Review of Alien (1979) by Joshua N — 30 Jan 2015

While Ridley Scott may be one of the most well-known and critically acclaimed directors today, in 1979 his biggest claim to fame was The Duellists, made two years prior. But when Alien hit the big-screens, Scott was instantly elected a genius, and it's not difficult to see why. Even today Alien is not only one scary movie but it is still a landmark in terms of minimalism, suspense, narrative and just damn fine movie making. .

When a commercial towing ship's navigation system intercepts a distress call from a nearby planet, the seven-member crew is woken out of hypersleep to go and inspect it. But what they find in the bowels of a dismembered ship is more than they can handle. To give away anything else would be a shame, as it would spoil the film completely, seeing as soooo many people read my reviews. Right? Right? Anyway, suffice it to say that the next two hours are filled with amazing scene after amazing scene, shot with the incredible filmmaking style of Sir Ridley Scott and is still deeply affecting both psychologically and emotionally today some 30 years after its initial release. .

The minimalistic script is fantastic. Unlike most of the sci-fi's which came out at around the same time which were filled with jargon and gadgets, spending huge amounts of time on showcasing all the cool stuff that the props department could think of, Alien set its mind to creating a relatable world which the audience would have no problem seeing themselves in. Whilst the film includes supercomputers which control huge, space-going ships and, well, aliens, the atmosphere is completely terrestrial. People talk to each other like they're people, they open doors with their hands, they have to walk from place to place and there is a conspicuous lack of gadgets. In fact, the most hi-tech things you'll see include a primitive motion sensor and a laser scalpel. They even eat normal-ish food. Whilst these things may seem insignificant at first, they all add up to increasing the feeling of realism which in turn makes the shock hundreds of times more shocking. And this originates from the finely crafted script, specifically refined to seem less refined. There are no expositional scenes to help you know which gadgets are which and what they do, all that's there is the bare essentials, a style which fits the film perfectly. .

Backing up this incredible document is a cast of fantastic actors. Leading the group is Sigourney Weaver as Ellen Ripley. Though she might appear to blend into the background during the early scenes as it focusses more on Dallas, throughout the course of the film her character becomes stronger and more vulnerable at the same time. While she may be the ass-kicking badass in James Cameron's sequel, here she displays just a hint of that steely determination which she encompasses in the sequel. A perfect example is the quarantine sequence as Dallas, Kane and Lambert return the ship. Sigourney plays her perfectly throughout, balancing her strength with her weakness and the struggle inside her to keep them both under control. Ian Holm is incredible as the unscrupulous Ash, along with a fantastic turn from Tom Skerritt as the overwhelmed and just-plain-freaked-out Dallas. The supporting cast are similarly fantastic, John Hurt in particular, the proud owner of the film's best scene. .

But it's the look and style of the film, driven by its visionary director, which makes it the enduring classic it's known as today. The creepily claustrophobic feel which permeates the entire movie is something which many have tried and fail to replicate in their own works. Every single shot seems to have been perfectly crafted to find the most disturbing yet rivetting angle possible. Simple tracking shots in which nothing happens are somehow transformed to be stranglingly scary through Scott's inventive use of lighting and atmosphere. Where many horror films find refuge in the shadows, preferring to scare their audience with the things which lurk in the darkness, everything here is on display, well-lit and easily visible. Yet somehow, this only serves to make the film more real, thus more terrifying. Scott's reinvention of the sci-fi/horror genre is both breathtaking and inimtable. .

In the tradition of other signposts of the genre, Alien sets a high standard not only for thrills and spills, but for film. .

Defining Scene: .

The Chestburster. A scene so shocking, visceral and downright amazing it has its own name.