Day 120: Aliens

"They're coming outta the walls. They're coming outta the goddamn walls. Let's book!"

I know, you're probably wondering why there is a review posted for “Aliens” before addressing the movie “Alien” first. Well, long story short, I found “Aliens” to be the better of the two and decided to jump right to the chase. That's not to discredit the first film of course, as I found “Alien” to be an enjoyable movie as well. On a personal level though, “Aliens” seemed to trump its predecessor. Known as “the Sequel King,” James Cameron may have been the biggest difference between both films. Although some see Cameron to a bit overrated as a director, he certainly did a job well done with with this movie  Taking over literally right where Ridley Scott left off with the first film, Cameron brings us back into the alien world for an unforgettable thriller.   

As mentioned, “Aliens” starts off right where the first came to a close. The lone survivor of the Nostromo, Ellen Ripley (Sigourney Weaver), is rescued by an overhaul team after drifting through stasis for a long 57 years. As you can expect, her story comes with large skepticism as an executive team finds it hard to believe she had an encounter with an alien species of the sort, especially with no empirical evidence to back her claims. Due to what appears to be her sanity slowly fading, the board executives of her company decide to take her flight license away.

It isn't much time after that she learns the same planet where she encountered the aliens, LV-426, is now the home to an experimental colony. As you can almost suspect, Ripley is later informed by Lieutenant Gormon and Carter Burke of the Colonial Marines that all contact has been lost with the colony. Told she will receive her license and company contract back, Burke persuades Ripley to attend along side him and the Marine Squad on a trip back to LV-426 to investigate. Though Ripley refuses multiple times to begin with, she finally gives in and goes on the extensive mission.

Now, before I even make an attempt to go deeper into the plot, I'm sure you can use context clues and basic movie instinct to conjure up what happens on their “rescue” mission. I mean, the title has the word “alien” in it for a reason and I'm guaranteeing you already figured that out. Think about it, what would a movie entitled “Aliens” be if it didn't have some creepy extraterrestrial life forms in it that kept you up all night wondering what that noise was that came from the direction of the closet?

So, what is it that sets this movie apart from the first. Well, I think the main difference that let me enjoy this movie more was the “big guns” that came to play for most of the film, and I mean that literally. A lot of times with movies, to much action and over played gun scenes can really give a film a corny feel. That definitely wasn't the case in “Aliens.” Although their was a large military presence in this film which was non existent in the first, it really made the movie a fun watch, aside from its suspenseful aura. Not only that, but the acting from Weaver and Bill Paxton were definitely above par. Not to mention the aliens did a nice job themselves. Yes, that was a joke.

Special effects also really helped the development of this movie. For a sci-fi movie that was done in 1986, the computerization and effects are superb. Not to mention the fact that the aliens looked extremely intense, as if they actually existed right before your eyes.

If you haven't seen either “Alien” or “Aliens” yet, I definitely suggest you watch from the immediate beginning, and don't just skip to “Aliens” solely because I chose to review it before the movie “Alien.” Both are definitely top notch and deserve your time. Overall, its a fun experience and I'm sure you will love it, along with a few bad dreams for the next night or so.