The first Alien is an oddity. I know that sounds rather strange as it’s the first in a line of four movies (or six if you include the atrocious vs. Predator duo) but the original, in comparison with its predecessors; is a straight-up horror film.
Compared to the all guns blazing sequel which would partially carry over into Alien 3 and return entirely for Resurrection, Alien is a film which challenges it’s viewers to delve into an environment of isolation with seemingly no escape, against a foe of disturbing proportions.
This despite the human character’s being barely fleshed out over the half an hour before Kane is impregnated by the Face-Hugger (which leads to possibly the most gruesome screen debut in cinematic history), you generally feel sorry for their circumstances.
This mainly comes down to the crew being a compilation of your everyday, relatable worker rather than say, scientists who basically asking for it (the Nostromo is the equivalent of a tow truck and only landed on planet under direct orders from the unknown company).
Even Ash, who serves as the main human antagonist (although it’s gruesomely revealed he’s an android in the third act), always remains within this inner circle of people to work, but still remains loyal to his employers above all else, something many people will find relatable as the office suck-up.
But of course, the most memorable moments of the film involve the new discoveries of the said Alien. Starting off with killing Kane, it begins life on the ship as more of an unknown pest; small, quick and something seemingly easy to resolve with such a robust crew.
As the film continues, more details of the Alien are revealed and by the end, despite learning so much and witnessing so much death and jumps, we’re still left in the dark on what else this visually stunning and consistently disturbing creature is capable of.
Even at the end, the creature doesn’t die with the hero/heroes standing triumphant of their vanquished foe; instead, Ripley moves from one isolated, contained ship to an even smaller ship and is forced to flush the thing out into space, finds solace in entering hypersleep with her cat and is happy with the prospect of drifting for a number of years.
On the whole, watching Alien today is still an unusual experience. Like all great horror movies, it stands the test of time as the basic formula would still work nowadays. But what holds it back is the lack of mystery.
The film’s success is it’s own curse as the journey through the unknown is gone with the Alien entering public conscience; from the iconic Chestburster all the way to it’s mesmerising decent from the ceiling, it’s been parodied, mentioned in iconic lists and studied, but the introduction to Alien is still a unique experience despite each passing decade.
It’s a well directed, well orchestrated and well acted debut for the Alien Quadrilogy. But the horror elements would be shifted in the years to come in favour more pure terror and adrenaline, beginning with James Cameron’s foray into the franchise and the idea of more people fighting multiple Aliens.
Ripley’s Believe It or Not!: You wouldn’t guess Ellen Ripley would be the human face of the franchise from her original outing. Rather than the guns blazing action hero of Aliens or the unusual entity in Resurrection, Ripley here is a regular worker whose gender means nothing to the overall character (much like everyone on the ship)
She shows logic when Kane is attacked on the planet by wanting him quarantined only for Ash to over turn the decision, she constantly creates idea’s to stop the Alien from wandering around the ship killing crew members, but shows pure, unadulterated fear when the gravity of the situation deepens. Even when she kills Ash, it’s a horrifying murder against an almost unstoppable machine.
Overall; a likable if not too particularly distinctive character. One who would receive more depth with Aliens and Alien 3.
Game Over Man!: The basic lifespan of the Alien (or Xenomorph in future instalments) is revealed in the original film along with several characteristics which would set the foundations for one of sci-fi’s best loved monsters.
Beginning life as a fleshy egg (that would originally resemble a Vagina…yeah Giger is pretty weird), a Facehugger with acidic blood impregnates victim by forcibly entering an embryo down the victim’s throat (so yep, this new born Alien is a rapist too, niiiiiiccccee).
Said Facehugger dies, victim can act normal for a number of hours before the embryo grows enough to burst open out of the victim, killing them. Appropriately titled Chestburster will molt and grow-up fast (the alien grows from a foot to over two metres in a matter of hours in the film).
Newly evolved monster is fast, silent and takes on characteristics from its victim’s species. In this case; an androgynous look with features likes human fingers, walking hunched but on two legs and a lack of sexual organs...minus that phallic looking head (species inheritance would be further explored in Alien 3).
For plot convenience, the Alien has acid blood which can burn through steel (hence the lack of firearms in the film in case of combustion in Space) and displays some intelligence (it follows Ripley to the escape pod for a final showdown rather than remain on the Nostromo’s).
It also has a retractable tongue with a small pair of jaws for double the biting action!
Also in the Director’s cut, the entire life cycle was shown with a cocooned Brett being converted into an Egg and Dallas being used as a host for the eventual Facehugger. This was dropped entirely with the advent of Aliens but in context, creates a disturbing idea that every egg on the Space Jockey’s ship was a victim of a previous attack.
Overall: Horrifying and uneasy viewing with a strong, relatable cast and an introduction to one of most unique and disturbing entities on cinematic history, Ridley Scott’s Alien is a strange, grotesque but enjoyable introduction that paves the way for one of Sci-Fi’s biggest franchises. Up next; Aliens
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