So, there is an AvP Kickstarter going on. Take a gander, but that's not what this thread is about.
It turned out, in the course of that thread, at least one member of our esteemed number had yet to view any of the films that provided the source material. I have decided not to say who because I don't want to embarass RiTides; this thread is educational.
Please discuss the minutiae of the Aliens, Predator, and AvP films here. Recommended viewing order, etc. Although these are very old films please add spoiler tags to any major plot points because, again, at least one anonymous person has not seen these films.
You can skip AVP, AVP Requiem, Alien3 and Alien 4.
Also, I suggest you find the AVP comic omnibus somewhere.
I agree wholly with the above post, but also rather liked AVP:R while simultaneously seeing why everyone hated it.
Alfndrate wrote: RiTides, watch them all in our chronology and suffer through them like the rest of us
Another fair viewpoint.
Bull0 wrote: You can comfortably skip Alien Resurrection, and the AvP movies, but I wouldn't want to miss any of the others. Alien 3 gets unfair gak because of the plot, but it's a good film in its' own right - can't say the same for Resurrection which is just two hours of Joss Whedon comic book crap
Alien 3 is much maligned, but it has some good points as well. I especially liked Charles S. Dutton's role.
Ouze wrote: Please discuss the minutiae of the Aliens, Predator, and AvP films here. Recommended viewing order, etc. Although these are very old films please add spoiler tags to any major plot points because, again, at least one anonymous person has not seen these films.
Lol and much appreciated! The advice has been very helpful and I'm hoping to get initiated to the old movies this weekend!
And hey, I Have seen Prometheus! Which sort of counts... although I didn't really know there was an Aliens connection going in.
Ouze wrote: Please discuss the minutiae of the Aliens, Predator, and AvP films here. Recommended viewing order, etc. Although these are very old films please add spoiler tags to any major plot points because, again, at least one anonymous person has not seen these films.
Lol and much appreciated! The advice has been very helpful and I'm hoping to get initiated to the old movies this weekend!
And hey, I Have seen Prometheus! Which sort of counts... although I didn't really know there was an Aliens connection going in.
It's in the last scene... similar to this:
Well, there's many more, but it'd be very spoilerish to spill it now for you.
I have never seen Alien 3, probably due to my progenitors feeling that it was a gak movie and saved me the trouble (wtf were they thinking with Alien: Resurrection? ) and I've never seen Predators (though that Berserker Predator looks fething awesome!), and I haven't watched Prometheus because I don't feel like sitting there watching Michael Fassbender slowly turn me gay for him (and Guy Pierce is in that film, my sexuality it's doomed!), also didn't have the cash to see it.
With that being said, I have been pouring over the various Alien, Predator, and AvP wikis today reading everything I can. Which might be a better way to ingest these films instead of seeing them. But seriously, go watch Alien and Aliens, and anything with Predator in it (especially the Predator vs Batman fan made film)
I have decided not to say who because I don't want to embarass RiTide
Hahahahaha
But no I kid. Aliens was a great action adventure film with a splash of horror and Alien is also a good film... The rest of the Alien franchise not so much. Predator and Predator 2 were okay movies but I love the character. Predators was an enjoyable enough return to the them.
AvP is an idea I love. They are cool characters too pair off against one another. I liked the first film but it was far from spectacular. To me the greatest failure of AvP though was to set it in our day and age. A remake of Aliens with Predator thrown in as an additional antagonist would be a cool movie if done right. I liked the shooter that was released a couple years back, as wonky as its controls were.
If you can get the quadrilogy or special edition version from somewhere, after you see Aliens check out how they did the animations for the queen.
Also here is another video showing how an effect was done which you may want to safe for after as well.
Spoiler:
Also, make sure for Aliens, you catch the Special Edition. There were some scenes cut from older versions that I think are totally essential to the story (though I guess Mr. Cameron disagreed), and some that are less essential but still enormously influential, such as the Sentry Gun scene.
True Cool Story Bro: The first time I saw Aliens, it was a WPIX movie of the week. They cut some of it for violence so to pad it out they added in some other scenes that were dropped theatrically: the Sentry Guns, Burke briefing Ripley... what she missed, and the order that was relayed to some settlers. Anyway, it came out on VHS after that and those scenes were again gone. I would talk to people about it, and they had no idea wtf I was talking about. They existed on laserdisc, but who the hell owned a laserdisc player? No one I knew, the discs were $90.
Anyway, I never felt such vindication as I did when Aliens SE was finally released on DVD, and no, I was not crazy
Second Special Edition of Aliens. The extra scenes are fun. I understand why Cameron cut them (3 hours was long for the LotR films) but seeing them when you can relax in your own home is great.
Aliens was the first R rated film I ever saw and one of the earliest films I remember seeing (apparently I loved Bambi but I don't remember it XD). It and Starship Troopers inspired my love of Scifi.
The blog doesn't do a good job of arguing for killing Hicks and Newt; it just says that assuming everything else about Alien 3, having Hicks and Newt around wouldn't work. But the usual argument is that Alien 3 should have been a completely different film -- i.e., one that involved Hicks and Newt.
The 4 shot + 0 book collection is amazing, and far better than any of the AVP movies they wound up making.
Also, surprisingly excellent: the Predator vs Batman comic. It was super dark, and the mood was amazing. Unfortunately after that they kind of whored the franchise out, and not a single subsequent crossover comic I read was any good, this includes Predator vs Batman 2 and 3 (the last was truly odious).
IMO the Alien 4 is the "worst" but it still has some great scenes and there aren't any film franchises that are producing "great" films by their 4th incarnation.
Predator 2 is the weaker link out of the 3 films but it did a lot to expand the predator culture and most importantly it tied the two settings together. While it was kinda meh it added some cool stuff.
The AVP stuff I loved, I know a lot of people find issues with the films but I really liked the concepts they explored with the first AVP and the second was like a godzilla fight complete with an exploding power plant. They dialed down some of the graphic elements but I think that the pg-13 rating is more of a result of film standards getting more lax over time as opposed to having less violence. Had the films been out 5-10 years earlier it would have been a solid R rating.
Honestly I love them all and I think every flm has something worth watching for, don't let the die hard fans dissaude you from checking out a particular film.
Ouze wrote: The best part of this thread so far was someone not knowing was a laserdisc was.
Man I feel kinda old now
Shall we continue to make you feel old? Wrath of Khan and all of the Star Wars films are all older than me, and Fraggle Rock started and ended before I was born.
I LOVE the Alien series, and Predator being another favorite. I remember watching Alien and Aliens on a Halloween night when I was younger, and it's stuck with me ever since. As for their respective EU, I've read AvP: Prey, and it was really cool. The other one...I can't recall the name of, but it was very similar to Predators - humans were captured and taken to a "hunting world." It was...alright. I wouldn't recommend it to anyone, though . I also had a Batman vs. Predator graphic novel, but that went missing a loooong time ago
Alien 3 is a good film with a phenomenal cast, the unreleased cut (ox not dog) is even better as it takes time to explore the religion aspects.
