Review: "ALIEN: ROMULUS" is Proud to Be an "Alien" Film

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 37 of 2024 (No. 1981) by Leroy Douresseaux

Alien: Romulus (2024)

Running time:  119 minutes (1 hour, 59 minutes)

MPA – R for bloody violent content and language

DIRECTOR:  Fede Alvarez

WRITERS: Fede Alvarez and Rodo Sayagues (based on characters created by by Dan O'Bannon and Ronald Shusett)

PRODUCERS: Walter Hill, Ridley Scott, and Michael Pruss

CINEMATOGRAPHER: Galo Olivares (D.o.P.)

EDITOR: Jake Roberts

COMPOSER:  Benjamin Wallfisch

SCI-FI/HORROR/THRILLER/ACTION

Starring:  Cailee Spaeny, David Jonsson, Archie Reaux, Isabela Merced, Spike Fearn, Aileen Wu, and Robert Bobrocyzki

SUMMARY OF THE REVIEW:

Alien: Romulus is a solid science fiction movie that wholeheartedly embraces the horror movie roots of the Alien film franchise

Director Fede Alvarez and his creative cohorts deliberately make Romulus look and feel like a film from the early days of the Alien franchise, as the film is set between Alien (1979) and Aliens (1986)

Alien: Romulus is a bit over the top, especially at the end, but David Jonsson's performance as “Andy” keeps everything on point in this film that is for longtime fans and will certainly create new Alien fans

Alien: Romulus is a 2024 American science fiction, horror, and action film from director Fede Alvarez.  It is the seventh entry in the Alien film series (and the ninth overall when including the Alien vs. Predator films).  Alien: Romulus focuses on a group of young space colonists who come face to face with a terrifying life form while scavenging aboard a derelict space station.

Alien: Romulus introduces Rain Carradine (Cailee Spaeny), an orphaned young woman.  She lives and works on the mining colony of “Jackson's Star.”  She lives with a surrogate brother, Andy (David Jonsson), a malfunctioning android or “synthetic human” who was reprogrammed by Rain's late father to be her companion.  After her work contract is unexpectedly extended, she realizes that her employers, the mega-corporation, Weyland-Yutani, realizes that she will be trapped on Jackson's Star at least another five years.

However, her ex-boyfriend, Tyler (Archie Reaux), has a plan.  He has discovered that a derelict space station has drifted into orbit around Jackson's Star. Tyler believes that the station has cryonic stasis chambers (for suspended animation), which they could salvage.  The cryogenic units would allow them to make the nine-year journey to the next nearest human colony, a remote planet named “Yvaga.”

Andy is essential for the mention because he can communicate with the space station's computer systems.  Rain and Andy join Tyler and his crew:  his sister, Kay (Isabela Merced); their cousin, Bjorn (Spike Fearn); and a pilot, Navarro (Aileen Wu).  After boarding “the Corbelan,” a mining hauler, they head for the space station.  What none of them realize is that waiting aboard the space station is a decades-old secret conspiracy and the most terrifying life form in the universe.

After watching Alien: Romulus last night, I realize it is shamelessly proud to be an Alien film, and that it gleefully embraces the good, the bad, and the ugly that is the franchise's wacky narrative.  Although it is a standalone film, Romulus is set between the events depicted in Alien (1979) and its sequel, Aliens (1986), and directly references story elements from both films.  Romulus also references story and elements from the franchise's prequel film, Prometheus (2012), and at least one of the original Alien sequels, Alien: Resurrection (1997).

I did not like Romulus director's Fede Alvarez's Hollywood calling card, Evil Dead, a 2013 “re-imagining” of Sam Raimi's beloved cult classic, The Evil Dead (1981).  Alvarez's Evil Dead had none of the imagination of the original, and it was as if Alvarez was using his film to purge the Evil Dead franchise of its flavor.  Here, Alvarez and his co-writer, Rodo Sayagues, immerse this new Alien film in the trappings of the franchise, and the result is a very good science fiction film that celebrates the horror that science, the future, and technology can unleash upon mankind.  And Romulus is a gory, bloody, body-ripping scary movie.

