In
space, no one can hear you scream."
Few films embody terror quite like "Alien." Few
film have ever been able to horrify entire
audiences like "Alien." Few films have ever
dared to be as original as "Alien."
In the future, a crew of "space truckers"
(Sigourney Weaver, Tom Skerritt, Veronica
Cartwright, Yaphet Kotto, John Hurt, Ian Holm,
and Harry Dean Stanton) wake up from their hyper
sleep onboard their transporting ship "The
Nostromo," expecting to be home. They find that
the ship's computer has taken them off course to
respond to an SOS from a deserted planet. The
crew lands and three crewmembers are sent out to
investigate. One returns with a creature
attached to his face, and the nightmare begins.
Director Ridley Scott, who later went on to make
"Gladiator" and "Black Hawk Down," crafted one
of the great films of all time when he made
"Alien." He uses simple tricks to create
illusions, helping not only with the low budget,
but with increasing the slowly growing terror in
the audience. The alien creature and it's
habitat were designed by HR Gieger, an eccentric
artist whose portfolio consists of some of the
strangest and creepiest things you will ever
see. The cast plays their parts straight and
never goes into camp, especially Weaver, who
made a career for herself from this film. She
can play fear like no actress alive. The script
rejects all cliches. The crew doesn't have big
guns and wear uniforms. They are mostly
defenseless, and they wear casual clothing.
These are people in the future whom we can
relate to. They are like us.
There is very little blood in "Alien," and the
goriest scene occurs early in the movie. While
most Sci-Fi movies embrace violence, "Alien"
rejects it and becomes suspenseful, building on
the characters' (and audience's) paranoia
through the use of sound, lighting and subtle
movement. The Alien itself, caught mostly only
in brief glimpses here, is one of the most
original designs of all time. In our modern
time, when so many people have ripped this film
off, it's easy to forget how much ground "Alien"
broke in 1979.
Simply put, the closest to perfect I have ever
seen of a film without being an A+. Truly
astounding.
© Written by
Jacob Hall
TC Candler's Comment
I've never
quite understood the tag of "Classic" that so
many people place on this film... It is a fine
sci-fi with some really intense scenes.
But I can't think of it as anything more than
solid entertainment that is easy to watch on a
Thursday afternoon when you've called into work
and pretended to have the flu.
Richard
Propes' Comment
This is
yet another film I respect but simply do not
enjoy. I do always get a gas out of watching
Harry Dean Stanton, but watching Weaver here
just makes me think of a more intense, stressful
"Ghostbusters." That goofy thought aside, she
really is ideal simply because she does handle
the film's intellect along with its suspense. I
don't really see that "Alien" broke ground,
because the film really remains an original sort
of film. Ridley Scott does a nice job of making
the film cerebral without making it
intimidating. "Alien" is a good film, but not
nearly as great as its reputation.
