Alien

So, where did this film come from and what is it part of? Well, I decided, since I did a fantasy watchthrough a few months back, that I should do another one for sci-fi films, and thus this happened. I also want to take the time to announce that I will be doing a group of reviews focusing on the Mega Man and Final Fantasy games, because I have been a fan of both of those series for a time, so keep an eye out for those as well.

So, Alien, what can I say about it that hasn't already been said? This film was and still is quite revolutionary. It was billed as a haunted house film in space, and wow, does it deliver. I have only seen this film once before and it has been years since then, so I went into this not remembering the subtleties that went into this story, and that is really where this film shines.

So, obviously, the plot focuses on a group of 'space truckers' who are the crew of the cargo ship Nostromo, and they encounter an odd signal from a nearby planet. When they go to investigate, one of the crew is attacked by a strange creature which attaches itself to his face and, well, it only gets worse from there. The story is a very slow burn, as it takes its time going from one point to the next, and it really works quite well in its favor, considering that this is a horror film.

The thing that impressed me most about this was that every single second of the film is filled with tension, even before they introduce the facehugger into the picture. The best way I can describe it is that you constantly feel something is just...wrong on the Nostromo, and that feeling doesn't really let up until the credits roll. Every second has you right there with the crew wondering just what the hell is happening on the ship, especially once the titular alien is out in full force, which just ramps up the tension even more.

I don't know if I can say much more beyond that, but the design, the acting, the atmosphere, the visuals, the discordant music, it all comes together to instill the most base sense of terror in the viewer. I don't usually get scared by horror films anymore and this one still managed to terrify me even though this was a rewatch. It's a brilliant film, and it is part of the science fiction pantheon for a very good reason.

Next time, we will journey to Los Angeles in the then-futuristic year of 2019, where a disgruntled cop has to hunt down a group of synthetic humans known as replicants. That's right, my next review is going to cover Blade Runner.

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