What keeps Alien: Romulus from being great is that Alvarez offers too much of everything – too much peril and too, too many cliffhangers.  At times, Romulus feels like sound and fury signifying overload.  As he did in Evil Dead, Alvarez offers a group of characters who are nothing more than intended victims, and that goes even for the “final girl,” Rain.

However, the script does invest nuance and character in Andy, brilliant played by David Jonsson, a British actor.  Jonsson steals Romulus by dabbling in multiple layers, making Andy frightening, sympathetic, and mesmerizing.  Jonsson's turn as Andy reminds me of British actor Chukwudi Iwuji's turn as the “High Evolutionary” in Disney/Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (2023).  Jonsson vastly elevates the character drama in Romulus, as the other actors do their best work with him, especially Cailee Spaeny as the ostensible lead, Rain.

Alien: Romulus is a welcome return of the Alien franchise's roots, as it firmly sets itself in the tone, style, and aesthetic of the franchise's earlier films.  I heartily recommend Alien: Romulus to fans of the franchise and also to those who want to be fans.

7 of 10

A-

★★★½ out of 4 stars

Friday, August 16, 2024

The text is copyright © 2024 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

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Review: 45 Years On, "ALIEN" is Still a Great Film

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 36 of 2024 (No. 1980) by Leroy Douresseaux

Alien (1979)

Running time:  117 minutes (1 hour, 57 minutes)

MPAA – R

DIRECTOR: Ridley Scott

WRITERS: Dan O'Bannon; from a story by Dan O'Bannon and Ronald Shusett

PRODUCERS: Gordon Carroll, David Giler, and Walter Hill

CINEMATOGRAPHER: Derek Vanlint (director of photography)

EDITORS:  Terry Rawlings and Peter Weatherley

COMPOSER: Jerry Goldsmith

Academy Award winner

SCI-FI/HORROR/THRILLER

Starring:  Sigourney Weaver, Tom Skerritt, John Hurt, Veronica Cartwright, Harry Dean Stanton, Ian Holm, Yaphet Kotto, Bolaji Badejo, and Helen Horton (voice)

Alien is a 1979 American science fiction and horror film directed by Ridley Scott.  It is the first movie in the Alien film series, which has entered its fifth decade and is comprised of prequels and a set of crossover films.  Alien is also a multimedia franchise that includes comic books, novels, video games, and an upcoming television series.  Alien focuses on the crew of a commercial spacecraft that encounters a deadly alien lifeform after landing on a mysterious moon.

Alien opens on the commercial towing vehicle, the Nostromo, which is returning to Earth.  Its cargo is twenty tons of mineral ore that is being refined.  It has a crew of seven in stasis (suspended animation): Captain Dallas (Tom Skerritt), Executive Officer Kane (John Hurt), 3rd Officer Ripley (Sigourney Weaver), Navigator Lambert (Veronica Cartwright), Science Officer Ash (Ian Holm), and engineers, Parker (Yaphet Kotto) and Brett (Harry Dean Stanton).

The ship's computer, Mother (voice of Helen Horton), detects a mysterious transmission of unknown origin from a nearby moon and awakens the crew.  The company that owns the Nostromo has a policy that the crew must investigate any transmission that indicates intelligent origin.  After landing on the moon, Dallas, Kane, and Lambert head out to investigate the landscape, and they discover a derelict alien spaceship.  What they find onboard that ship leads to a deadly encounter with an alien lifeform.  The problem is that the crew does not know how dangerous the lifeform is, and not everyone on the ship is working towards the same goal.

20th Century Studios (formerly 20th Century Fox) is set to release Alien: Romulus (2024), the latest entry in the Alien film franchise.  It is set between Alien and its sequel, Aliens (1986).  I have already reviewed Aliens, so I decided to watch Alien for the first time in over three decades and to review it for you, dear readers.

There are generally three reasons that I fondly remember Alien.  First, the Alien creature (now known as a “xenomorph”) was created and designed by the late Swiss artist, H. R. Giger (1940-2014).  Alien was how I discovered Giger, and I became a huge fan of his.  I sometimes paid premium prices for his art books, including those that focused on his work on Alien and his prior work that influenced the film.