It falls foul of not being what the 3rd movie in the series should have been, the Earth War, the fall of our home and civilization to the xenomorphs. It's a great shame they didn't go with it.
But for all of that, it's still pretty good.
4 was a very mixed bag for me, I loved Ripley as a new neutral evil hybrid, she really enjoyed acting it as well, the movements and such. But the weird organic (very little biomechanic) feel of the xenomorphs, coupled with the simply ridiculous hybrid baby monster and some really gakky acting from others makes it a cumbersome filler movie, very very low on horror, which was what I always wanted from these movies.
I may well like Predator 2 more than Predator, especially the robocop-esque biting satire on the decaying city and Busey at his best... They are both truly great movies though.
Predators... meh, filler again, the new predators were daft, uncool things that were purposely overpowered and didn't stick to the predator's rules, the thing that made the predator cool. You have no idea how much I was willing the 'original' predator in the movie climatic fight to win and knew that because we were introducing new monsters, that wasn't going to happen.
AVP...
They should have gone with the graphic novels with Machiko.
Also, did anyone else notice the second film was so damned dark you couldn't see what was happening half the time. Still, it had some allusions to what an earth war might have been like, so there's that. Again the 'new monster' was stupid, the predalien was a daft gimmick monster that broke the reproductive 'rules' for the aliens (also, dreadlocks, wtf?!?) and so annoyed me.
Alien and Aliens are among if not my actual favorite movies ever. Both amazing and both so different.
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whembly wrote: The Aliens graphic novels are top notch as well...
Some, not others.
Deadliest of the Species had phenomenal cover art, but the story it's self was utterly bonkers.
Also, did anyone else notice the second film was so damned dark you couldn't see what was happening half the time. Still, it had some allusions to what an earth war might have been like, so there's that. Again the 'new monster' was stupid, the predalien was a daft gimmick monster that broke the reproductive 'rules' for the aliens (also, dreadlocks, wtf?!?) and so annoyed me.
I was so pumped for that movie...and then my heart was broken because you could never tell what the frak was ACTUALLY going on in the fight scenes. So bummed.
Alien, Aliens and Aliens 3 were all great, though I can see why people didn't like the ending of Aliens 3.
Alien Resurrection was unfortunately played too camp.
Predator was great. Predator 2 was pretty good.
Aliens versus Predators, the one in the Antarctic, I liked a lot more than most people seemed to. I think there are two more AVP films after that, which are rather shonky and forgettable.
MeanGreenStompa wrote: Alien 3 is a good film with a phenomenal cast, the unreleased cut (ox not dog) is even better as it takes time to explore the religion aspects.
It falls foul of not being what the 3rd movie in the series should have been, the Earth War, the fall of our home and civilization to the xenomorphs. It's a great shame they didn't go with it.
Wait, what? The scenario for the third movie I've seen floating around webspace was nothing like what you've just described...?
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Kilkrazy wrote: Alien, Aliens and Aliens 3 were all great, though I can see why people didn't like the ending of Aliens 3.
Alien Resurrection was unfortunately played too camp.
Predator was great. Predator 2 was pretty good.
Aliens versus Predators, the one in the Antarctic, I liked a lot more than most people seemed to. I think there are two more AVP films after that, which are rather shonky and forgettable.
Haven't seen Prometheus.
The one in the Antartic had too many obvious flaws and holes in it for me to enjoy. I suggest doing a lot of drugs before watching it.
The one in that rural AMURICAH stereotypical town was fun in a campy way, but it reminded me way too much of an X-files episode. Like, a good 20% of the movie was absolutely identical.
The one about the people being abducted on another planet was just terrible. In quality, I'd compare it to the G.I. Joe movies, if I wasn't too ashamed to admit I've seen the G.I. Joe movies.
Prometheus, I didn't like much, but despite all its flaws, it was still a much better movie than all three AvPs.
I believe there was plans for 3 AVP movies the last of which was going to be set around the time of the first Alien film and involve: Aliens, Predators and Colonial Marines, which was meant to be the climatic part of the franchise, but ironically in their attempts to build up to it they made poor movies and thus didn't end up being able to make the final one with the actually good idea.
The first AVP has a certain charm about it and I would toats recomend seeing it.
AVP 2 is gak imo.
All the aliens movies are worth watching, they fall off a bit after the first one but remain entertaining in a way that defies more logic than the characters they are stocked with.
I still like Alien, Aliens, and Predator quite a bit. Alien3 and Prometheus both have some really interesting ideas and visuals but tend to be suggested reading more than primary texts, so to speak. I can live without the other movies, though admittedly I haven't seen Predators yet so no strong opinion there.
Some of the comics have been great, and I really enjoyed the original PC Alien vs. Predator. The SNES Alien3 game was fun as well.
THIS, as in AVP is my home turf, shortly after my enlightenment (finishing the sixth grade and becoming smart) I began watching these movies again, and again, and again.
so, alien resurrection was sad (read the book, the movie is gak balls) but had some great moments, particularly when colonel whatsit throws the grenade in the escape pod.
alien 3 was very good, but sad because newt and hicks died, lazy writing btw. aliens 2 (both book and movie) WAS AWESOME, for any of you who don't know just this bit of trivia: in the movie old-guy gets knocked out by crates, in the book it is an alien sting. alien was epic, to much half nude Ripley for my taste because apparently the director wanted to make sure you knew she was female and not a masculine transvestite. predator was good, love how it laughs at the end. predator 2 was terrible, but I liked the xenomorph skull in the temple/ship.
predators was EPIC, I loved how the Asian (sorry) guy died, in honourable combat. not to mention the mini-gun Russian. or the fact they included the girl from predator. the brute preds were cool, I like how all of them (but the chief one) were all very honourable, and then the chief one was an donkey-cave and got cablunked. I liked how they reversed the trick from the fist one. final thing about predators is that I wish I knew why the (we call them) lone-wolf pred was on the cross. AVP, was AMAZING my favourite scene was when the predator picked up the alien by the tail and flung it into a column. loved the queen design, loved how they distinguished the warriors from the drones so subtly, loved how the old dude (again sorry haven't watched it for ages) tried flaming the pred. loved how the pred was designed. and (as I am obsessed with anything that can turn invisible) I loved the pred in it in general.
AVP 2 wasn't as good. Exploding pregnant ladies is not really my thing. plus all of the characters were stupid (save the mum). I did love how they got an APC.
vid game time. I have only played the recent AVP game, and colonial marines (shudders). AVP gqame is awesome. I love anything stealth/invisible, so being the xenomoph was fething EPIC and being the marine was super creeps (beep... beep... beep, beep beebeepbeep, hiss, gunfire, creepy music, beep...)
and I am done, back to my cave.
Automatically Appended Next Post: ooh, forgot Prometheus. worm thingies = auto-creeps, xeno-vombies = ROAR, proto-xenos = cool, engineers = boring. I still don't understand why David poisoned doctor guy.
Ahtman wrote: admittedly I haven't seen Predators yet so no strong opinion there.
it's not bad; an unapologetic monster movie with no pretensions towards anything else.
