how the scary moments are handled. Each scene is paced brilliantly and when you think the scene is gonna go in a certain direction and scare you a certain way, you fall for a fake scare that’s not cheap by any means. Before you know it the tables turn when you least expect it and the scare has meaning.
I love the scares in this movie and even though my recent viewing was a rewatch and not a first time viewing, I really wish time traveling existed just so I could go back in time to 1979 and actually see audiences in a theater reacting to these brilliant scares for the first time. Speaking of frightening elements the alien creature in this movie, the Xenomorph, is one of the best creature designs in all of cinema. This thing is so intimidating on screen and one of the most terrifying designs ever for a horror movie creature. I couldn’t even imagine how scared out of my mind I’d be if I was ever alone in a small space with that creature lurking around. Talk about nightmare inducing!
Another major strength this film has is its cast. There was a really good ensemble cast put together for this film and judging by how the film showcases their different personalities and occupations on the Nostromo, that tells you everything you need to know about these characters. Each of the actors play out their roles incredibly well and in their performances convey the rightful amount of distress in this horrid situation. By far my favorite performance in this film and it’s probably the most obvious is Sigourney Weaver as Ellen Ripley. The point where all her crewmates have been murdered and she has to escape the ship on her own while also trying to detonate the ship was one of the most heart-wrenching scenes I’ve ever seen in any film. She made this character have a strong onscreen presence and to see how she eventually blows that nasty demon alien out of space was a truly liberating moment because we felt the pain she was going through as we did for the rest of the crew. By far these were very strong elements in this film.
I also thought the cinematography was superb and the composition for a majority of these shots did remind me of 2001, but for the intense look of this film, I thought it worked so well. The editing also added to the intensity of the more frightening scenes. There were so many iconic scenes in this film and the way they were paced and displayed on screen made them feel so important, but as a whole made the film worthy of a film in the sci-fi and horror genre. Everything about this film that was orchestrated by director Ridley Scott made for a really thrilling, original and memorable piece of cinema that will last for all eternity. Alien has a perfect sci-fi look and feel while also having impactful scares and characters that feel important and matter to this horror story. To a lot of viewers, myself included, it is truly one of the greatest films ever made.
Verdict: A+
The Alien reviews aren’t over yet before the release of Alien: Covenant. For this upcoming week stay tuned for my review of the sequel Aliens directed by James Cameron. Very much looking forward to talking about that one. Until then for more updates follow me on my social media pages:
Facebook.com/thealexcorey
Twitter and Instagram: @alexjcorey
Thank you all so much for taking the time to read my review! I wish you all the best and be sure to see some movies and all that good stuff!
Take care. :-)
Comments