The second reason is the film's director Ridley Scott.  I am a fan of Scott's work, especially his 1982 science fiction classic, Blade Runner, and his Alien prequel, Prometheus (2012).

The third reason that I fondly remember Alien is that it is one of the first films that introduced me to the Oscar-nominated actress Sigourney Weaver.  Her most famous films appeared in the 1980s and 1990s, including such personal favorites as Ghostbusters (1984) and Galaxy Quest (1999).

That aside, the film is rather good, although I think that Ridley Scott takes many of his cues for the film's pace, tone, and execution from Stanley Kubrick's space epic, 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968).  That is not necessarily a bad thing.  Unlike some of the Alien sequels, Alien is a science fiction film that is also a classic horror film.  It builds its scares not on action and violence, but rather on building a sense of mystery, creating an atmosphere of fear and desperation, and throwing a blanket of suspense over the entire thing.  Of course, the chest-bursting scene is still chilling and mesmerizing.

Alien remains a great film because it demands that we be patient and enjoy our steadily mounting feelings dread and terror.  The film is not perfect, but because it acts as if its audience is smart enough to enjoy a film without fast-paced action scenes and frenzied blood and gore, it is almost perfect.  Alien is as good today as it was when it first debuted in theaters forty-five years ago (specifically May 1979).  I am happy that Alien remains a thrilling film full of imaginative and inventive production design, SFX, and make-up and creature effects.  Not showing any wrinkles, Alien has aged well.

9 of 10

A+

Wednesday, August 14, 2024

NOTES:

1980 Academy Awards, USA:  1 win: “Best Effects, Visual Effects” (H.R. Giger, Carlo Rambaldi, Brian Johnson, Nick Allder, and Dennis Ayling) and 1 nomination: “Best Art Direction-Set Decoration” (Michael Seymour, Leslie Dilley, Roger Christian, and Ian Whittaker)

1980 BAFTA Awards:  2 wins: “Best Production Design” (Michael Seymour) and “Best Sound Track” (Derrick Leather, Jim Shields, and Bill Rowe); 5 nominations: “Best Costume Design” (John Mollo and Terry Rawlings), “Best Editing” (Terry Rawlings), “Most Promising Newcomer to Leading Film Role” (Sigourney Weaver), “Best Supporting Actor” (John Hurt), and “Anthony Asquith Award for Film Music” (Jerry Goldsmith)

Golden Globes, USA:  1 nomination: “Best Original Score - Motion Picture” (Jerry Goldsmith)

2002 National Film Preservation Board, USA:  “National Film Registry”

The text is copyright © 2024 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

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2017 Austin Film Festival Announces Film and Panel Slate

Austin Film Festival Announces Full Film and Conference Schedule

Slate Includes Closing Night Film Chappaquiddick, Call Me By Your Name, The Darkest Hour, The Upside, and Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri

AUSTIN, Texas--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Austin Film Festival & Writers Conference (AFF), the premier film festival recognizing the writers’ contributions to film, television, and new media, announced the full schedule of films and panels for the 24th annual event, this October 26-November 2, 2017. AFF’s feature film slate includes over 25 World, North American and US Premieres, a robust retrospective series, and highly anticipated marquee titles, including Martin McDonagh’s Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri, WWII drama The Darkest Hour featuring Gary Oldman as Winston Churchill, The Upside starring Bryan Cranston and Kevin Hart, and Armie Hammer romance Call Me By Your Name.

AFF has also announced Chappaquiddick as its Closing Night Film. A drama recounting Ted Kennedy’s infamous 1969 car accident resulting in the death of his campaign worker, writers Taylor Allen and Andrew Logan will be in attendance.

A staple of the Festival, AFF’s retrospective series will feature seminal 1987 action film Predator presented by Shane Black who is currently working on the film’s reboot. Additionally, Extraordinary Contribution to Film awardee Walter Hill will present his cult classic The Warriors.

