Alien

[baumer]

Rate the film

[ddddeeee]

As close to perfection as any film I've seen.

[Travod]

The only thing that annoys me is that at the end when she's running with the cat in the cage she throws it violently into the escape pod thing and the cat ends up fine.

[Ariadne]

A+My favourite movie of all time.

[Kvikk Lunsj]

Terrific film, incredible intense.9/10

[IndustriousAngel]

"Perfection" is never reached but you rarely see a work of art where everything comes as close as here.- Direction: Superb, tense, no fat anywhere- Design: Outstanding. Not only Gigers Spaceship/Alien Design; also involved was french artist Jean Giraud aka Moebius. Sadly, the actual execution of the designs was very difficult and some scenes showing the monster couldn't be used at all because they looked ridiculous. (At least according to Ridley Scott - haven't seen them myself)- Sound: Plays an integral part. Listen to those periodic sounds throughout the film - klicking, heartbeats, breathing, beeps, dripping ...- Cast: Great. I wouldn't pick anyone as exceptional, this was a verrrry fine ensemble.- Music: OK, good decision to keep it low and in the background. The sounds are more important.- Cinematography: I still haven't got the BR (nr. 1 on my to-do-list) but even on DVD you can see it's beautiful; lighting is a bit "typical Scott" but does it's job.My favourite scene is Brett (Harry Dean Stanton - always a joy!) searching for Jonesy (the cat) inside a wet, industrial (and rather expressionist) part of the "Nostromo".I was only 11 when this opened here, so I didn't actually catch it until much later on TV, but I was already heavily into SF in '79 and can remember the discussions the film triggered in journals, fanzines etc. This was no box-office monster, but it made quite an impact, also outside SF, and has formed part of our society's conception of space and life since then. The thought model of a parasitic species specialising in "manned" space expeditions (which maybe happen every few thousand years to come by this remote planet) and finally evolving into the "alien" brings new meaning to the term patience

Edited January 4, 2012 by IndustriousAngel

[fmpro]

The perfect movie.. Classic..10/10

[ddddeeee]

I just finished watching this yet again and it really is incredible. Eclipses the rest of the series. 10/10

[Rudolf]

even JC could not improve on that one

[Ozymandias]

even JC could not improve on that one

He didn't try(and I think that was a very smart move) and instead took it in a different direction awesomeness.I'm gonna watch this and Aliens back to back the day before Prometheus comes out. Edited May 19, 2012 by Shpongle

[BiffMan]

He didn't try(and I think that was a very smart move) and instead took it in a different direction awesomeness.

Agreed. Great example of playing around in the same universe rather than trying to re-tread already covered ground.Love this movie. Nothing I would change or tweak to improve. Well paced, best tension building outside of a Hitchcock movie, and gripping from beginning to end.Probably helped that my Dad took me to this in the theater when I was 8. As a parent now of my own 8 year old, it seriously begs the question: "What the FUCK was he thinking??", but I'm very glad he did. Edited May 22, 2012 by BiffMan

[IndustriousAngel]

Probably helped that my Dad took me to this in the theater when I was 8. As a parent now of my own 8 year old, it seriously begs the question: "What the FUCK was he thinking??", but I'm very glad he did.

And did you actually see something? When I first saw this, on TV, alone at home, I made it to the breast-burst scene I believe, then I remember chrouching ever deeper behind a big cushion and hoping they would not do anything stupid ...

[BiffMan]

And did you actually see something? When I first saw this, on TV, alone at home, I made it to the breast-burst scene I believe, then I remember chrouching ever deeper behind a big cushion and hoping they would not do anything stupid ...

I hung in there. I remember being completely freaked out by the egg scene more than anything else. I think by the time I was later in the film, I was likely overloaded to the point of being numb.My sister watching Conan at age 9 though... Ducked under the seats when Conan's mom's head hit the ground, came up briefly in time to see the huge snake, and pretty much stayed down there the rest of the movie. I maintain that she couldn't have really been freaked out by it that much with as little of it as she watched.

[Rudolf]

I hung in there. I remember being completely freaked out by the egg scene more than anything else. I think by the time I was later in the film, I was likely overloaded to the point of being numb.My sister watching Conan at age 9 though... Ducked under the seats when Conan's mom's head hit the ground, came up briefly in time to see the huge snake, and pretty much stayed down there the rest of the movie. I maintain that she couldn't have really been freaked out by it that much with as little of it as she watched.

I've seen Conan on American free TV they skipped all scenes where you see boobies, but all those with limbs flying and mutilations they show. On European TV it's the other way round. Intersting what different societies consder harmful for kids.

[BiffMan]

I've seen Conan on American free TV they skipped all scenes where you see boobies, but all those with limbs flying and mutilations they show. On European TV it's the other way round. Intersting what different societies consder harmful for kids.

American prudism has always been an odd thing. I think it bothered my 9 year old sister far more that heads were dropping and blood was spurting everywhere than the display of a few boobs. (Just texted her and confirmed that... lol) So I guess we'd both have to side with the European censors on this one.

[Captain Craig]

With Prometheus on the horizon it's no wonder to find this sci-fi/horror classic back atop the Review threads page 1!!Great film, solid A

[tawasal]

Masterpiece.

[DeeCee]

Had a marathon of my blu-ray Alien and Aliens on the weekend. Great films. Two films in the same universe but very different in their execution. Both of them just fantastic.

Edited June 5, 2012 by DeeCee

[StarSaber]

Why is this movie considered a masterpiece?

[pinocchio]

Among other things because Alien was kind of a milestone in movie history that had a huge influence on other movies:

"Scott’s influence on modern science fiction movies cannot be overstated. As the director of the original Alien (1979) and Blade Runner (1982), Scott’s depictions of the future as dark, dystopic places where technology is hardly the savior of humankind were disturbingly more plausible than the antiseptic utopias prevalent in contemporary sci-fi. Movies like The Matrix and City of Men inhabit future worlds that owe a great debt to Scott’s vision."

http://www.reelz.com/article/1467/a-look-at-tales-from-development-hell/page5/