The hybrid alien from AvP:R was easily the worst part of the film and they could have substantially improved the movie simply by utterly removing it and changing nothing else at all. I still liked the movie though; as MGS said it's the closest we got to Earth War.
To what extent are the various films Horror, SF or Action?
For example, in my view the original Alien is a horror film that is set in space but could as easily have been set on a submarine or on a sailing yacht and had substantially the same plot.
Alien 3 was mostly a good movie, and I agree with most of what he said, but the "The alien always wins" argument is just idiotic. Alien 3 undermined Aliens the same way Terminator 3 undermined Judgement Day, and that's nothing to be proud of.
Kilkrazy wrote: To what extent are the various films Horror, SF or Action?
For example, in my view the original Alien is a horror film that is set in space but could as easily have been set on a submarine or on a sailing yacht and had substantially the same plot.
I'd consider Alien to be essentially a haunted house movie, really.
Predators was okay, but I hate how the old predator was portrayed in it as a different race/subspecies and got beaten by the new one as if to say "Hey, these new predators are better than the old ones!"
And in AvP I hate how they made the predators into these enormous body builders. I think the Yautja should be strong *and* athletic so you can imagine them doing some climbing. They also changed the thermal vision. I didn't like that. Another thing I didn't like the ridiculously long overcompensating wrist blades.
Kilkrazy wrote: To what extent are the various films Horror, SF or Action?
For example, in my view the original Alien is a horror film that is set in space but could as easily have been set on a submarine or on a sailing yacht and had substantially the same plot.
I'd consider Alien to be essentially a haunted house movie, really.
In spaaaaaace!
Yes, a haunted house, a cabin in the woods, some enclosed space with an unseen menace stalking it. They are variations on the same theme.
AlexHolker wrote:Alien 3 was mostly a good movie, and I agree with most of what he said, but the "The alien always wins" argument is just idiotic. Alien 3 undermined Aliens the same way Terminator 3 undermined Judgement Day, and that's nothing to be proud of.
Part of the problem with Alien 3 is that the original screenplay for it is so, so much better than what they filmed. Once you know what Cameron wanted to do versus what actually ended up being done, it'll sour any affection you might've had for it.
Kilkrazy wrote:To what extent are the various films Horror, SF or Action?
Alien is a horror movie. Aliens is a Vietnam movie.
As to the watching order...Alien, Aliens. Stick Predator in wherever you like. Don't watch anything beyond those three, though.
The entirety of sci-fi horror peaked with Aliens. It's Khorne and everything else is Blood Pact with a flashlight.
Alien, Aliens and Predator are all excellent movies, very watchable. Alien 3 and Predator 2 are okay if you are really into the franchises. AvP and associated should die in a fire. I can't comment on Prometheus as I haven't seen it but as I understand it is only tangentially part of the franchise.
Predators was better than predator 2, but missed the charm of the original film, for me - I mean, the original was cheese, but it was a great Arnie film.
As far as the Alien series, the original was great, Aliens is my favourite, Alien 3 sucked, IMO, and Resurrection was... not so bad actually - I certainly preferred the characters in Resurrection to the Alien 3 cast.
For me, Ripley was ok in the first, bearable in the 2nd, and overacting painfully in the next 2.
Prometheus was Meh, impressive visuals, yes, and Fassbender was quite good in it - but it seemed a bit lacking.
As for the AvP's... never sat through a whole one, so I won't comment
I liked all 4 Alien films'. the first is a great horror film (As has previously been stated the setting can easily be changed so not really a pure sci-fi film) Aliens is really good and the contrast with the previous film works quite well. alien 3 & Resurrection do not stand up to their predecessors but it would be remarkable if that did happen (for any franchise with similar precedent as well) 3 Does well enough as the conclusion to the trilogy and gives Ripley some finalisation. And resurrection does have some good moments in it, as well as moving the setting to the post Weyland/Yutnai time and having second generation androids as well as Alien fighting Ron Perlman I really liked Prometheus as well. although many people didn't like it (And the original script for it was far superior) But it still laid down the foundations (hopefully they actually complete the trilogy) and helped them 'demystify' the engineers to an extent.
Hlaine Larkin mk2 wrote: But it still laid down the foundations (hopefully they actually complete the trilogy) and helped them 'demystify' the engineers to an extent.
I thought that was the worst part. The space jockey in the first alien was inhuman and creepy. He added a lot to the atmosphere of the film and really helped sell the derelict ship as something beyond human experience. Finding out that he was just System Lord Judge Holden in Giger pajamas really killed a lot of my fascination for the deeper background in alien. Also, his motivations for raging out to the point of ignoring the angry space vagina are so obscure in the film that I have to turn to fansplanations about humanity killing Space Jesus to make sense of the movie.
That's not to say there aren't other problems, like the stupid scientists who pet cobras or try to outrun rolling objects Benny Hill style or pilots in Trillion Dollar Spacecraft who leave the bridge unmanned during the most important mission in human history just so they can boink a robot, or the other robot's character swinging all over the place. Then there's the unsatisfying ADD approach to the thematic elements in the film. And the inconsistent "rules" where the black oil turns space worms into killer space cobras, sometimes turn people into zombies and sometimes turns them into space worm infested genestealers who father space squidginas that father generic non-Giger alien rip-offs that look worse than anything from Alien Resurrection.
But the C-section scene did elevate the material somewhat. It also payed lip service to the murals Giger painted for the original of the alien as some sort of fertility goddess from hell, so there is that.
Suggesting that Weyland Yutani were bought out by Walmart is the stupidest thing from that entire movie.
I enjoy Alien 3. It's a very well shot film. The plot is pretty solid IMHO and while Hicks & Newt dying isn't what I would have wanted I think it was a very interesting decision and surprised it was one the Fox backed. Considering the history of the movie I think Fincher did a great job.
This is the space station from Aliens, I would have liked to have seen something set there. Not quite Earth, but enough to see Wayland Yutani undone. I always figured they could have had their Bio-Wep division in there somewhere.
Prometheus has had a fair amount of cuts/edits to it, and the original story was heavily rewritten which I think speaks to the confusion. I like the concept of it, but the cast were terrible at portraying scientists. I have to say that some of the cut scenes do explain some of the actions. David was vastly under used in that movie. Having the Engineer rip his head off was a waste. In saying that the extended scene and apparent dialogue really does make that moment when he kills Wayland much more understandable.
This is quite an interesting video that critiques the film.
Hlaine Larkin mk2 wrote: But it still laid down the foundations (hopefully they actually complete the trilogy) and helped them 'demystify' the engineers to an extent.
That's not to say there aren't other problems, like the stupid scientists who pet cobras or try to outrun rolling objects Benny Hill style or pilots in Trillion Dollar Spacecraft who leave the bridge unmanned during the most important mission in human history just so they can boink a robot, or the other robot's character swinging all over the place. Then there's the unsatisfying ADD approach to the thematic elements in the film. And the inconsistent "rules" where the black oil turns space worms into killer space cobras, sometimes turn people into zombies and sometimes turns them into space worm infested genestealers who father space squidginas that father generic non-Giger alien rip-offs that look worse than anything from Alien Resurrection.