In addition to the slate of 150+ films, AFF will present premieres and retrospectives of television programming, including the season 2 premiere of Hulu’s darkly comedic psychic drama Shut Eye with executive producers Mark Johnson, Melissa Bernstein, John Shiban and Amy Berg in attendance, the premiere of YouTube Red’s new comedy series Do You Want to See a Dead Body? with creator Rob Huebel in attendance, and the premiere of the Season Finale of HBO’s drama The Deuce with creators David Simon and George Pelecanos in attendance.

Also confirmed to attend is Dan Rather, who will help present the World Premiere of the documentary Fail State, chronicling the rise of predatory for-profit colleges. Writer/producer Gale Anne Hurd will also be in attendance for AFF’s screening of documentary Mankiller about barrier-breaking female Cherokee leader Wilma Mankiller.

Other World Premieres include Wild Honey, Coming to My Senses, and Transformer. Making its US Premiere is comedy Don’t Talk to Irene, written and directed by Pat Mills, which also won AFF’s Comedy Screenplay Award in 2013.

The full Film and Conference schedule can be found at www.austinfilmfestival.com.


ABOUT AUSTIN FILM FESTIVAL:
Austin Film Festival (AFF) is a non-profit organization dedicated to furthering the art, craft and business of writers and filmmakers and recognizing their contributions to film, television and new media. AFF is supported in part by the Cultural Arts Division of the City of Austin Economic Development Department and the Texas Commission on the Arts. All attendees and events are based on permitting schedules and are subject to change and/or cancellation without notice.

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Titans Comics Announces Comics Line with Hard Case Crime

TITAN & HARD CASE CRIME TEAM UP FOR NEW COMICS LINE

TITAN COMICS KICKS OFF NEW LINE WITH A RANGE OF TOP CREATORS INCLUDING MAX ALLAN COLLINS (ROAD TO PERDITION, QUARRY) AND WALTER HILL – DIRECTOR OF HIT MOVIE THE WARRIORS

Titan Comics is drawing down on the iconic crime imprint Hard Case Crime, ready to pull the trigger on a brand new line of comic books.

Hard Case Crime is the leading publisher of hardboiled crime novels, publishing the giants in the genre: Stephen King, Michael Crichton, Lawrence Block, Mickey Spillane, Ed McBain, Donald E. Westlake, James M. Cain and Max Allan Collins, whose best-selling Quarry series is destined for TV in the highly anticipated adaptation for Cinemax in September – and for comic books in an all-new Quarry comic series from Titan and Hard Case Crime in 2017.

Starting this October, Titan will bring Hard Case Crime’s gritty, sexy, violent world to life. The first shots fired out of the Hard Case Crime comics line will be Prohibition epic Triggerman by the legendary director of The Warriors, Walter Hill, and punky neo-noir Peepland from celebrated crime authors Christa Faust and Gary Phillips.

Debuting in stores on October 5, 2016, Triggerman is an operatic Prohibition era mini-series, written by Walter Hill, director of cult 70s New York City gangland smash The Warriors, and illustrated by trusted collaborator Matz (Body and Soul). In the mean streets of Chicago, a convict is thrown headfirst into a life of bloodshed and bullets to save the girl he left behind…

Hitting stores the following week, on October 12, 2016, is Peepland – a semi-autobiographical neo-noir mini-series with a punk edge set in the seedy Times Square peep booths of 1980s New York City. Written by award-winning crime novelist and former peep show employee Christa Faust (Money Shot, Nightmare on Elm Street) with Gary Phillips (The Underbelly, The Rinse) and art by rising star Andrea Camerini (Il Troio).

These two explosive new titles debut with a range of variant covers to collect by top industry artists including Fay Dalton (Judge Dredd Magazine), Mack Chater (In the Dark), Alex Ronald (Doctor Who), Caitlin Yarsky (The Changeable Harper Finn), Andrea Camerini, Robert Hack (Sabrina), Dennis Calero (Assassin’s Creed), and Francisco Paronzini (Iron Fist).

