The Force Remains Strong at 40!

May 25, 1977 marked the premiere of George Lucas’ moderate-budgeted follow-up to his huge success American Graffiti (1973): Star Wars!  Lucas initially hoped United Artists would buy his original pitch back then, but the studio balked.  Lucas then approached Universal — despite his misgivings about the studio’s handling of his earlier films.  Universal head Lew Wasserman was quoted at one point stating “We don’t make science-fiction movies.”  Finally, vice president for creative affairs at 20th Century Fox, Alan Ladd Jr.  Fox, which had recent success with sci-fi thanks mostly to its Planet of the Apes franchise, liked the idea and signed a deal with Lucas. 

Countdown To Prometheus Part 6: Alien vs. Predator Requiem

It seems only right that my last Countdown was delayed until after Prometheus was released.  I suspect the aftertaste would have hindered my anticipation or perhaps have given the prequel an unfair advantage.  Comparing the two most recent Alien films will answer any questions as why 20th Century Fox sought out Ridley Scott’s return. 

AVP-R picks up immediately after the conclusion of the first AVP.  The corpse of the original hero predator (if you call him that) is being returned to the race’s home planet.  On route, an newborn alien–a hybrid of alien and predator–erupts from the corpse, kills off the remaining passengers, and somehow reroutes the ship back to Earth.  Was one of the predators gripping a large steering wheel, and in its dying state, tugged the wheel 180 degrees?

The predator world send a lone warrior to obliterate the alien threat and destroy any evidence of the xenomorphs presence.  (Would leaving proof of their existence somehow make humans a less appealing prey for future hunts?  Why are they concerned about PR?)

Meanwhile, the aliens begin to multiply rapidly.  Like the first AVP, there’s no waiting time during the alien gestation cycle.  After the facehugger releases its human captive, they regain consciousness and the infant explodes from their chests.  AVP-R must hold the record for the number of disgusting alien chest-burstings. Seconds later, fully grown aliens are in kill-mode 

AVP-R pushes into the Friday the 13th philosophy of horror.  A dozen cardboard characters are introduced–many of which will be slaughtered.  There’s not one interesting human face in the bunch.  Even the cute child is devoid of any sympathy.  And like most of these films, when one character is killed, there is little remorse or sense of loss–just blood and guts. 

Unlike the first AVP, the annoying humans are completely disengaged from the main plot.  A good chunk of the film follows each character through a series of Dawson’s Creek obstacles.  What’s the point?  They’re as good as dead–and I’m fine with that.

The other half of AVP-R follows the lone Predator’s hunt for increasing horde of Aliens, who are preoccupied rotating between destroying skulls or capturing them to carry alien fetuses.  At this point, I believe the audience deserves an explanation on the alien host selection process.  Do the xenomorphs have mood swings?

In the brief 90-minute running time, there is not one single moment that’s original.  At this stage, I’ve witnessed enough demolished chests and skulls.  The Predator uses a familiar bags of tricks.  There is no mystery; the predator even takes his mask off early in the feature to show its usual Stan Winston design–remaining the same ugly mother fucker who appalled Arnold Schwarzenegger and Danny Glover.  Yet the predator has a dramatic unmasking in the finale.  Why?  We know what it looks like.  Are the Predator fans that nostalgic?  Apparently so.  The film-makers re-construct sounds and visual cues from all seven Predator and Alien features.  Even the sparse unique qualities of the first AVP have been reused.

The Alien leader and “son” of the dead predator–the Predalien–is nothing more than a steroid-induced version of the xenomorph with an ability to impregnate humans directly (and disgustingly) rather than lay eggs.  Is this some hint at the predator’s own breeding capabilities?

Most bizarre is that the film takes place in a small community in Colorado.  Although the first AVP took place on Earth, the setting was reserved to the tight, dark corridors of a buried temple.  AVP-R had an opportunity to unleash the monsters in a surrounding that did not involve dark, claustrophobic quarters.  Yet, all of the monster scenes occur in long, dark corridors. 

I hated this movie.  Despite the faults of the latter Alien prequels, none have given me the displeasure as AVP-2.  There’s no singular element that’s worth praising.  Even the technical capabilities are hindered by the overly dim lighting that negates any of the details in the special effects and visual qualities.  The fast editing disallows any comprehension of the action to say nothing of leaving anything to our imaginations.   There is not one glimmer of suspense or terror.  At not one moment did I care about anything that transpired–I just sat patiently waiting for the pain to stop.