But the C-section scene did elevate the material somewhat. It also payed lip service to the murals Giger painted for the original of the alien as some sort of fertility goddess from hell, so there is that.
All in my opinion, of course.
Here is the original script Link It makes more sense and better justifies the scientists' actions throughout the film
as for the outrun objects thing I feel it's a natural instinct if you see something you identify as bad/harmful and about to kill you adrenaline either kicks in or doesn't (Fight or Flight response) and if you flee you're going to try and get as far away from the harmful item in question and not going to think rationally like if I run at 90 degrees instead of directly away I can get away from it
Watching Predators at this very moment - most enjoyable.
I liked pretty much all of the Predator / AVP / Aliens films. Even liked quite a bit of Resureaction - the two female leads are very good in it.
Really liked the 2nd AVP film - although they really should just make the first graphic novel into a film.
Found Promethius a wasted opportunity - the android was awesome - pretty much everything else was for me a let down - Charlize Theron wasted - I thought she was going to be a female version of Burke- or soemthing else enteriely - but she had nothing to do for the whole film. The "Aliens" elements were also very weak.
As an Alien(s) film nut here is my honest opinion.
Alien was excellent but very drawn out i.e. the last third of the film. Still for the first 2/3 it was awesome - As a horror space movie.
Aliens ramped it up a notch, again a really awesome 2/3 but it still sort of boiled downed to Ripley running around Vs.....(the) Xenomorph. That does not detract from either of them as classics. Just a tiny bit samey imho.
Alien 3, despite the "hate" it got upon release was very solid. I personally just wanted them to "expand the Galaxy/Company/Earth/Weland" angle, which they touched on but not enough.
AvP was watchable for the first time, decent premise, decent execution (until the end), decent production values.
AvP2 - pure f**king trainwreck -dont even acknowledge it tbh as a film. End of!
Predator 1 - imho, one of the best sci fi "horror" films ever made. If one leaves the "horror" element out of it, then the best sci fi (albeit - contemporary) films made.
Predator 2 - a few lovely homage to the original but just dosent gel as well - a touch cheesey in places but still good.
It sucked. Sucky acting, sucky story, huge swarms of pyramid Aliens fighting douchey Preds, the whole deal. Sucked. Sorry if you liked that sucky movie. You like a movie that sucks. We've all been there.
Hlaine Larkin mk2 wrote: But it still laid down the foundations (hopefully they actually complete the trilogy) and helped them 'demystify' the engineers to an extent.
That's not to say there aren't other problems, like the stupid scientists who pet cobras or try to outrun rolling objects Benny Hill style or pilots in Trillion Dollar Spacecraft who leave the bridge unmanned during the most important mission in human history just so they can boink a robot, or the other robot's character swinging all over the place. Then there's the unsatisfying ADD approach to the thematic elements in the film. And the inconsistent "rules" where the black oil turns space worms into killer space cobras, sometimes turn people into zombies and sometimes turns them into space worm infested genestealers who father space squidginas that father generic non-Giger alien rip-offs that look worse than anything from Alien Resurrection.
But the C-section scene did elevate the material somewhat. It also payed lip service to the murals Giger painted for the original of the alien as some sort of fertility goddess from hell, so there is that.
All in my opinion, of course.
Here is the original script Link It makes more sense and better justifies the scientists' actions throughout the film
as for the outrun objects thing I feel it's a natural instinct if you see something you identify as bad/harmful and about to kill you adrenaline either kicks in or doesn't (Fight or Flight response) and if you flee you're going to try and get as far away from the harmful item in question and not going to think rationally like if I run at 90 degrees instead of directly away I can get away from it
Is there a summary for the script? My experience with Prometheus has left me with no motivation to read 100+ pages of some kind of never-was version of the film. Like A:R, I find it easier and better simply to remove Prometheus from my personal Aliens head-canon.
Also, assuming I agreed with your premise about adrenaline making people turkey-stupid (which I don't), there are still three problems to consider:
1. She was heavily implied to be an android, which means adrenaline shouldn't affect her (although I suppose shoddy programming might).
2. The person next to her figured it out and made an excellent demonstration of how to avoid rolling objects. Even panicked people are able to follow or imitate people who seem confident in their ability to survive.
3. There are some things, no matter how realistic and well researched, that just don't work on film. This sub-Three Stooges buffoonery scene didn't work on film.
After the scientist who tried to pet the scary space cobra, I am just not willing to give the the film any benefit of a single doubt. The parsimonious explanation for every scene throughout the entire film was "that character is an idiot."
I think there were an enormous amount of problems with Prometheus, certainly as Bob said otherwise allegedly intelligent people acting completely stupidly; but I don't think I can penalize Charlize Theron's character for running away in a straight line. Yes, to a bystander it looks stupid and idiotic but people under complete and utter terror running for their lives don't always pick the best possible option.
Why do you guys think she is intended to maybe be a android? I thought that was dismissed with the throwaway joke by Captain Stringer Bell From The Wire.
It sucked. Sucky acting, sucky story, huge swarms of pyramid Aliens fighting douchey Preds, the whole deal. Sucked. Sorry if you liked that sucky movie. You like a movie that sucks. We've all been there.
Well you thought it did - we thought it was good - its all a matter of opinion..................it was certainly (IMO) better than Promethius and also far better than many "acclaimed" films.........
Thought both of the AvP films were fething terrible, with the second one slightly mitigated by the fact that they couldn't possibly make a film that was as bad as the first one and you started watching the movie with the expectations of someone driving on a wet Sunday afternoon to a prison visit.
Seriously, the only film I can remember being more disappointed with was Terminator 3, to the point where I very nearly walked out of the cinema (only my tight fisted-ness and the price of the entrance ticket stopped me ) That they had made the movie a 12A should have been the warning.
Thought the Dark Horse comics on the other hand were fantastic, as were the books - this one was probably the best for anyone who wants a read about what the AvP movie could have been like
MeanGreenStompa wrote: Alien 3 is a good film with a phenomenal cast, the unreleased cut (ox not dog) is even better as it takes time to explore the religion aspects.
It falls foul of not being what the 3rd movie in the series should have been, the Earth War, the fall of our home and civilization to the xenomorphs. It's a great shame they didn't go with it.
Definitely! I didn't think Alien 3 accomplished what Terminator 3 manager, which was to make a film bad enough that it damaged its classic predecessor, but it came damn close for me in regards to what the film wasn't. In the end we ultimately had a re-hash of Alien, a film it was never going to be able to match simply because it had been done before, and you were never going to feel the same way about a bunch of identical-looking cons as you did the crew of the Nostromo.
They said she wasn't a robot, but I'm not sure how having sex with the captain disproved that. If they are anything like the Replicants from Blade Runner they most certainly can.
Who runs Wayland now that Vickers is dead? Is this where they have the Yutani merger?
