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Summary: One of my favorite sci-fi movies
Review: I love the movie Alien.The plot is quite simple:the crew members of the spaceship Nostromo,on their way back to Earth,are awakenened early by the ship's computer to investigate a signal coming from a planet below.To make a long story short,one of the crew brings an alien back to the ship,(I won't say how,most people probably already know)and it kills off the crew members one at a time.(Cpt.Dallas' death is particularly frightening)The movie is very suspenseful and quite scary at times.It has a very isolated feel to it,and the Jerry Goldsmith score,which is excellent,only adds to that feel.The small cast does a very good job,most notably Sigourney Weaver.I think this was her first film,and she does a great job as Lt.Ellen Ripley,the only crew member of the Nostromo who survives the alien.The special effects are very good,especially the infamous chestburster scene.(if I understand correctly,the film's budget was only 8 million dollars,which was more in 1979 than now,but still not that much.)Overall,this is an excellent film,(one of my favorite sci-fi movies)and it's sequal Aliens is just as good.(I don't like the third and,especially fourth films nearly as well,though.)The DVD is outstanding with loads of extras including a lot of deleted scenes.
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Summary: ONE OF THE TRULY GREAT HORROR FILMS
Review: Amazon.com is all wet on this one. "Alien" is undoubtedly one of the great horror films of all time. "Aliens" may be a good action flick, with great attention paid to special effects details, but "Alien" is a text-book example of perfectly paced tension, suspense and dread. The characters aren't saddled with cliche-ridden back-stories and comic-book motivations. They are just blue-collar workers who want to go home. The writers upended all the "rules" of horror with their screenplay, and Ridley Scott created a masterpiece with it. (Note: Scott does owe a huge acknowledgement to the 50s B-flick "It! The Terror from Beyond Space" and Mario Bava's "Planet of the Vampires." Check either of these movies out, you'll recognize entire scenes from "Alien.")
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Summary: Science Fiction meshes with Gothic Horror in this classic
Review: In Space, No One Can Hear You Scream....Those are the exact words to the slogan that attracted movie-goers to this masterpiece of science fiction and horror. British director Ridley Scott brings us an excellent story that deals with the unknown. With frightening and terrifying results. One could say that it has elements of John Carpenter's Halloween in it. In a way it does. But in this case, we are not dealing with a psychopathic or sociopathic killer with supernatural tendencies. We are dealing with something alien (no pun intended).With a superb cast that consists of Tom Skerritt, Sigourney Weaver(in her first role), Veronica Cartwright, Harry Dean Stanton(a Kentucky native), British actors John Hurt and Ian Holm, and veteran method actor Yaphett Kotto, the film tells the story about the seven crew members of a commercial starship that recieves a transmission from an alien planet, while returning to Earth. As per compnay orders, they set down on the planet to investigate. What they find there is an old derelict starship and the fossilized remians of its crew. They also find alien spores/eggs that releases a creature that hugs to a persons' face and implants an embryo inside its victims. When one of the crew members finds an egg, he sufferes the aforementioned fate. When the embryo explodes out of the crewmembers thorax in a bloody scene, the terror begins. For now an alien is running loose on the starship and killing off the crew members one by one. Another shocking event is that the company that the crew works for has put them in this situation because they wanted the alien for its bio-weapons division. In the end, it comes down to a showdown between the last surviving crewmember and the alien. And the results are most horrifying, if not explosive. This movie is defiantely a classic! A successful fusion of science fiction and horror. All the cast members give excellent performances. Ian Holm gives a remarkable performance as Science Officer Ash, a crewman who is actually revealed to be an android in an unexpected plot twist. Yaphet Kotto gives an explosive if not sarcastic performance as the ill-fated engineer Parker (his death scene as well as Veronica Cartwright's is the most intense and frightening). Cartwright's performance is very convincing as her character becomes hysteric and frightened by the turn of events. And finally, Sigourney Weaver turns in a powerful performance as the iron-willed Warrant Officer Ripley. A woman who holds the fate of the human race in her hands. ALIEN not only has wonderful special effects(courtesy of 2001 and Space:1999 alumni Brian Johnson and Nick Allder), great costumes, an excellent plot, superb actors, spectacular set design(courtesy of Swiss Artist H.R.Giger), and a wonderful,if not frightening design for the alien itself, it is a truly wonderful movie that relies on the audiences imagination. One that allows suggestibility to enter the audiences minds instead of actually showing some of the violent moments in the film. The soundtrack by Jerry Goldsmith is superb and haunting. And Scott's direction even better. Many of the cast members read parts of the script during the shooting, and some did not know the fate of their characters until it was too late. They did not even see the actor in the alien costume until the scene where Stanton's character was killed off was filmed. No one even knew about the chestburster scene with John Hurt until it was filmed as well. These actual moments in filming the movie are the actors real responses. Not acting. But for real. It was this secrecy, close attention to detail, and the unique script that added to the surprising plot twists in the film. Most of the actors actions in the film are reactions to some unexpected events. That is what makes a good film. Suggestibility and unpredictability. ALIEN is as intense and violent, if not disturbing as The Exorcist and Halloween. It plays on your senses and does an extremely good job of terrifying its audience. If you want good science fiction and horror, this is the film to watch. I just wish ITC Entertainment distributed this film(seeing as how it was made at Shepperton Studios in England). Interesting trivia notes: Harrison Ford was once approached to play the role of Captain Dallas in the film, yetvturned it down. He wuld work with Ridley Scott again on another science fiction classic. Blade Runner. Yaphet Kotto had developed a deep dislike for the tall actor playing the alien, and a fight almost broke between them. Which would explain his character's intense hostility towards the alien and why he wanted to kill it. Very convincing acting on Mr. Kotto's part.