AVP-2 was rated R for returning the disgusting factor that was omitted from from the first AVP, which was rated PG-13 rating.  The film, however, won’t even appeal to gore-hounds who love seeing heads explode.  The editing is too fast and the light is too dark to appreciate any of the bloody recesses.   The film is called subtitled “Requiem”, meaning funeral, for no reason other than to highlight the letter ‘R’ as a sign that the franchise has return to its depraved roots.  How about we just call the damn thing “Alien vs. Predator: The Return”!  “Requiem” is a term used for a Fox Searchlight Picture.   Perhaps the film-makers pontificated the end.  The “Requiem” was a final trumpet call for a franchise that would end with fans mourning the depreciation of once great–and respectable–franchise.    

Final Thoughts…

The Alien franchise has endured for over thirty years mainly due to its two initial features and the iconic imagery of the many monsters the films introduced.  Although the saga has had more downs than ups–including the disappointing Prometheus–the saga continues to captivate hearts and minds based on the brilliant storytelling of the Ridley Scott and James Cameron.  The first two films are classics in their respectable genres.

Despite the numerous flaws I’ve found with the latter installments, each film has been entrusted to different film-makers, some notable, others no-so-much.  The series has unfortunately chased the formula of the first and second films too often, but each film–even the AVPs–were bestowed their own vision.  Even in face of failure, many of the writers, directors and stars were given opportunities to reach great heights.  Each Alien film also represented a certain period in the history of cinema as the average period between features was five years.

Despite the technological barriers from 1979 and 1986, Alien and Aliens remain the saga highlights due to their reliance of the audiences’ imaginations.  Even with Prometheus, this philosophy has not been practiced since.

The aliens themselves remain a scary, iconic image whose imprint on medium is undeniable.  Regardless of where the saga heads after the smoke of Prometheus clears, the saga will continue and I will remain longing for another great scare. 

Countdown to Prometheus Part 5: Alien versus Predator

It began with a skull.

In the final act of 1990’s Predator 2, our hero (Danny Glover) creeps inside the interior of the Predator’s spaceship and finds the skull of an alien (or xenomorph) displayed among a collection of trophies.  What was intended as an in-joke eventually became fan obsession that spawned comic books, novels, video games, even playing cards that toyed with the concept of predators and aliens co-existing–and yes, fighting.  In the mid 90s–as the well began to dry for both properties–20th Century Fox pushed ahead with a feature project that pegged the movie monsters against each other.  The project lay dormant in development hell until 2004.  “Whoever wins…we lose.”  Indeed. 

Taking place in present day, a corporation (the same that royally screws over Ripley in the future) discovers an ancient civilization buried in the Antarctic.  A team of specialists excavate the pyramid-shaped temple, only to discover that its a trap set by the predators, who return to Earth every century to battle the alien game that spawn from fresh human hosts.   

Once the exits close off, the imprisoned alien queen is thawed so she can lay fresh eggs, and the predators arrive to Earth to slaughter the new batch of xenomorphs and humans.   The lone human survivor, Alexa Wood, played by a very bored Sanaa Lathan (Life, Blade) teams up with one of the predators (you read correctly) to fend off the xenomorphs and return to the surface.

Alien vs. Predator is a dumbed-down fan service to the younger crowd who eat these films up.  As a consequence, there is no hint of mystery.  The predators and aliens no longer hide in shadows or behind cloaked camouflage for very long.  Even the moments of suspense are nullified by the “false alarm” tactic.  Nobody ever declares they’re standing behind the alarmed soul as they walk backwards.  

The human cast is merely fodder for the monsters.  Before the rampage, the temple unleashes its many traps including shifting walls and floors.  In other words, this is the predators’ version of “Double Dare”.  When one the monsters has its victim cornered, it would appear that we should applaud the aliens and predators the same way so many sadists cheer for Jason and Freddy.   If one of your nameless heroes laments over never getting home to see his son again, you know he’s as good as lunch.   Why even bother to let him speak?