“We are so excited to be steering the Hard Case Crime series into a new frontier,” said Ricky Claydon, Direct Sales & Marketing Manager at Titan Comics. “We aim to bring to comics that same grit and gristle that Hard Case Crime is famous for!”

“Before I became a mystery reader, I was a comic book fan – so the chance to expand Hard Case Crime into the world of comics is a dream come true,” said Charles Ardai, winner of the Edgar, Shamus and Ellery Queen awards and editor of Hard Case Crime. “Hard Case Crime is already known for its sexy, stylish artwork, and the sharp, tough, high-velocity stories we tell are a natural for the medium.”

Peepland #1 (on-sale October 5) and Triggerman #1 (on-sale October 12) are both available to order from the August edition of PREVIEWS.

Like a case yet to be opened, the complete range of titles is still lurking in the shadows. For more announcements and news on this exciting new line of comics, join Titan Comics on Facebook, Twitter, and Tumblr.

Peepland #1 covers:
·      Peepland #1 Cover A: Fay Dalton
·      Peepland #1 Cover B: Mack Chater
·      Peepland #1 Cover C: Alex Ronald
·      Peepland #1 Cover D: Caitlin Yarsky
·      Peepland #1 Cover E: Andrea Camerini
·      Peepland #1 interior art by Andrea Camerini

Triggerman #1 covers:
·      Triggerman #1 Cover A: Jef
·      Triggerman #1 Cover B: Dennis Calero
·      Triggerman #1 Cover C: Fay Dalton
·      Triggerman #1 Cover D: Robert Mack
·      Triggerman #1 Cover E: Francisco Paronzini
·      Triggerman #1 interior art by Jef


About Titan Comics
Titan Comics offers astounding comics and graphic novels from the world's greatest licensed properties, alongside creator-owned comic books from new and world-renowned talent and classic graphic novels re-mastered for brand-new audiences.

For more information, visit: https://www.titan-comics.com

Connect with Titan Comics:
https://twitter.com/ComicsTitan
https://facebook.com/ComicsTitan
http://titancomics.tumblr.com/
https://www.youtube.com/user/ComicsTitan

About Hard Case Crime
Hard Case Crime brings you the best in hardboiled crime fiction, ranging from lost noir masterpieces to new novels by today’s most powerful writers, featuring stunning original cover art in the grand pulp style.

http://www.hardcasecrime.com/
http://twitter.com/hardcasecrime

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"Prometheus" is One of 2012's Best Films

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 83 (of 2012) by Leroy Douresseaux


Prometheus (2012)
Running time: 124 minutes (2 hours, 4 minutes)
MPAA – R for sci-fi violence including some intense images, and brief language
DIRECTOR: Ridley Scott
WRITERS: Jon Spaihts and Damon Lindelof (based on elements created by Dan O'Bannon and Ronald Shusett)
PRODUCERS: David Giler, Walter Hill, and Ridley Scott
COMPOSER: Marc Streitenfeld
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Dariusz Wolski (D.o.P.)
EDITOR: Pietro Scalia
COMPOSER: Marc Streitenfeld

SCI-FI/ACTION/MYSTERY

Starring: Noomi Rapace, Michael Fassbender, Charlize Theron, Idris Elba, Guy Pearce, Logan Marshall-Green, Sean Harris, Rafe Spall, and Benedict Wong

Prometheus is a 2012 science fiction film from director Ridley Scott. The film is related to Ridley Scott’s 1979 film, Alien, and is not quite a prequel to the movie, at least according to Scott. I think that it is one of the year’s best films, thus far.

Prometheus is mainly set near the end of the 21st century. In 2089, archaeologists Elizabeth Shaw (Noomi Rapace) and Charlie Holloway (Logan Marshall-Green) discover a star map, one similar to others they have found at archaeological digs of other ancient sites. They interpret these maps as an invitation from the beings that created humanity, which the two call the “Engineers.”

They convince Peter Weyland (Guy Pearce), the elderly and dying CEO of Weyland Corporation, to fund a space-going, scientific exploration vessel, Prometheus, so that they can follow the star map to a distant moon. Prometheus and her crew of 17 arrive at the moon, LV-223, where they find an artificial structure. What awaits them inside is a mystery that spans time and space and a terrifying battle to save the human race.

