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| Released: |
1979 |
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| Genre: |
SCIENCE FICTION
ACTION
ADVENTURE
MONSTER
HORROR
IMPORTANT
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| Origin: |
US/ GB |
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| Length: |
124 |
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A mutating alien murders the crew of a spacecraft, one by one.
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Reviewed by Chris Tookey
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A 50s pulp science-fiction plot, reminiscent of The Thing and It! The Terror From Beyond Space, is pressed into service once again... but to marvellous effect, thanks to a suspenseful script, atmospheric direction and (for the time) impressively gruesome special effects.
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Ridley Scott's 2003 cut of Alien isn't much different from the old one - and, a rarity with director's cuts, it's slightly shorter and pacier. It's good to see it again. It delivers some of the most memorable moments - and nastiest shocks - in the history of sci-fi horror. |
The central weakness remains: there's no one to root for, and the members of the crew are not deeply characterised. But they are convincingly blue-collar, like long-distance lorry-drivers. And Alien broke new ground in its imagery, which owed much to H.R.Giger's illustrations of books by H.P.Lovecraft, and was sexual rather than hi-tech. |
Also revolutionary was Scott's willingness to use the female lead (Sigourney Weaver) as the central protagonist, and not marginalize her as tedious love interest. This is a must-see for horror connoisseurs who prize style and suspense over splatter. |
Like most of the great horror movies, it was underrated and even vilified on release.
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, Tom Skerritt, Veronica Cartwright