When I first saw AVP back in 2004, I exited theater with a tepid satisfaction.  The film was dumb, no doubt, but it was a fun ride.  After re-watching the film eight years later without the companionship of an exuberant audience, the flaws were more apparent.

When the aliens and predators aren’t engaged in combat, the film suffers from bland acting and characterizations.  Why focus so much on the humans, anyway?  The plot is threadbare enough to risk allowing the laconic Predator to be the star.  Why not follow the hunter as he outwits and outguns the alien horde before he finds the Alexa character?

AVP fulfills the obligation of answering the eternal questions: Which alien would win in a fist (claw) fight?  What would happen if a facehugger latched onto a Predator?  How dangerous is a queen compared to a fully armed predator?

Such intrigue is of interest to reserved to the fans and no one else.  Those who don’t know the back-story will be lost.  Even the alien’s development cycle is sped up and unexplained just so the fans can get to the action quicker.  The hatching of the facehugger, the “birth” and growth of the aliens occurs within minutes!

Most folks should consider AVP as a brainless, monster fest akin to the latter Godzilla films.  We’re expected to soak in the numbing sounds and hyper-kinetic pace with handfuls of popcorn, and possibly buzzed by multiple beers–which helps amplify the laugh-out-loud humor of Lathan’s pis poor performance or anytime a predator bitch-slaps an alien.  Like Aliens 3 and 4, the film forgoes the thrills.  However, AVP does manage to keep a tongue in its cheek. It’s a fun one-time ride that is subject to critical scrutiny with each repeated viewing.  The film’s modest box office success should have propelled 20th Century Fox to redivide the franchises and push each in fresh directions.  Instead, they made a second AVP…

Next…

UGH!

Countdown to Prometheus Part 4: "Alien Resurrection"

Those who have read my earlier countdowns may recall the back-story behind the original Alien–which was planned as a cheap B-movie Roger Corman knockoff.  Although that idea was tossed, its degraded recesses did manage to trickle all their way down onto Alien Resurrection.  Devoid of thrills or suspense, the franchise has mutated into a glorified monster-fest.  And even the aliens themselves look bored.

The actual script–plagued with many flaws–does provide a novel approach to resuscitating the tired franchise.  Picking up 200 years after Alien 3, a secret government organization clones Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) in order to retrieve the alien queen fetus she carried during her demise.  After several failed attempts, both are successfully reincarnated, save for each carrying hints of the others DNA–Ripley has black finger nails and acidic blood and the queen now possesses, well, bizarre human capabilities. 

Meanwhile, a renegade squad–which includes Ron Perlman (Hellboy) and co-star Winona Ryder (Beetlejuice)–dock at the military spaceship to deliver their cargo order: unconscious human hosts for the new alien embryos.

After two centuries, the government still hasn’t learned from the mistakes of earlier films.  (I was always curious why the evil corporation and military wanted the aliens so badly.  In an era where star ships can reach the far corners of space, how beneficial would uncontrollable creatures be as combat tools?)

The moment the aliens escape and lay rampage on the ship, the armed guards (those who aren’t eaten) flee in escape pods without stopping to consider battling the threat or rescuing the other passengers.  (Was the science vessel assigned the Gomar Pyle crew?)  The remaining survivors include most of the renegades and the ship’s chief scientist–whose glaring eyes and evil smirk blatantly imply “evil” to comical effect.  Ripley soon joins the group as they make way to vacate the ship.  (Why do the aliens always attack when the humans are located far away from an escape route?)

The film follows the ragtag survivors as they banter and probe corners for alien attackers, albeit without any genuine humor or suspense.  The one-liners, reserved mostly for the buffoonish Perlman, are pain-inducing.  “Must be a chick thing.”

The design of the ship’s interiors lack the level of imagination found in earlier installments.  There are moments of deja vu as the survivors seem to walk around the same sound-stage multiple times.  Are they moving in circles?

One saving grace is Weaver, who is more interesting here than in Alien 3, instilling Ripley 2.0 with an ambiguity and cynicism.  Her alien genes give her a feeling of connection to the alien villains, distilling her vindictiveness toward them.  However, the script never allows Ripley to reveal exactly what she’s thinking or how much she remembers.
    