By the point in the film where Prometheus arrived at its destination, I was sure that Prometheus the movie was Ridley Scott’s attempt at making his own 2001: A Space Odyssey, the famous Stanley Kubrick science fiction film. This film has a sense of wonder, so much so that it seems to celebrate the human urge to explore and to discover. The screenplay, which is brimming with interesting ideas and intriguing notions, offers a counter-balance to Scott’s urge to explore. That is the idea that people do the things they do simply because they can, and that asking why may be irrelevant.

The film is beautiful. Its visual aesthetic design mixes the slick holographic cool of James Cameron’s Avatar with touches of H.R. Giger’s “biomechanoid” style which defined the film, Alien. There are also a number of good performances. As Meredith Vickers, Charlize Theron does menace in a way more bracing than in her Oscar-winning performance in Monster, and Idris Elba steals scenes as Janek, the captain of the Prometheus. However, Michael Fassbinder as the android, David, is fantastic. He is mesmerizing, intimidating, and even sexy.

Prometheus is thoughtful, always playing around with ideas or a thesis or two; even when the film turns on the action and the thrills, it’s still thinking. It does no damage to the original Alien film, but Scott and collaborators have the makings for a new, genuine science fiction franchise.

9 of 10
A+

Friday, November 09, 2012

New Sylvester Stallone Movie Begins Filming in Louisiana

Dark Castle Entertainment to Partner with IM Global and After Dark Films on New Sylvester Stallone Action Thriller

- The project re-teams producer Joel Silver with Stallone and with director Walter Hill -

BURBANK, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dark Castle Entertainment will partner with IM Global and After Dark Films on director Walter Hill’s upcoming action thriller starring Sylvester Stallone, it was announced today jointly by the three companies.

The film is scheduled to begin production on location in Louisiana later this month and will be distributed domestically by Warner Bros. Pictures, under its ongoing arrangement with Dark Castle.

Based on the graphic novel Bullet to the Head, written by Matz and illustrated by Colin Wilson, it tells the story of a New Orleans hitman (Stallone) and a New York City cop who form an alliance to bring down the killers of their respective partners.

Joel Silver, Chairman of Dark Castle Entertainment, previously produced the Stallone films “Demolition Man” and “Assassins.” He says, “Sylvester Stallone is an iconic action star the world over and I’m thrilled to be working with him again. I look forward to joining with IM Global and After Dark in bringing this exciting new story to the screen.”

Says IM Global CEO Stuart Ford, “Joel and his Dark Castle team are the perfect partners to help steer a project like this successfully forward and we’re delighted to have them onboard, as well as having Warner Bros. as the U.S. distribution home for the film.”

Silver’s previous creative collaborations with veteran director Hill include the box-office hit “48 Hours,” “Warriors” and HBO’s long-running “Tales from the Crypt.”

The new film, a Warner Bros. Pictures presentation, in association with Dark Castle Entertainment, IM Global and After Dark Films, also features rising star Sung Kang (“Fast Five,” “Ninja Assassin”) in a key supporting role. Additionally serving as producers will be Alexandra Milchan, Miles Millar, Alfred Gough, Kevin King-Templeton and Andrew Rona. Stuart Ford, Brian Kavanaugh-Jones, Deepak Nayar, Courtney Solomon, Allan Zeman and Steve Richards will executive produce.

Review: James Cameron's "Aliens" is Still a Blast

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 162 (of 2003) by Leroy Douresseaux

Aliens (1986)
Running time:  137 minutes (2 hours, 17 minutes)
DIRECTOR: James Cameron
WRITER: James Cameron; from a story by David Giler & Walter Hill and James Cameron
PRODUCER: Gale Anne Hurd
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Adrian Biddle (director of photography)
EDITOR: Ray Lovejoy
COMPOSER: James Horner
Academy Award winner

SCI-FI/ACTION/THRILLER with elements of horror

Starring: Sigourney Weaver, Michael Biehn, Paul Reiser, Lance Henriksen, Carrie Henn, Bill Paxton, William Hope, and Jenette Goldman

One of the landmark action films of the last two decades is James Cameron’s Aliens. With it’s heart stopping plot twists, quick-cut editing, and nerve shattering suspense, Aliens almost killed the idea of cerebral science fiction films, and, to this day, sci-fi and action are synonymous terms when applied to film.