Interesting fact, one of Waylands body guards was going to be Roy Batty, or at least the same model as him. It's 2017 in Blade Runner so that's what, 60+ years before Prometheus?
Apparently Wayland was to acquire the Tyrell Corporation. The events of Blade Runner/Murder of Tyrell could also perhaps explain why Synthetics "blood" is changed to white from the red we see in Blade Runner.
Do Synethics in the Alien series have a life expectancy like they do in Blade Runner?
I think with the bungling of Prometheus I'd like to keep these two universes distinctly apart, as potentially cool as it could be.
Back more or less OT
One of the biggest questions that Prometheus raised was how was the Space Jockey in Alien absolutely gigantic compared to the Engineers in Prometheus? I'd think that the Space Jockey might have actually been a creature in and of itself, perhaps a bio-engineering race that created the Engineers who in turn destroyed them.
It sucked. Sucky acting, sucky story, huge swarms of pyramid Aliens fighting douchey Preds, the whole deal. Sucked. Sorry if you liked that sucky movie. You like a movie that sucks. We've all been there.
Nerds: we love to hate what we love (and those that love it).
whembly wrote: The Aliens graphic novels are top notch as well...
Supposedly Dark Horse is doing a massive reboot of Aliens and Predator. They are only going to use Prometheus, Alien, Aliens, Predator and Predators as their source material.
Medium of Death wrote: Interesting fact, one of Waylands body guards was going to be Roy Batty, or at least the same model as him. It's 2017 in Blade Runner so that's what, 60+ years before Prometheus?
Apparently Wayland was to acquire the Tyrell Corporation. The events of Blade Runner/Murder of Tyrell could also perhaps explain why Synthetics "blood" is changed to white from the red we see in Blade Runner.
Do Synethics in the Alien series have a life expectancy like they do in Blade Runner?
I think with the bungling of Prometheus I'd like to keep these two universes distinctly apart, as potentially cool as it could be.
Replicants and synthetics are completely different things. Replicants are genetically modified humans, synthetics are robots. If replicants were robots, the Voight-Kampff test wouldn't be necessary.
Medium of Death wrote: Interesting fact, one of Waylands body guards was going to be Roy Batty, or at least the same model as him. It's 2017 in Blade Runner so that's what, 60+ years before Prometheus?
Apparently Wayland was to acquire the Tyrell Corporation. The events of Blade Runner/Murder of Tyrell could also perhaps explain why Synthetics "blood" is changed to white from the red we see in Blade Runner.
Do Synethics in the Alien series have a life expectancy like they do in Blade Runner?
I think with the bungling of Prometheus I'd like to keep these two universes distinctly apart, as potentially cool as it could be.
Replicants and synthetics are completely different things. Replicants are genetically modified humans, synthetics are robots. If replicants were robots, the Voight-Kampff test wouldn't be necessary.
Replicants are bio-engineered. They are not modified humans. The are built and we know this because we see the man who grows/builds their eyes. They might not be made of metal but they are definitely not test tube babies. Even the animals, the owl and the snake, and suggested at being built in some way. Barcode within the snake scale.
They are different from Bishop/David/Ash, but I think I'd put them all under the label of Artificial Person myself...
Here's the opening credits that explain what a replicant is.
EDIT:
On another note, that god awful Colonial Marines game has brought Hicks back from the dead in a really stupid way. Apparently that is now official cannon... . The fact that they are back on LV426 after the Atmosphere Processor exploded is just perplexing, that any of the colony survived just seems incredulous. Ridiculous game, ridiculous plot, would happily ignore forever.
Alien, Aliens and Predator are all great movies. The rest vary from flawed to unremarkable to downright bad, and are only really remembered at all because they're related to those great movies above.
Alien 3 is the classic example of what happens when a studio starts writing big cheques to lots of very talented people to make a movie, without having any idea what movie they actually wanted. The end result is a lot of really interesting ideas that were left in the concept stage, and a final movie that touched on some interesting concepts, but never did so in a coherent or satisfying way (and that's just considering the eventual director's cut, the original theatrical release is an absolute mess).
Alien 4 is just gorgeous to look at, and in some places has some pretty neat ideas. The last 15 minutes are probably the worst 15 minutes in the Alien franchise, but if you ignore everything that happens after Ripley is taken down through the grate, it isn't actually that bad a movie... it just isn't an Alien movie. It's a bunch of Joss Whedon characters in a Jeunet film fighting Aliens, some good one liners and gorgeous production but the tone is off... and then there's that last 15 minutes.
Predator 2 - Predator in the City is unremarkable. All the same beats as the first movie, with some really odd sort of parody about crime gone wild thrown in. Just an odd movie, made all the more odd by trying to pretend Danny Glover is a fitting follow up the Schwarzenegger.
Alien vs Predator is just b-movie schlock. The only character that anyone can remember is only memorable because he's referencing an actual character he played in one of the good movies. Even the action scenes were weak. All up I think this is the weakest film out of the whole lot.
Alien vs Predator Requiem is pretty terrible. Nothing anyone does makes any sense, and the whole thing ended up feeling like one of those post-modern horror movies where you're supposed to cheer for whichever idiot teenage is going to get ganked next. And why the feth is it called Requiem? Did anyone involved even know what a requiem is, or did they just like the sound of the word?
Predators is cheesy fan fiction. The script was written more than a decade ago by Robert Rodriguez, and rejected. It got found and greenlit years later, because by then no-one really gave a gak anymore. Whatever the Alien and Predator franchises once represented as big, tent pole productions was gone, replaced by the idea of releasing mid-budget films as reliable cash cows. That said, I actually don't mind bits of Predators, the concept of the hunting planet is solid and the visuals are nice, but the human cast of genre cliches and the bigger Predators who’ve captured one of the original Predators is just too much. Adrien Brody followed the Danny Glover tradition of being really weirdly miscast in the main role.
Seaward wrote: Part of the problem with Alien 3 is that the original screenplay for it is so, so much better than what they filmed. Once you know what Cameron wanted to do versus what actually ended up being done, it'll sour any affection you might've had for it.
I don't believe Cameron was involved in pre-production for Alien 3. Gibson turned in that script that's now all over the internet, and producers rejected it in part because of the cost, but mostly because that was just the first round of the development hell Alien 3 would suffer though. Cameron was left watching from the side line, and giving some very unfavourable opinions of the film that finally ended up being made.
So, as I mentioned in the N&R thread, I discovered that these are all available for $3 on "Amazon Instant Video" to watch on an Xbox. Heck, that's cheaper than Blockbuster back in the day, and ready... well, instantly!
Just finished a marathon of back-to-back-to-back-to-back Alien, Aliens, Predator, Predators.
Have to say, the 2 Aliens movies absolutely blew me away. Amazing! The new elements in the second movie (the marines and the queen) were perfect next steps after the first. Best movies I have seen in a Really long time... and now I'll definitely be hoping we unlock the Queen in the AvP kickstarter!