Weaver’s co-star for Alien Resurrection is Winona Ryder, as Cole, a tag-along member of the mercenaries who is turns out to be a mole assassin wanted to prevent the cloning project.  She and Ripley form a unlikely alliance.  Sadly, this golden opportunity to create a mother-daughter dynamic is lost; the bond which might have recalled Ripley’s previous life and her relationship with the little girl, Newt, is underdeveloped.  Everyone’s just too preoccupied running from monsters. 

There are two noteworthy sequences.  The first involves the groups’ dangerous swim through the completely submerged kitchen area.   During their 100-foot trek and three minutes without oxygen (I counted.  Amazing lung capacities.), a pair of swimming aliens give chase.  The fleeing group reach surface, but the other side is blocked, as well as infested with alien eggs, waiting to latch onto the first head that surfaces.

Underwater aliens aren’t the only new element.  In the third act, the queen reveals she possesses Ripley’s reproductive abilities and gives birth to a flesh-colored creature who believes Ripley is his mother, adding a humorous touch to the otherwise flat feature.   

In contrast to Alien 3, the fourth incarnation strives for something new, but inevitably subsides into standard horror fare–an unassuming victim looks in the opposite direction just as the monster strikes. The characters constantly engage in loud outbursts and juvenile one-liners that deprive the film of any sense of danger.  (Who yells when killer monsters lurk around the corner?)  The creatures are displayed in full force thanks to the relatively new CGI technology, which reveals their uninspired, velociraptor-like walking patterns.  Their ominous breathing and squeals heard in Aliens have been replaced with less creepy lion roars.    

Like Alien 3, there were major players involved, including director Jean-Pierre Jeunet (Amelie, The City of Lost Children) and writer Joss Whedon (writer-director the small indie flick, The Avengers).  Like David Fincher from the earlier film, both would survive the critical backlash.  Unfortunately, the poor box office prevented the series from progressing further and would lay dormant for seven more years, until the aliens would be demoted to a co-starring role with another movie monster.  

Next…


Whoever wins, we lose!!

Countdown to Prometheus Part 3: "Alien 3"

When your first installment epitomizes pure horror and the second is a full-fledged thriller, what genre is left for a third?  Comedy?

By the time the second Alien film made waves at the box office (and even garnered Sigourney Weaver a rare Oscar nomination for a science-fiction film), 20th Century Fox realized it created a monster–and not just the one with two sets of jaws.  Pre-production plowed ahead for a third installment while the producers and writers struggled to imbue the franchise with a fresh direction, or a finished screenplay. 

The final product (whose title deceptively looks like Alien cubed) returns the series to its horror roots, borrowing heavily from the first installment as a consequence–a single monsters roams and inflicts death on a a bevy of people, one at a time.

The debate continues over which of the two earlier features is the best (for me, it depends on the mood I’m in.  Today it’s Alien), but all would agree that series is bifurcated: there is Alien/Aliens…and then there are the rest…

Alien 3 spawned the franchise’s downward spiral; it was the first bomb in terms of box office and perception.  For all of its negativity, Alien 3 is not a bad film, but a mishandled one.  Whatever plans the filmmakers had to deviate from the earlier films were lost in the final concoction.  The film is a cheap retread of Alien without the tension or believable characters.  Even Sigourney Weaver appears disengaged, leaving her character’s final sacrifice devoid of meaning or emotion.  The real surprise, in hindsight, is that Alien 3 was directed by David Fincher, who has later become an Hollywood A-Lister producing classics (Seven, Fight Club).  The behind-the-scenes documentaries (provided aplenty in the blu-ray and DVD collections) reveal some of the struggles he and the production crew faced.

Even in the early stages of pre-production, drafts of the script called for third installment to pick up immediately after the conclusion to Aliens.  During the marine ship’s return to Earth, a fire causes the escape ship to jettison to a nearby planet.  Ripley revives to learn that all of the remaining passengers perished in the crash.  Yes, the film begins by killing off Ripley’s allies–even her newly adopted daughter, Newt–a morbid opening that set many fans aflame in anger. 

This twist was intended to return Ripley to her loner status and insinuate that she will be forever plagued by death as long as the evil extraterrestrial roams.  When the bodies of Newt and Hicks are cremated, there is no other reference to their deaths or the impact the losses have on Ripley.  The film literally disposes of the last film’s excess baggage in favor of placing Ripley among a new troupe of human fodder for the alien villain. 