Aliens is the sequel to the film Alien, the 1979 Ridley Scott film that was easily one of the best of that year and spawned countless imitators. The film also introduced to a larger audience to the work of one of its visual effects creators/designers, European surrealist H. R. Giger (who earned an Academy Award for his work on the picture).

A giant corporation has colonized the planet that first appeared in Alien and where a group of interstellar miners of the Nostromo mining ship encountered the horrific alien life form. When earth loses contact with the colony, they send a group of space marines to learn what’s happened at the colony. Lt. Ellen Ripley (Sigourney Weaver), the only surviving member of the Nostromo crew, goes along as a consultant. The mission turns disastrous after the aliens slaughter most of the marines. Ripley has to use her familiarity with the aliens to lead the rest of the remaining crew to safety, including a little girl who is the sole surviving colonist.

The performances in the film are excellent, in particular Ms. Weaver who’s Lt. Ripley must act as warrior to save her group from the relentlessly attacking creatures and as a mother to the little girl Newt (Carrie Henn). Bill Paxton as the whiny and frantic Pvt. Hudson made his first big screen splash with a wild-eyed, inspired, and memorable performance. Michael Biehn, (as Cpl. Dwayne Hicks), however, should have earned leading man status with his role, but never did, and Paul Reiser (as the dishonest, evil, and murderous corporate weasel Carter J. Burke) was decidedly out of character with the kind of roles that would later make him famous in the early to mid-90’s.

Several filmmakers ably assisted James Cameron in making this film a classic. James Horner’s Oscar-nominated score would be so well appreciated that nearly two decades later, many studios still uses pieces of it as background music in movie trailers and commercials to sell other action, suspense, thriller, and horror films. Stan Winston won one of his several Oscars as one of the SFX artists on this film who adapted Giger’s work from the first film to better suit Aliens, which was more kinetic than its atmospheric predecessor. Film editor Ray Lovejoy’s achievement in helping to create this film’s frantic, breakneck, and breathless pace also shaped how action films would look from then on.

Aliens was the picture where Cameron first started getting notice for the difficulty of his film shoots and for being a hard man to please. He’s a creative director and a great filmmaker, regardless of his temperament. He got the most out of what he had to make a great film, for instance, cutting away and shooting at angles that would hide the fact that many of the actors playing aliens were only wearing half of a suit. It didn’t matter. All that camera movement created the intensity for which Aliens is so celebrated. The film suffers from one of the faults that mar most thrillers and suspense films. It was too long, and, as good as every part of the last act is, it was a bit too much. Lovers of sci-fi, action, thrillers, and horror films, however, should not miss this film.

8 of 10
A

NOTES:
1987 Academy Awards: 2 wins: “Best Effects, Sound Effects Editing” (Don Sharpe) and “Best Effects, Visual Effects” (Robert Skotak, Stan Winston, John Richardson, and Suzanne M. Benson); 5 nominations: “Best Actress in a Leading Role” (Sigourney Weaver), “Best Art Direction-Set Decoration” (Peter Lamont and Crispian Sallis), “Best Film Editing” (Ray Lovejoy), “Best Music, Original Score” (James Horner), and “Best Sound” (Graham V. Hartstone, Nicolas Le Messurier, Michael A. Carter, and Roy Charman)

1987 BAFTA Awards: 1 win: “Best Special Visual Effects” (Robert Skotak, Brian Johnson, John Richardson, and Stan Winston); 3 nominations: “Best Make Up Artist” (Peter Robb-King), “Best Production Design” (Peter Lamont), “Best Sound” (Don Sharpe, Roy Charman, and Graham V. Hartstone)

1987 Golden Globes, USA: 1 nomination: “Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture – Drama” (Sigourney Weaver)

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