The 2 Predator movies were good, and had some really cool moments. Definitely a lot "campier" than the Aliens movies. The hounds in Predators were one of my favorite parts, and the Predator laughing near the end of the first was an awesome moment
I think I might leave it at that for my viewing, since I really liked these and don't want to tarnish the experience with any of the bad ones. I also have to say, they were much less gory than I had anticipated, and also less scary. I'm not sure what I was anticipating really, but I was pleasantly surprised that the graphic moments felt appropriate and not overdone. Or maybe I'm just becoming desensitized to it and it doesn't affect me like it would have in the past! But either way... man oh man, that was cool
Also, who goes into deep freeze with a cigar in their hand, ready to pop it in as soon as they wake up? An absolute badass, that's who
Cheers for the suggestions guys, it really helped and I enjoyed these immensely!
sebster wrote: I don't believe Cameron was involved in pre-production for Alien 3. Gibson turned in that script that's now all over the internet, and producers rejected it in part because of the cost, but mostly because that was just the first round of the development hell Alien 3 would suffer though. Cameron was left watching from the side line, and giving some very unfavourable opinions of the film that finally ended up being made.
Was it indeed Gibson? That explains why I like it, I suppose.
Also, who goes into deep freeze with a cigar in their hand, ready to pop it in as soon as they wake up? An absolute badass, that's who
I'm guessing you've got a certain add-on already calculated in your AVP pledge then! Glad to hear you liked them as they're mostly (except for Predators -plural) 70's and 80's classics. If you're up for another smaller marathon, I'd suggest Predator 2 and Aliens 3. They both have some good scenes and expand on the originals even if they're overall inferior (but still solid movies) to the rather excellent prior entries. Three stars is still three stars but it's still worse obviously than four star originals.
I'm surprised people don't like alien 3 - I thought it was more more in keeping with the horror aspect of the first film, rather than all the 'marksmenship' of the second second film. Newt was also a wtf moment for me in aliens. Tiny girl, trapped in with loads of aliens against all odds survives... She should've been munched faster than a hangover fryup. I liked Brian Glover in alien 3. "There is no dragon" - almost while he's being stolen into the roof by the alien....
I love Predator, I think Predator 2 is as good as the first. Predators was a good film, but I was expecting a modern action and thats what I got. Lawrence Fishburn was cool though. I wasn't so keen on avp. How is the woman in that film is able to out hunt the predators? Mind you, the first Alien they meet kills two predators - there must be a massve skill gap between being sent on your first hunt and becoming an 'Elite'... I would've really enjoyed the second film...but they filmed it in the dark. With the Pred and the Predalien having VERY similar silhouettes , I couldn't tell who was winning....
I'm surprised people don't like alien 3 - I thought it was more more in keeping with the horror aspect of the first film, rather than all the 'marksmenship' of the second second film. Newt was also a wtf moment for me in aliens.
Tiny girl, trapped in with loads of aliens against all odds survives...
She should've been munched faster than a hangover fryup. I liked Brian Glover in alien 3. "There is no dragon" - almost while he's being stolen into the roof by the alien....
I love Predator, I think Predator 2 is as good as the first. Predators was a good film, but I was expecting a modern action and thats what I got.
Lawrence Fishburn was cool though.
I wasn't so keen on avp. How is the woman in that film is able to out hunt the predators?
Mind you, the first Alien they meet kills two predators - there must be a missve gap between being sent on your first hunt and becoming an 'Elite'...
I would've really enjoyed the second film...but they filmed it in the dark. With the Pred and the Predalien having VERY similar silouhettes, I couldn't tell who was winning....
Iirc the young-bloods are like 15 year olds. The champion would have been 17. The elites are probs 20-40 after that it's elder, than dead.
Was it indeed Gibson? That explains why I like it, I suppose.
Gibson did indeed do a screenplay treatment for Alien3. It would have been a good movie. Expensive, though. A few elements in the final finished version can trace ancestry with his work, but overall, Alien3 was a movie made by committee - which is why it isn't liked much. IT was all over the place like a dog's breakfast. Elements from different writer's drafts and treatments thrown in willy-nilly.
I was always interested in the "Just another bug hunt" line that Hudson comes out with when they are being briefed. Do you think the marines had encountered Alien (not Xenomorph) life before?
Take it we still haven't had any explanation as to the size difference of the Space Jockey and the Engineers?
The "just another bug hunt" line was actually improv, because starship troopers was a required text for the cast of Aliens, it obviously stuck in his mind.
Also, the banter about Vasquez only signing up for the mission because she saw "alien" and thought it meant "illegal alien" (ie immigrant) is true too - the actress playing Vasquez actually did that!
Medium of Death wrote: I was always interested in the "Just another bug hunt" line that Hudson comes out with when they are being briefed. Do you think the marines had encountered Alien (not Xenomorph) life before?
It's implied, but never stated explicitly that I am aware of. The Aliens: Colonial Marine Technical Manual
makes reference to them being "pest control"
Shows nose art - "Bugstompers: we endanger species
makes a reference to "new bugs in the Zeta 2 system" - by these they explicitly mean xenomorphs since they reference LV426, but there clearly were some old bugs too
References that on many planets someone has introduced rabbits, and that no matter how vicious the alien predators (snicker) are, the rabbits outbreed them.
So, depends on how canon that is, but I believe it is.
There is also, obviously, the "Arcturian" thing as referenced in the film.
Perhaps because, as you said, Starship Troopers was required reading that they really mean bugs in that sense, or just perhaps mindless but violent insect like organisms. Kind of would explain why they get their asses kicked by the Xenomorph, hyper violent and intelligent.
Hell maybe Pandora is in the same Universe, perhaps Weyland Yutani would fare better than the RDA at exploiting the planet...
Spoiler:
One of the other things that intrigues me would be seeing what the equivalent armed forces would be like for the other nations. I could imagine Britain & Japan being heavily influenced or directly controlled by Weyland Yutani having them as leverage beyond their own mercanary/android forces.
I always felt that after the Lv-426 incident in Aliens that the USCM would have been very interested to find out what happened to their men. Perhaps Weyland have control over them, but that's not implied in the film as even Gorman turns out to be a good guy, even if he is a bit under-qualified. It's only Burke that's the company man and he isn't part of the USCM.
Medium of Death wrote: I was always interested in the "Just another bug hunt" line that Hudson comes out with when they are being briefed. Do you think the marines had encountered Alien (not Xenomorph) life before?
There is also, obviously, the "Arcturian" thing as referenced in the film.
Is this the supposed Engineer skeleton shown above you're referring to, or something else? Maybe I missed a different reference in the Alien / Aliens films?
The Arcturian thing is the guys in the mess hall in Aliens referring to having sex with what is presumed to be an alien species of apparently androgynous appearance.
Alfndrate wrote:TIL: The Aliens universe is connected to the Blade Runner universe. I believe this counts as a good day.
I...don't know how I feel about it. I mean, Prometheus was neat, but kind of a disappointment at the same time...I hope that if they stick to the combined universes, that they keep it to a minimum.
Ouze wrote:Xenomoph'd Na'vi, awesome.
Yeah, I'd have to agree. I wonder if they have other Xenomorph mash-ups...Time to Google!