The death of Newt, specifically, negates the impact of the second film, which centered around her inevitable rescue.  The tragedy was truly surprising and atypical for a summer feature, but Newt’s death feels like unfinished script element that never came to fruition, save for allowing Ripley to more freely choose her fate at the film’s end.  

There are many scenes in Alien 3 that feel like leftover plot holes.  Ripley is found and taken in by a prison colony.  She befriends and becomes romantically entwined with Clemens (Charles Dance), the colony doctor.  There conversations (which are almost inaudible in all television and home video versions) don’t stretch beyond Clemen’s and Ripley’s curiosity in each others past.  There is little humor or chemistry, and when Dance is inevitably killed by the beast at the half-way mark (right before his meaningless revelation of his history), there is no sense of loss or consequence.

Fairing only slightly better is the Ripley’s camaraderie with Dillon (Charles S. Dutton), the prisoners’ religious leader. When the two meet, Dillon asks “Do you have any faith, sister?”  “Not much”, Ripley coolly replies.  There is a tease that the two will engage a debate of the prevalence of God, and his divine plan during their time of crisis, but there is no further intrigue. 

The rest of the cast include a fine mix of British and American actors, including Peter Postlethwaite (The Lost World, Usual Suspects, Inception).  Unlike the earlier features, the characters lack any distinguishing qualities–their shaved heads doing the audience an additional disservice. Other than the maniacal Boggs (whose scenes were severely cut in the final version) there are no standouts.  When the alien wipes them out, we couldn’t care less. 

Script issues aside, there are some technical qualms, including the film’s editing.  In one sequence, Ripley returns to her crashed ship to search for the remains of her android comrade, Bishop.  As she rummages through the wreckage, the camera and music imply she’s being watched.  Is the alien about to attack?  Seconds later, it is revealed to be only Clemens.  The fault with this sequence–other than the tired “fake scare” tactic–is the scene is never fully established, and first-time viewer struggle to understand what’s happening rather than languish on the lame false alarm, which is just forced.  Did anyone really think we would suspect the alien was going to kill Ripley within the first half hour?  This isn’t a Hitchcock film!  

This brief sequence epitomizes the main faults with Alien 3–it’s not frightening and resorts to cheap movie cliches rather exude the craft and patience of the two earlier movies.  When the alien begins knocking off convicts, there is no time to ponder when the horror will occur.  The alien flat out slaughters each victim without any warning, and even the revelations aren’t very shocking.    

One of the film’s sole surprises is that Ripley was impregnated while still on the marine ship and the fully grown alien won’t attack her.  When Ripley goes to confront the alien, the scene cuts away before we can see the end result.  Were the film-makers afraid to show too much of the alien?  The potential to give the creature more to do than just bite every human being it finds is tossed aside.  The alien has become a predictable menace.  It lives to kill–not to eat to survive.

During the conclusion, the convicts attempt to lure the alien through a series of corridors into a trap.  There is no establishment of space, so there is no room for suspense.  When one man is killed off, we have no idea if the alien is any closer or nearer to the Ripley and the trap.  We do know that almost everyone will be killed off before Ripley squares off against it.

Alien 3 is the unfortunate product of a rushed production.  Fincher left the production in frustration before completion and the final product left a bad taste in everyone’s mouth (audiences and film-makers alike).  Almost nothing in the film works.  The dialog is trite–the convicts all have a sailor’s mouths that lack the poetry found in a Mamet or Tarantino film.  “No fucking way.”  However, underneath Alien 3’s failures, there are hints of an interesting film to be had.  A completed script would have fleshed out characters and allowed Ripley to contemplate about many things such as the loss of her friends, her cursed existence or the futility of bearing an alien fetus.

However, the potential to try something different was tossed aside for the sake of making a release date.  The alien xenomorph had now become a bona fide franchise with toys and merchandise.  (SPOILER ALERT) Ripley dies in the end, but there is always more money to be made.

Next…

Witness the resurrection… 

Countdown to Prometheus Part 2: "Aliens"

“Game over, Man!”

