Alien is the movie Alfred Hitchcock could have directed. That would be if he worked for Hammer Studios. It has suspense and horror. The trait of horror was in the films by the master of suspense. Movies like Psycho and The Birds, are first and foremost horror films. Alien goes to the sub genre of sci-fi horror with great effect.
The movie is about a crew aboard The Nostromo. It is a space vessel that is pretty much an interstellar mining vessel. The crew, consisting of Dallas, (Tom Skerritt), Ripley, (Sigourney Weaver), Kane, (John Hurt), Lambert, (Veronica Cartwright), Brett, (Harry Dean Stanton), Ash, (Ian Holm), and Parker, (Yaphet Kotto), are just waking up from a deep sleep. They receive a transmission from a planetoid, and land. While there, they discover eggs. When Kane gets too close, one hatches and the hatchling attaches itself to his face. The survey party, asks to be let in to the ship. Ripley refuses saying they must be quarantined. Ash overrides her and lets them in. Despite their best efforts, the crew can’t get the face hugging alien off Kane. Later the face hugger dies and Kane appears to be fine. It is while the crew is enjoying the meal, that they find out that Kane is not altogether fine. In one of the most terrifying scenes in a movie, a baby alien bursts forth from his chest, killing him. It then looks around, and speeds away.
The crew naturally begins to hunt for the alien. The unfortunate part is, it can cleverly conceal itself in the large ship. A downside for the crew is that it’s blood is acid. It is also very fast. This makes for a terrifying time for the crew. The audience that watches it in a dark theater, is also part of the terror of the movie.
Alien was slow in coming to the screen. Ridley Scott was trying his best to convince the studio, Twentieth Century Fox, that the movie was worth the financial risk. They weren’t convinced, because science fiction films weren’t making money. The studio later relented, after their movie,Star Wars, broke all box office records. Ridley Scott’s storyboard’s for Alien, convinced the studio head’s to green light the project. It was a decision they would not regret. It was a hit. This enabled many sci-fi projects to be made.
The script was written by Dan O’Bannon and Ronald Shusett. It is as good as any horror film could be. Only Jaws can come close to the terror this story brings. It proves that good writing is the heart of a movie. They created a monster that like Dr. Frankenstein’s creation, allowed for successful sequels.
The driving force behind Alien, was Ridley Scott. He was like any Hollywood director, able to keep the cast going. Although actors know the script of a film, this was a little different. The actors knew about the chest bursting scene. They did not know how realistic, Scott was going to make it. When the scene was done, animal entrails were used, among other things. Most of the actors were shocked, particularly the ones who were the recipients of most of the entrails. Scott also gives good shots of the Nostomo in space. There are also the dark interior shots that give the feel of the unknown terror. It has been said that the chest burst scene made some in the audience physically ill. It may be or it might have been publicity for the film. Either way Scott succeeded in getting people to see this masterpiece of horror.
Ridley Scott is chiefly responsible for the success of this movie. One person who went on to Hollywood stardom, because of being cast by him was Sigourney Weaver. She made the character of Ripley something that wasn’t common in sci-fi films. A strong female lead. She takes control and confronts the alien. This was not common place. She does show fear, but knows what must be done to stay alive. Sigourney Weaver’s portrayal of Ripley, gives filmdom a heroine that is still talked about today.
The effects in Alien, are always talked about. The chest bursting scene or the eggs come to mind. One of the most important things in the film, was the design of the alien itself. The drawings were by H. R. Giger.The alien head was designed by Carlo Rambaldi. He won an academy award for best visual effects. He shared this award with H.R. Giger, Brian Johnson, Nick Alder and Dennis Ayling. This was his second award. He would later win another award for E.T. If not for the creative genius of Rambaldi and his fellows, the alien might not be as terrifying. The alien body itself, was brought to life by Bolaji Badejo. He was 7 ft. In height. This made him perfect as the alien suit was tailored for someone who was tall. This was his only film appearance, but it is memorable.
Alien is what many would call Hollywood legend. The director, Ridley Scott gets his big break. Sigourney Weaver goes on to star in several films, including Ghostbusters, a box office smash. She becomes like it or not tied to the role of Ripley, appearing in several sequels. Yaphet Kotto later was detective Al Giardello on the show Homicide: Life on the Street. He also wrote several episodes for it. The most enduring thing about Alien, is that it is a bulwark of horror and sci-fi. It continues to rank as one of the best and scariest films ever made.