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Summary: A L I E N is the one that started it all
Review: Alien stands the test of time as one of the greatest sci fi/horror films of all time. It is still being ripped off to this day but never equalled. Mostly overlooked by today's jaded teens and early twenty-somethings, this is no gun blasting action fest. That description best suits the 1986 sequel Aliens. Alien is really a suspense film. It is also a showcase for some of the best artists and designers ever assembled for a film project. The set and costume designs are second to none. H.R. Geiger's biomechanoid creature and set designs are also a frightful wonder to behold but what makes this film so frightening is something so often lacking with modern horror movies...character development. These characters are your blue collar working class neighbors. Everyday people you can identify with. Much of the dialog is so natural and spontaneous, thanks to Ridley Scott's directing style which encourages improvization from the actors. The first thirty minutes of the film are spent introducing the viewer to their world and setting up the terrors ahead. When they are thrust into a living nightmare and must rely on their wits to survive you are right there with them to the horrifying end. I first saw Alien when it was released in 1979 and I've witnessed the endless stream of lame imitators like Deep Star Six and Species. See the first, the original and best of them all.
Rating: 
Summary: Somewhat over-rated
Review: It's amazing that in this movie, the whole space crew (with the exception of Ellen Ripley) under-estimates the alien creature and they die because of it. Alien reminded a lot of the keystone cops in outer space with cardboard characters who engage in dry comedy until the terror starts and then the alien creature appears more interesting then the human characters it hunts. The sequal, ALIENS was much better then this.
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Summary: One of the greatest & most important movies of all time
Review: This was a benchmark of science fiction film. I wish I could give this film ten stars. It has inspired every science fiction movie just like Star Wars or Metropolis. Twenty years after it was made, if it were released today, it would seem as new, fresh and I think even more modern than what Hollywood is churning out today in this genre. If this film came out before Star Wars, it would probably get more respect and have the kind of following it deserves. The interior of every fictionalized spacecraft that I have seen since this film, is a modified version of the Nostromo. This movie had the best set design, from the interior of the Nostromo to the alien spacecraft, that I could ever see or imagine. Never was there a more realistic alien creature, or a more convincing hero than Ellen Ripley. However, the most astonishing thing about this movie is the absolutely wonderful storyline, so imaginative, so realistic, so unique and so full of thrills and intrigue, that it's no wonder that so many films have tried to copy this one. It is one of a kind and deserves to be up there as not just one of the greatest science fiction films of all time, but one of the greatest films, period!!!
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Summary: What an awful movie
Review: It borrows a lot of story elements from Invasion of the Body Snatchers, and the effects work are sickening to the stomach. I don't care if some people liked this movie, it represented a low turning point in science fiction.
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Summary: DOES NOT RELY ON SPECIAL EFFECTS
Review: Yes, this movie was made 21 years ago but it by-far surpasses many sci-fi movies of the last 21 years. Alien relies on an excellent storyline and exceptional character development. Not to mention the great talents of Sigourney Weaver, John Hurt and Tom Skerrit. I remember when this movie was on HBO in the early eighties- it was unlike anything that we had ever seen- it still is 20 years later- still scares the hell out of me.
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Summary: THE Best in Sci-fi Horror!
Review: Ridley Scott is a master of grand visions and artistic splendor in cinema. It still amazes me to this day that this movie was made 20 years ago! It looks gorgeous! The DVD is by far one of the most impressive I've seen with tons of extras and bonus materials. The many pages of production art, photos, and info was highly impressive and a real treat for the hardcore fans. This is what a DVD should be! Alien is wonderful and is a benchmark of sci-fi film making. The attention to detail is incredible and I think really separates it from the other films in the Alien series. The original Alien is by far the best film in the series, no matter what Amazon reviewers say. Although Aliens was good, it wasn't a definitive horror movie... it was a testosterone injected James Cameron action film that lacked the vision and style of the original. Alien is smarter and filled with terror, suspense, and blood chilling scenes that can still rival anything done today. Watch this one in the dark.
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Summary: YOU WILL BE DISAPPOINTED. LET ME TELL YOU WHY
Review: The first time I viewed this, I didn't find it to be to great. You know why? Because every single ripoff has ruined the scares for me. Sure, you dont know who's gonna die in this, but you know how. So damn the ripoffs all to hell. This is a great movie, with few flaws. I was surprised that almost NOTHING except the language was edited for tv. Even the most infamous of scenes in sci-fi was barely cut. That, i must admit, is one of the most startling and dreadful (in a good way) scenes I've ever known. How I would've loved to not know a thing about this movie. Can you imagine how much this took people by surprise by its release? How I would've loved to seen that day. If you know nothing about the movie, good. DONT READ ANY REVIEWS. You could rent it, ignore the slow start, and enjoy the atmosphere that slowly takes over, and the monster that you know you've thought of under your bed at night. ***Dallas' death was the biggest jolt for me*** You have to have a mood for this movie. If you dont, you'll admire its craft. If you do, it'll scare the bejeezus out of you.
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