Tractor Thoughts: Episode 1 Alien

Enough with the countdowns for a while. Since it takes me several hours every week to mow my yard, it gives me ample amount of time to let my mind wonder on anything and everything.

This series is about me dissecting a movie, good or bad, and seeing why these movies work, or don't work, and how these films are unique to other films.

Since this is the first in a series, I hope, I might as well start with a classic.



Alien, and I guess the series too

What does anyone really need to say about this film. It is the best Sci-Fi horror movie ever made. While the premise, a monster attacking a group of people, is not completely original, the setting is the most horrifying aspect of the film. Everyone knows the tagline, "In Space No One Can Hear You Scream," but of you really look at it, this makes you think. What is scarier than having some monster, that you cannot easily kill, killing all of your friends? The answer is having this happen while you are in the middle of space with no contact to the outside at all. The monster is not the only enemy here though, there are even killer robots and Mother. The scariest part is that this film has a high level of uncertainty. The crew did not just stumble onto an unknown species, they stumbled onto a discovered species, but the previous founder was dead and a rotting carcass. I know Ridley is wanting to make a prequel, but I also like the lack of knowledge with what the hell that thing was.

This is the only movie that I have ever felt total isolation. That is why this movie is better, in my opinion, than Aliens.


Aliens

This one still is an amazing movie, but this one was not just a horror movie, but also an action movie. Since there were marines in this one, I didn't feel as isolated as the first. The movie follows the same blueprints, but is different enough to still hold its own. While this is one of my favorite movies, I prefer the first over the second.


Alien 3

While this one wasn't great, it was a decent way to close the trilogy. (more on that later) You sympathize with Ripley because of the huge battle she has been fighting with these creatures, she finds out she will give birth to the new creator of the same species she has been trying to get rid off. The movie ended perfectly for the end of a trilogy.


Alien Resurrection

Why did this movie have to be made. It was not a terrible film, but it was not that good either. The species had ended with Ripley and Ripley had died. So why did they need to clone Ripley just so they could recreate a species that ended over two hundred years ago.




So the series as a whole has aged very well. The first two are often regarded as classics and they are true on that account. These films started as horror movies, and for the most part has stayed true to that.

These films can still be just as enjoyable as when they were released.