Directed by:
Ridley ScottScreenplay:
Dan O'BannonCinematography:
Derek VanlintComposer:
Jerry GoldsmithCast:
Sigourney Weaver, Tom Skerritt, Veronica Cartwright, Harry Dean Stanton, John Hurt, Ian Holm, Yaphet Kotto, Bolaji Badejo, Helen HortonVOD (4)
Plots(1)
The terror begins when the crew of a spaceship investigates a transmission from a desolate planet, and discovers a life form that is perfectly evolved to annihilate mankind. One by one, each crew member is slain until only Ripley is left. (official distributor synopsis)
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Reviews (15)
A classic that nowadays affects me more with its perfect visual design by R.H. Geiger, rather than a haunting impression, as during the first watch. Yet it is impossible to admire R. Scott's skill in inducing an atmosphere of danger and working with the "established" horror techniques that have become the quintessence of modern science fiction horror filmmaking under his guidance.
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A fascinating legend, which has been delivering all subsequent films with a suggestive atmosphere of unknown evil for over forty years since its creation. A captivating performance by Sigourney Weaver, the impossibility of guessing what is in store for the crew in the next few seconds, accompanied by darkness, fear, and terror, with the help of minimal special effects. An incomparable accomplishment from Ridley Scott and proof that even a film where almost nothing happens in the first half can be perfectly breathtaking throughout its entire runtime.
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The collective terror of the unknown in an isolated environment. The first serious sci-fi/horror movie with a blood-thirsty space monster…and the most artful one to achieve cult status. Unlike Cameron’s follow-up, Aliens, Ridley Scott’s Alien modestly, or even intimately, presents the creature in a gradual way, exploiting the mysteriousness and menace of the perfect, indestructible extraterrestrial organism at the top of the food chain, towering above everything that we know from Earth. The close-ups of the scared-to-death, realistically natural and poorly armed crew members, the visual exploration of the futuristically elegant and industrial bowels of their spaceship Nostromo, the creepy atmospheric music by the unrivalled sorcerer Jerry Goldsmith, and primarily H.R. Giger’s brilliant design of not only the monsters themselves make Alien a unique classic of the genre. It is an establisher of trends and a source of inspiration in which, even after forty years, it’s impossible to find a cliché or guess who will survive.
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Ridley Scott cannot be denied his directorial skill and sense for a unique creepy atmosphere, but after so many years, it doesn't have quite the same level of horror as it did ten or twenty years ago. The original screenplay, the great cast, and the excellent direction, along with the depressive music and fantastic devilish atmosphere, are all positives, But I still give preference to the militant Cameron.
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If someone were to define the qualities a truly significant and excellent film should have, it wouldn’t take them long to get to the concept of timelessness. And since we have been in the XXI century for some time already and timelessness is determined only retrospectively, I would put Alien as the benchmark for timelessness in the movie industry, because, save for certain aspects of the technology of the ship, this film has not aged a day. What is striking, however, is that even after all this time and all the similarly thematic stuff created during it, this film never ceases to seduce the attention of the viewer in an almost exhibitionist manner, holding them under constant tension, even though they already know all the twists. This is undoubtedly the result of the amazing work not only by make-up artists, set designers, the technical staff and Jerry Goldsmith, but especially Ridley Scott, who possibly never again in his career would make something with such confidence, and his timing for editing and sense for building tension outside the frame that make every scene with the famous terrors material for a wholesome horror story. Every aspect of that necessarily cut-off world and environment has been though-out to the tiniest detail and the initial curiosity (who’s sending the signal? Who does the spaceship belong to? What is that creature on Kane’s face doing and why is it keeping him alive?) is gradually overcome by fear and concern for the characters, while always providing an explanation that makes sense. In addition, the claustrophobic setting and the reliance on sound work flawlessly throughout, making Alien a unique and very artistic spin on the space-slasher that paved the way for a host of followers, but with a creative dominance that has made it impossible for them to approach it qualitatively – the only thematically similar contribution that gets close (and which in fact I prefer) is The Thing. James Cameron in the direct sequel understood that he had to take a different, more explicit path, and he did it wonderfully. In any case, the privileged status of this film is unquestionable and… timeless.
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Gallery (287)
Photo © 1979 20th Century Fox
![Alien - Photos](http://image.pmgstatic.com/cache/resized/w663/files/images/film/photos/158/510/158510061_c98176.jpg)
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