It took seven years before a sequel to Alien would be released.  During that time, copycat horror films came in droves.  20th Century Fox hired James Cameron (Titanic, Avatar) a young director hot from his first success, The Terminator, who decided not to replicate the haunted house formula of the first movie.  His ride was going to be a roller coaster.

Cameron’s films have nearly always highlighted his love for military testosterone-induced action.  This is never more obvious than is his Cameron’s third feature which stars protagonists who are not working-class civilians (as in Alien), but marines who fight the alien horde rather than hide and wait to picked off one-by-one.

The story begins with Ripley’s rescue from her escape shuttle only to find out she’s been in hibernation for 57 years.  Ripley returns to the planet–along with the military–where the alien first appeared, which is now inhabited by a human colony that recently severed contact with Earth.

Originally, Ripley declines to assist in the risk mission and risk her life a second time.  Later, when it becomes obvious that she’ll be haunted by the nightmares forever, she acquiesces. In the extended cut, we learn that Ripley had a daughter, who died while Ripley was in hyper-sleep.  This plot point adds a dimension to Ripley’s character when she returns to the planet and finds one survivor–a little girl, Newt (Carrie Hehn).

Cameron’s script and Weaver’s portrayal give Ripley a heroic edge, but Aliens takes moments to invoke Ripley’s motherly protective nature for Newt, which is highlighted in the extended edition.  However, both cuts cement a foundation for Ripley’s motivations: All that matters to her is that Newt is rescued.  When Newt is eventually captured by the alien horde, Ripley goes on a one-woman rescue mission to save her.  

Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) was paid $1 million to return to the series and become one of the first female action heroes–taking charge and braving the alien threat as efficiently as Rambo.  Cameron’s female heroines are not damsels in distress, but tough chicks who can stand toe-to-toe with the men.  Late in the film, an alien ambushes Ripley and her military comrade, Hicks (Michael Biehn).  In any feature prior to Aliens, Ripley would be useless in this moment–cowering behind her male protector.  But when the attack is over, Hicks get’s injured and it is Ripley who has to save Hicks and take up arms.

As in the first Alien, the troupe of characters are established early; although we know that most will not live to see the ending credits.  Given the little screen time, Cameron maximizes the most out of supporting players without caving into military cliche’ (although Hudson has become a horror movie cliche’, but more on that later).

Some of Cameron’s most interesting side characters are Vasquez (Jenette Goldstein), a tough-as-nails female soldier; Bishop (Lance Henriksen), a cryptic android technician who Ripley suspects will betray the group; Hicks (Biehn), the unassuming soldier who sparks a mutual respect and possible interest possibility with Ripley.  (Thankfully, Cameron never bogs the film with a romantic subplot, since both would be too preoccupied with survival to kiss and hold hands.)    

Finally, that leaves me with Hudson (Bill Paxton), the whose cowering dialog has become ingrained as catchphrases for anyone feeling scare or overwhelmed.  “It’s a bug hunt, man!”  Every time I re-watch the film, I’m always suspect that Paxton is over-the-top, but his delivery is not as outlandish as his imitators make him appear.   

Although the sequel to Alien is a very different animal, there are some commonalities in structure.  Like Ridley Scott, Cameron takes time establishing the suspense.  When the military arrive on the planet, we witness only the aftermath of the horrors that entailed; the colony is abandoned and falling apart.  The soldiers slowly patrol the dark corridors, waiting for an attack to come.

The horror is further implied by one excellent suspense devise–the solders’ motion trackers, which signals whenever a threat approaches by displaying patches of light and emitting a beeping noise which intensify (in so many ways) as the movement comes closer.  One of the most effective spine-tingling moments occurs when the detector alerts that a whole horde of aliens are approaching.  The tension builds as they get closer.  Soon, the meter reveals that the aliens should be right in front of the group, but they are nowhere in sight.    

When the alien army initially but wipes out a majority of the marines, the survivors establish a defense perimeter while they prepare to evacuate.  There is an scene in the extended cut which involves motion sensing turrets that repels the waves of alien attacks.  The film works just as well without it–allowing for the suspense to build until the aliens finally make their way inside.  Cameron is notorious for cutting his films down to the basic story requirements (despite Titanic and Avatar).  The sequence involving the turrets is technically interesting, but the idea of the aliens making their way inside is all the more ominous…the waiting.