Alfndrate wrote:TIL: The Aliens universe is connected to the Blade Runner universe. I believe this counts as a good day.
I...don't know how I feel about it. I mean, Prometheus was neat, but kind of a disappointment at the same time...I hope that if they stick to the combined universes, that they keep it to a minimum.
Ouze wrote:Xenomoph'd Na'vi, awesome.
Yeah, I'd have to agree. I wonder if they have other Xenomorph mash-ups...Time to Google!
I mean I think it's cool that there are all these connections, but if they ham-fist the connection then it's going to suck.
Couldn't find any more Xenomorph'd creatures, so here is this sketch.
While I love the final design of the Sulaco, I'm a massive fan of James Cameron's original sketch. I'd imagine that it could easily be a Weyland Yutani merc ship, or Three World Empire (British/Japanese/Other) warship
I'm gonna throw my hat in with everyone who said Alien, Aliens, and Predator are required viewing and ignore everything else unless you REALLY love the respective franchise. Alien is more dear to my heart because everything about the xenomorphs is just so cool. I mean, they kill you AT BIRTH. They don't need to mess with guns or cloaking technology because they're biologically designed to BE a weapon, and even when you kill one you probably still end up dying because of all that awesome acid blood.
Not that Predators are chumps or anything, I just really love xenomorphs.
creeping-deth87 wrote: I'm gonna throw my hat in with everyone who said Alien, Aliens, and Predator are required viewing and ignore everything else unless you REALLY love the respective franchise.
Aliens 3 and Predator 2 are... passable, if you love the franchises. The AVP movies however should NOT be seen if you're a fan of either franchise, as they only lead to disappointment.
I completely forgot to weigh in on the AVP thing. Neither are good, but the first one was actually watchable in my opinion... sort of. Y'know, if you can get behind the idea that a human scientist is somehow able to outlive 2 predators in a twisted death maze. Yeah... maybe it WASN'T watchable after all...
creeping-deth87 wrote: I completely forgot to weigh in on the AVP thing. Neither are good, but the first one was actually watchable in my opinion... sort of. Y'know, if you can get behind the idea that a human scientist is somehow able to outlive 2 predators in a twisted death maze. Yeah... maybe it WASN'T watchable after all...
It's in the "This movie sucks, but I watch it whenever it's on anyway" category.
Aliens 3 in itself is not a bad movie, i saw aliens 3 in the movie theater and loving aliens.
the anxiety and relief to finally see Newt, Ripley and Hicks made it out of the movie only to see them get killed in the first 5 minutes of aliens 3, just killed the movie for me, i was fuming for the rest of the movie.
They could have handled it differently, Arresting ripley for destroying weyland property or something. The idea that the studio greenlighted that story just baffles me.
whembly wrote: The Aliens graphic novels are top notch as well...
Supposedly Dark Horse is doing a massive reboot of Aliens and Predator. They are only going to use Prometheus, Alien, Aliens, Predator and Predators as their source material.
Gaaaaahhhhhhhhhh!
Prometheus doesn't really fit with the other material at all! Even AVP did ancient aliens better--and this is not praise for AVP!
And only a robit would fall for the line "you must be a robit if you don't have sex with me." Silly robits.
(If she's not a robot, then her character adds even less to the movie.)
Aaahh, one of my favourite lines. I am a big fan of Alien, and i have to say that im in with those whom have recommended that to watch Alien and Aliens. I havnt seen 3 or resurrection (im still trying to get round to aquirring them) so i cant comment. AvP is a good film, with the main character only surviving out of sheer luck (others get taken/the maze changes in time and she is on the right side) and you can really feel the suspense and fear as she desperately tries to escape. AvP:R is.... well, shall i just say i revoke its right to exist. Initially it starts out well... If you disregard the fact that the Predators failed to scan for incubating embryos in their fallen, right after fighting Xenomorphs. But after the crash things go really wrong. Only one Predator is dispatched to respond to the possibly vast outbreak, and then when he explodes the wreck it goes un-noticed. Then there is the lack of a Dog Xenomorph, despite one being facefethed by a facehugger. There is also the lack of any rational actions, beyond the mother, by any of the characters. I mean, the hospital is obviously over run, so you attempt to run through it in order to escape. Then there are the Xenomorph hordes. I mean, from 3-5 facehuggers there apparently comes thousands of Xenomorphs. I mean, sure the Predalien queen is implanting but still, the numbers dont add up. And then there is..... well, this scene:
Followed by the crappy Predator and Predalien stabbing each other and screaming in each others faces as the nuke detonates scene. And as a last middle finger, the helicopter crashes, after being caught in the blast AND NOONE IS HURT!. I MEAN, SURE, YOU CAN CRASH FROM 500ft AND WALK AWAY FINE. AND WHO THE HELL HAD TRAINING WITH HELICOPTERS> THERE NOT THAT EASY TO FLY, YET APPARENTLY ANY OLD JOCK CAN PILOT ONE NOW! [/rant] And finally: There are troops-yes military troops, informed of the situation-within a couple of miles of the blast. Of the nuclear blast. Make of it what you will.
Alien 3 is much better if you watch the extended edition because it covers so much more than the original version.
However that doesn't stop the fact that A3 spends most of its time up its own butt and not actually focusing on the story or where it is going. It is basically a remake of alien with some bits of aliens thrown in. The fact that a chestburster ends up on the original ship is completely and utterly impossible.
But when it isn't having plot problems, Alien 3 isn't all that bad. Good acting for the most part.
Alfndrate wrote: I mean I think it's cool that there are all these connections, but if they ham-fist the connection then it's going to suck.
Yeah, that's it exactly. Seeing that Alien skull on the wall of the ship in Predators II was one of the best nerd moments of my childhood. Because it was just a small detail, hidden in the background, that implied a much bigger world just beyond that movie.
On the other hand, all the stuff that exists just to make reference back to things developed in other movies ends up making the whole thing feel small. Making constant references to Weyland or Yutani in the various prequel movies actually stripped away a greater meaning of the aliens, they no longer represented the danger posed by man's scientific curiousity outstripping it's wisdom, now they were just the on-going, constantly disastrous research project of one company.
Alfndrate wrote: I mean I think it's cool that there are all these connections, but if they ham-fist the connection then it's going to suck.
Yeah, that's it exactly. Seeing that Alien skull on the wall of the ship in Predators II was one of the best nerd moments of my childhood. Because it was just a small detail, hidden in the background, that implied a much bigger world just beyond that movie.
On the other hand, all the stuff that exists just to make reference back to things developed in other movies ends up making the whole thing feel small. Making constant references to Weyland or Yutani in the various prequel movies actually stripped away a greater meaning of the aliens, they no longer represented the danger posed by man's scientific curiousity outstripping it's wisdom, now they were just the on-going, constantly disastrous research project of one company.
Which is why I am glad DArk Horse is ignoring AvP I & II.
Alien 3 certainly isn’t a terrible film, it has some wonderful chase sequences and a great deal of tension.
