Ridley Scott's Alien (1979)

Discussion in 'Visual Arts' started by mj_patrick, Jun 30, 2014.

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  1. Oatsdad

    Oatsdad Oat, Biscuits, Abbie & Mitzi: Best Dogs Ever

    Location:
    Alexandria VA
    I agree that the characters in "Aliens" are largely cliche, but Cameron and the actors manage to make them interesting.

    And the action still can't be topped.

    "Aliens" remains Cameron's crowning achievement, IMO...
     
  2. Oatsdad

    Oatsdad Oat, Biscuits, Abbie & Mitzi: Best Dogs Ever

    Location:
    Alexandria VA
    Perhaps not. I'm too attached to it to view it as dated, but I can see that aspects of it feel more "of its era" than those in "Alien".

    I guess - some pretty 70s-looking people in "Alien", though! :D
     
  3. Heavy Music

    Heavy Music Forum Resident

    I feel Aliens is one of the best movie sequels of modern film, if not deeper. I still think Alien is a step better, but not enough to make a lot of difference.
    They both are on my hit list when they come out in 4K UHD.
     
  4. I think some of the miniature work in the film and use of green screen might make it feel more 80’s but there nothing wrong with a film being of its era. Being dated doesn’t make a film and less great IMHO.
     
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  5. Solaris

    Solaris a bullet in flight

    Location:
    New Orleans, LA
    I watched the first two back to back last year, and while I enjoyed Aliens, there were a handful of scenes that felt pretty glossy-style 80s filmmaking, which took me out of the movie briefly. Indeed, some of the miniature and green screen work are a bit wobbly now. Still a fun ride, though, and miles better than any of the sequels/prequels/whatever.
     
    carrick doone and Heavy Music like this.
  6. Blame the 80's for that. Everything on Aliens shouts out loud the 80's! The looks, clothes, hair cuts, technology, the kind of action packed movie that was the fashion of that moment, the pace...
    Alien being shot 8/7 years before and still in the 70's looks more timeless.
     
    yesstiles likes this.
  7. I've been told that Alien Covenant is not getting a sequel and that Scott is not doing more Alien movies because of the poor result with Covenant, it wasn't profitable enough.
    Since Covenant I've had a hard time linking the end of it with the beginning of the original Alien. How that Engineer's ship got to the planetoid or moon where the Alien's eggs are? Didn't David kill all animal life on the planet of the Engineers, them included? If there was a sequel there must be some kind of interaction between the Engineers and David as he got the original and final Alien's eggs.
     
  8. Zep Fan

    Zep Fan Sounds Better with Headphones on

    Location:
    N. Texas
  9. joshm2286

    joshm2286 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Texas
    Great film I first saw in the early to mid 90s on cable TV. Alien is still an enjoyable movie imho.
     
  10. Ghostworld

    Ghostworld Senior Member

    Location:
    US
    I heard mention that Ridley Scott might have lifted some ideas from Italian horror film director Mario Bava for "Alien" so I had to see for myself and tracked down a copy of the reputed film "Planet of the Vampires" I took some video with my phone, but I think it pretty clearly shows somebody -- whether that was Ridley Scott, HR Geiger, or another production designer -- took some definite images from the film. I think the similarities between the derelict in "Alien" and the alien craft in "Planet of the Vampires" (complete with Space Jockey bones) make clear SOMEBODY saw that film! The general contour, the camera angles, the mist... wow.

     
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  11. Gavaxeman

    Gavaxeman Take me back to dear old Blighty...

    Location:
    West Midlands U.K.
    Alien and Aliens are two of my favourite movies ever, and like others the first vhs I rented was alien back in 1982. Must have watched both these movies 100’s of times

    Such a shame that the last two movies have been so poor . The Prometheus trailer looked awesome ... oh well
     
  12. mark renard

    mark renard Senior Member

    Location:
    USA
    Watch the doc Jodorowsky's Dune. He made a book with lots of imagery for that never made film that bear a striking resemblance to stuff that later appeared in Alien and other sci-fi movies.
     
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  13. GregM

    GregM The expanding man

    Location:
    Bay Area, CA
    Prometheus was awesome. Not as good as Alien, but a long ways better than everything else in the franchise, including Aliens.
     
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  14. The Hud

    The Hud Breath of the Kingdom, Tears of the Wild

    Thanks. I will never watch Alien again.
     
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  15. Ghostworld

    Ghostworld Senior Member

    Location:
    US
    If you're planning on substituting "Planet of the Vampires" -- don't do it! :D A typically awful Mario Bava film.
     
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  16. Ghostworld

    Ghostworld Senior Member

    Location:
    US
    I've watched that doc a dozen times, Jodo is my guru.:love:
     
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  17. Johnny66

    Johnny66 Laird of Boleskine

    Location:
    Australia.
    What? Bava made some terrific films: The Girl Who Knew Too Much; Blood and Black Lace; Five Dolls For an August Moon; Black Sabbath; Bay of Blood, etc. As someone who openly admires the studied art school indulgence of Jodorowsky, surely Bava's compositional skills would, at the very least, impress?
     
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  18. Rocker

    Rocker Senior Member

    Location:
    Ontario, Canada
    Something I've always wondered.... what's the deal with that "stuff" that seem to cover the walls & ceilings wherever the aliens make a nest?

    [​IMG]

    I've always assumed it's some sort of secretion that the aliens use to build the nests, but in some shots it looks more like rows of solid bone-like structures, rather than something that was secreted by a living organism.
     
  19. These days I'm in an Alien kick after many years. I've only seen the first two installments (plus this one, which I rented thinking it was the sequel to "Alien" :thumbsdow), and I can tell with conviction that "Alien" and "Aliens" are some of my all-time favorite films. The only thing that makes "Aliens" inferior to "Alien" to me is the absence of the surprise factor regarding the antagonist: You don't know what's going to happen, but you know what Ripley is going to fight. Still a terrific movie. I respectfully disagree with the affirmation that "Alien" is a sci-fi movie with horror elements. To me it's a horror movie set up in a sci-fi environment. And its tagline ("In space no one can hear you scream") is one of the most brilliant and disturbing ones ever.
     
    Kiko1974 likes this.
  20. Echoes Myron

    Echoes Myron Forum Resident

    Location:
    USA
    From Aliens...it is "some kind of secreted resin"
     
  21. I’ve never found Aliens inferior. It’s a different type of film and isn’t a horror science fiction thriller but more of a science fiction action thriller with some horror.
     
  22. ssmith3046

    ssmith3046 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Arizona desert
    I watched my Alien Blu-ray just a few nights ago. Still love it after all these years.
     
    wayneklein likes this.
  23. I enjoyed P
    i agree. The Director’s Versio. Is interesting but seems less impactful except for the scene with the eggs on the ship with Dallas and Brett. Even then it brings the momentum of the film to a dead stop
     
  24. DrStroganoff

    DrStroganoff Forum Resident

    Location:
    South Wales, UK
    I had the blu-ray boxset for Christmas, and watched 3 films in one sitting last night: Alien, Aliens, Prometheus.

    Going to watch Covenant tonight. I am in no rush to watch 3 & Resurrection though!
     
  25. metal134

    metal134 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Canton, OH, USA
    I saw it at Cinemark a few years back and it was quite the experience on the big screen. You know that old tv/movie cliche where people will be in the theater watching a horror movie and gasping while covering their faces? Never actually saw that before until I saw Alien in a packed theater.
     
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