As the title implies, there are over a hundred aliens roaming the colony.  Rather that repeat the first film, Cameron’s horror elements rely more on the unstoppable force that won’t quit.  Although our heroes might successfully repel one alien attacker, there is always another creeping behind them.

Of course, the main attraction is the alien queen–a great movie monster, crafted by the creature designer, Stan Winston.  Not enough credit is shared with the film’s sound design by Ron Sharpe (which also won him an Oscar).  The sounds of the queens snarling breathing and high pitched screams really add to the villains menace and wickedness.  When Ripley finally stands off against the queen and shouts her iconic taunt, it’s impossible not to cheer.

Aliens is one of the most thrilling films of all time.  The last third is one giant cat-and-mouse game between the heroes and the alien horde.  Like The Terminator, Cameron loves to deceive the audience into thinking the horror is over, only to pull the carpet from underneath them.  So many action films fail to build to a crescendo in the last scene, but Aliens does. It is arguably James Cameron’s best film and one of the great sequels of all time.

Up next…

The Bitch is back!

Countdown to Prometheus Part 1: "Alien"

“In space, no one can hear you scream…”

Recently, a close friend of mine had just watched Alien for the very first time in order to build anticipation for next’s month’s Prometheus.  He confessed that, although he enjoyed it, the film did not scare the crap out of him.  He was aware that a disgusting creature would erupt out of John Hurt’s chest well before he popped in the DVD.
  

Alien‘s success has become a double-edged sword: Its popularity has diluted its impact.  The film is now so deeply embedded in the cultural spectrum that it no longer carries the same surprise element that sent movie-goers into shock convulsions during its debut in 1979.  Many copycat horror films have followed (monster discovered, runs ramped, wipes out a bevy of people, and is finally destroyed by a lone survivor before the credits roll) hoping to repeat its success.  The monster-loose-on-a-spaceship soon became cliche’ as masked killers with knives.  Even the film’s most famous sequence–the “birth”–has been parodied and referenced in almost every conceivable medium.  Unless you are blind, deaf or an alien yourself, you know this sequence.   

Despite the now-predictable grandiose entrance of the antagonist, Alien remains a classic above almost all films in the genre.  Originally conceived as a cheap B-movie, Roger Corman knockoff, Alien was given the red carpet treatment after an earlier sci-fi epic, Star Wars, soared past box office records.  However, the director, Ridley Scott, borrowed more ingredients from 2001: his outer space is desolate, slow, lonely, and frightening.  Even the ship’s central computer, MU-TH-ER, hearkens back to HAL.

Scott took an already familiar monster-movie premise and invigorated it with a new sense of realism, seriousness and dread.  Also, very few horror features–then or now–contain the same consideration for the human cast or the build-up between attack sequences. 

Let’s consider the film’s opening–which wouldn’t pass with today’s studios lack of faith in audience attention spans.  Alien doesn’t start with a bang, but with a subtle hum.  A huge space carrier is shown trans-versing the bleakness space.  Jerry Goldsmith’s eerie credit music is suggestive enough to reveal that this will be a horror movie.

The camera creeps slowly around ship’s foreboding passages, establishing the vastness of its interior and establishes many possibilities where the not-yet-introduced villain could hide.  With a whisper, the ship’s hyper sleep chamber opens and the seven members of the crew begin to wake up, after months of slumber during their return voyage.  When Kain (John Hurt) slowly rises, it’s subtlety communal, almost symbolic when you consider his ultimate fate. 

In a standard Hollywood film, each of the seven characters would be presented in series of closeups and brief dialog that touches on their histories.  Scott wastes no time on that.  The crew is introduced eating breakfast in a series of long-shots having a mundane conversation on the imbalance in pay distribution.  Even in outer space, class warfare exists. These folks aren’t glorified heroes–they’re grunt workers, eager to get home and take some R&R. 

Before the payment debate is settled, MU-TH-ER reveals that the ship hasn’t returned to earth, but was diverted to investigate an alien transmission from an uninhabited planet.  When the crew investigates, they unknowingly carry an intruder–gestating inside Kain’s chest.
 

