Alien

[CupofJoe]

I saw Alien in a flea-pit cinema in a nearby town. I was far too young to see it so had to sneak in with a group of older kids, who were also probably too young to see it. But the time I fell into the film was at a late-night showing of Alien and Aliens in the late 80s at the Ritzy in Brixton. The ticket was £3.50 and for £1.50 you got a good cup of coffee and a huge chunk of sponge cake. As far as I remember the films were played end to end. So you got the sign-off on the lifeboat followed by the salvage moments later. It made the 57 years gap all the more shocking...

 

[Bick]

I think we had a 5-10 minute toilet break between films, but otherwise back to back. I saw them at the little cinema in Wokingham where I grew up.

(We didn’t get sponge cake - what a superior movie house you went to CoJ !)

 

[Vladd67]

I first saw Alien when it was shown by ITV in the early 80s, and it included the scene with Dallas being turned into an egg until Ripley kills him with the flame gun. I had to wait until the Special edition was released on dvd to see that scene again.

 

[BAYLOR]

I first saw Alien when it was shown by ITV in the early 80s, and it included the scene with Dallas being turned into an egg until Ripley kills him with the flame gun. I had to wait until the Special edition was released on dvd to see that scene again.

I wonder why Ridley Scott didn't include that scene in the film ?

 

[Toby Frost]

I gather it was felt to interrupt the pacing of the film too much.

 

[BAYLOR]

I gather it was felt to interrupt the pacing of the film too much.

I can see that.

But, I still found that scene rather chilling.

 

[Randy M.]

I didn't have friends who wanted to see it, so I went by myself to an afternoon showing. Beautifully filmed, a space ship that looked lived in populated by people who weren't much different from the working stiffs I've known all my life, and then the face-hugger scene and I'm burrowed down in my seat completely transfixed and simultaneously terrified.

I've seen movies that immersed me so much I was drained afterward -- Apocalypse, Now & Raging Bull come to mind -- but Alien is the only movie I've seen in a theater that had that exact effect on me.

Randy M.

 

[BAYLOR]

I didn't have friends who wanted to see it, so I went by myself to an afternoon showing. Beautifully filmed, a space ship that looked lived in populated by people who weren't much different from the working stiffs I've known all my life, and then the face-hugger scene and I'm burrowed down in my seat completely transfixed and simultaneously terrified.

I've seen movies that immersed me so much I was drained afterward -- Apocalypse, Now & Raging Bull come to mind -- but Alien is the only movie I've seen in a theater that had that exact effect on me.

Randy M.

In prior science fiction eras , it would have been Scientists and Astronauts. In this case its Space Truckers and cargo handlers. Defiantly a break form the past.

 

[BAYLOR]

I loved the trailer for the 1979 with the Egg cracking open and the light blazing forth. You didn't really know what to expect from that trailer. It was well done.

As to first sequel , I remember being in the movie theater late 1985 and seeing the first trailer for James Cameron's film Aliens. Believe it or not , I hadn't even been aware that sequel had even been in production.

 

[Vladd67]

I loved the trailer for the 1979 with the Egg cracking open and the light blazing forth. You didn't really know what to expect from that trailer. It was well done.

As to first sequel , I remember being in the movie theater late 1985 and seeing the first trailer for James Cameron's film Aliens. Believe it or not , I hadn't even been aware that sequel had even been in production.

Ah those were the days, back when you could go and see a new film and know nothing about it.

 

[Peter V]

Whilst Alien is clearly SF (and very good SF in my opinion) it is also clearly horror because it is scary - or certainly was when this youngster saw it on its release at the cinema. At the time they were keeping actual images of the "alien" very much under wraps so we have no real idea of what was in store for us and that just added to the fantastic suspense. Regarding the question did Ridley Scott primarily set our to make an SF or horror film I think is answered by its tag line: In space no one can hear you scream - assuming Scott was involved in its marketing. I know he did not write those words but the film was very much marketed as a horror film. I do think however that the subsequent sequels and spin offs feel very much more SF-centric.

 

[BAYLOR]

Ah those were the days, back when you could go and see a new film and know nothing about it.

The age of the Internet put an end to all of that.

 

[BAYLOR]

Whilst Alien is clearly SF (and very good SF in my opinion) it is also clearly horror because it is scary - or certainly was when this youngster saw it on its release at the cinema. At the time they were keeping actual images of the "alien" very much under wraps so we have no real idea of what was in store for us and that just added to the fantastic suspense. Regarding the question did Ridley Scott primarily set our to make an SF or horror film I think is answered by its tag line: In space no one can hear you scream - assuming Scott was involved in its marketing. I know he did not write those words but the film was very much marketed as a horror film. I do think however that the subsequent sequels and spin offs feel very much more SF-centric.

And they were far more action oriented as well.

 

[BAYLOR]

And they are still trying to keep this franchise going.

 

[CupofJoe]

No idea, but I can't see it working without a lot of tweaking to the basic premise.
The trouble with Alien/Aliens as a franchise is that the Xenomorphs are the Bad Guys [just like the Daleks in Dr Who].
No matter what happens in the setup, the humans have to Win. Or at least Draw. That makes the Xenomorph a weak antagonist for me.
And I love the idea of the Alien and its universe [I'm really getting into the Alien RPG].
But I do think there would be more scope for a decent AvP film based on the first AvP comic I read. It was more like a range war between the local humans, the Predators, with the Xenomorphs messing thing up.

 

[Rodders]

The Terminator and Star Trek's Borg all suffer from the same issue.