Alien has one of the finest ensembles in a genre that typically limits the characters as fodder for the monster.  Although the film doesn’t establish individual story arch or backgrounds, Scott allows the brief interactions between the characters to invoke remarkable realism and intrigue.  In one scene, Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) makes promises to the technical grunts (Yaphet Kott and Harry Dean Stanton) that they will earn a share of the bonus, much to their doubt and bemusement.  The moment she’s out of earshot, they talk shit.  When the alien appears and begins taking out crew members, they sure as hell listen to Ripley.

The seven castmates should be familiar to today’s audiences: Ian Holm, as the cryptic medical officer, Tom Skerritt, as the laid-back commander, Hurt as Kain, Kotto and Stanton (recently scene-stealing the “Avengers” by warning Bruce Banner of his “serious condition”) as the ship’s disgruntled tech crew.

If Weaver was not the poster child for the Alien franchise, most first-time viewers would not easily guess that she would become the ultimate “hero”.  Weaver’s presents Ripley as a thorn in the side of her crew, arguing for following quarantine rules rather than allowing the unconscious Kain (possessing the alien fetus) into the ship.  If the other crew members listened, they would be alive–and there would be no franchise. 

Although the actual alien doesn’t make an “appearance” until the film’s mid-way point, the anticipation and suspense builds.  Scott leisurely hints at the characters’ worries without having them explain themselves.  When the space ship first arrives on the planet, the crew are making plans to walk on foot and explore the planet.  However, Lambert (Veronica Cartwright) is shown in a close-up sitting and smoking a cigarette while in deep thought.  What is she thinking?  Most directors would concentrate the camera on their conversation between the characters talking, but Scott constantly cuts back to Lambert, suggesting her inhibitions–suspecting that something bad is going to happen.

When Kain, Dallas and Lambert explore the planet surface, the atmosphere is eerie.  There are no fake scares, just the suggestion that danger lurks.

When the alien finally appears (in the most famous of birth sequences), he quickly vanishes, leaving the surviving crew members look for it.  At one point, Brent wonders alone (we know what happens next).  Although, this scene is the most obvious and cliched, it’s still effective due to the suspense Scott instills.  He again takes his time.

Brent moves further in the bowels of the ship.  The dripping moisture, clinking of chains and the subtle sounds of a racing heartbeat suggest that he’s in danger.  Scott invokes the Hitchcock formula: The audience knows something bad will happen, but the suspense comes from waiting and the build until it actually occurs.     

After the alien dispatches of three crew members, the survivors begin to unravel.  The actors react in realistic behavioral patterns: one wants to flee, another wants revenge, and another a secret motivation entirely.

Alien stands apart from the films that follows the most.  It’s formula has been copied, but never replicated.  No film today would allow a monster movie to invoke as much patience and suggestions of terror without actually showing it.

Scott allowed Alien to build–the suspense boils over at the point when alien finally strikes.  Many elements of fear are effectively invoked, such as the sense of claustrophobia as Dallas hunts the alien through the dark, cramped venting system, or the double jeopardy when Ripley rushes to evacuate the ship before it self-destructs, except the alien is lurking somewhere between her and the escape pod.    

If Alien were made today, the film-makers would forgo the opening credits and ambiance in order to tease a few seconds of Ripley running in terror in the third act.  There would be no faith in the audience’s patience or the capacity of their imagination.

As for the creature itself, it has become as iconic as Dracula or Frankenstein.  The original poster artwork reveals nothing of the alien’s appearance (in any of its incantations), which serves the story better.  Even throughout the course of the film, we never really see the alien, except for quick cuts.  It’s origins, weaknesses and motives are not explored–it’s just a perfect killing machine. Once again referencing Hitchcock, we don’t care about any of this information.  All that matters, is that if it spots you, it will kill you!  Our imagination does the rest.

The Prometheus Factor

Like many, I am eager to see Ridley Scott return to the Alien saga.  I have doubts that the film will compare to the original in terms of imagination and suspense.  There will be many moments that harken back to the original feature.  Of course, the film takes place on the planet where the Alien was discovered in the original film. The cast of this new film features many beautiful actors.  Sigourney Weaver was no dog in Alien but she was still  believable as a space trucker.  Charlize Theron is not so believable.  But this isn’t 1979.

Up next…

“They mostly come out at night…mostly…”