The one thing that really annoyed me however was that the whole premise of the Alien and it’s life cycle as established in the previous two films was thrown away in Alien 3.
In the previous films the ‘drone’ Aliens endeavor take their human victims alive and incapacitates them for impregnation. Even in the first Alien, where no Queen/eggs are present on the Nostromo, the Alien still places Dallas and Brett in cocoons. Ripley finds them in this state in the Directors cut. It's also stated that they found no blood and no body in the air ducts where Dallas was when the Alien grabbed him. The Alien 3 drone however just goes on a killing spree.
It even says the following in the scene where Ripley explains the Alien to the Superintendent:
Andrews: Let me see if I have this correct, Lieutenant - it's an 8-foot creature of some kind with acid for blood, and it arrived on your spaceship. It kills on sight, and is generally unpleasant. And of course, you expect me accept all this on your word.
The Alien has never ‘killed on sight’ that’s not how they work. I don’t know if this was a conscious change or just lazy writing.
I've gotten to wondering why the crew of the Prometheus never picked up the distress signal on LV-426 if they were in the same system. It seems odd that they would ignore it considering they went out there looking for life.
Medium of Death wrote: I've gotten to wondering why the crew of the Prometheus never picked up the distress signal on LV-426 if they were in the same system. It seems odd that they would ignore it considering they went out there looking for life.
That assumes the signal was broadcasting at that time (It could be because of events in the planned sequels to Prometheus)
Medium of Death wrote: I've gotten to wondering why the crew of the Prometheus never picked up the distress signal on LV-426 if they were in the same system. It seems odd that they would ignore it considering they went out there looking for life.
Well, the way i look at it is that they where the ones whom broadcasted the signal. It makes sense, they realised the danger and in order to prevent the Xenomorphs being inadvertantly returned to earth they broadcasted a warning signal. However as this is pre-alien times, their tech was lower. Hence why, several centuries later, the crew of the Nostramo picked up the signal but couldnt fully understand it till it was translated. It was to primitive.
The space jockey is "fossilised" as Dallas describes it, more likely mummified. This suggests that it has been dead for a long time, Prometheus is only set 30 years before Alien. I would argue the ship Prometheus is more advanced than the Nostromo. The Nostromo is a "deep space towing vessel" that may well have been built during the time of Prometheus. The Prometheus was designed for exploring, they were seeking out life, you could easily imagine them having some kind of facility to pic up rogue signals.
Also the events of Prometheus took place on a different Moon, LV-223, so how could the have set the crew have set the distress signal?
Medium of Death wrote: The space jockey is "fossilised" as Dallas describes it, more likely mummified. This suggests that it has been dead for a long time, Prometheus is only set 30 years before Alien. I would argue the ship Prometheus is more advanced than the Nostromo. The Nostromo is a "deep space towing vessel" that may well have been built during the time of Prometheus. The Prometheus was designed for exploring, they were seeking out life, you could easily imagine them having some kind of facility to pic up rogue signals.
Also the events of Prometheus took place on a different Moon, LV-223, so how could the have set the crew have set the distress signal?
What.... But.... Then what happened to the human ship, and how come the advert shows the space jockey climbing into the turret gun? It must be set a millenia before Alien, because the Jockey was fossilised when they found him. How does any of this make sense? Ive ordered a copy, i have to watch it myself. Maybe then i will understand.
Medium of Death wrote: The space jockey is "fossilised" as Dallas describes it, more likely mummified. This suggests that it has been dead for a long time, Prometheus is only set 30 years before Alien. I would argue the ship Prometheus is more advanced than the Nostromo. The Nostromo is a "deep space towing vessel" that may well have been built during the time of Prometheus. The Prometheus was designed for exploring, they were seeking out life, you could easily imagine them having some kind of facility to pic up rogue signals.
Also the events of Prometheus took place on a different Moon, LV-223, so how could the have set the crew have set the distress signal?
What.... But.... Then what happened to the human ship, and how come the advert shows the space jockey climbing into the turret gun? It must be set a millenia before Alien, because the Jockey was fossilised when they found him. How does any of this make sense? Ive ordered a copy, i have to watch it myself. Maybe then i will understand.
You're assuming that it's the same Space Jockey, it could easily be a different one, all we found out that the xenomorph is a form of biological weapon designed against humans created by the Engineers
Medium of Death wrote: The space jockey is "fossilised" as Dallas describes it, more likely mummified. This suggests that it has been dead for a long time, Prometheus is only set 30 years before Alien. I would argue the ship Prometheus is more advanced than the Nostromo. The Nostromo is a "deep space towing vessel" that may well have been built during the time of Prometheus. The Prometheus was designed for exploring, they were seeking out life, you could easily imagine them having some kind of facility to pic up rogue signals.
Also the events of Prometheus took place on a different Moon, LV-223, so how could the have set the crew have set the distress signal?
What.... But.... Then what happened to the human ship, and how come the advert shows the space jockey climbing into the turret gun? It must be set a millenia before Alien, because the Jockey was fossilised when they found him. How does any of this make sense? Ive ordered a copy, i have to watch it myself. Maybe then i will understand.
You're assuming that it's the same Space Jockey, it could easily be a different one, all we found out that the xenomorph is a form of biological weapon designed against humans created by the Engineers
Wait, but didnt they create humans at the start of the movie?
I own a number of the Kamen Rider, Super Sentai, and Sailor Moon Figuarts figures from Tamashii Nations, they are all fantastic. Lots of bits/optional pieces, tons of poseability, fantastic detail/paint jobs. The price tag is a little high, but I feel they are worth it.
MeanGreenStompa wrote: Indulged my nostalgia and rewatched Leviathan last night. One of the host of Alien 'homages' that cropped up in the 80s...
Wasn't as bad as I had been expecting. Also, where else would you find Robocop, Evil-Lyn and Winston from Ghostbusters all at once!
Had a look at the trailer, looks like a cross between Alien, The Thing and The Abyss... While I do like those movies (the first two more than the last), I think i'll give that a miss!
I think I might have to go an watch "THE THING" now. Such an excellent movie. Another great example of the sci-fi horror genre, of which there are too few.
Totally agree. the scene where McReady (Kurt Russell) has the 'suspects' tied down to chairs, and testing their blood with the hot wire, is IMO one of the tensest, most hand-in-mouth moments ever put to screen. The ways it plays with the tension is just a masterful piece of horror.
And, that ending!
I haven't watched the remake because I know there is no way it can match that movie.
Pacific wrote: Totally agree. the scene where McReady (Kurt Russell) has the 'suspects' tied down to chairs, and testing their blood with the hot wire, is IMO one of the tensest, most hand-in-mouth moments ever put to screen. The ways it plays with the tension is just a masterful piece of horror.
And, that ending!
I haven't watched the remake because I know there is no way it can match that movie.
Honestly, as a huge fan of The Thing, the remake did a really good job. Check it out.
OK, I'll hesitantly say I will try and see it, on the basis of a recommendation from a fellow fan of the the Kurt Russell movie.
But, if the film does a 'Terminator 3' (by being bad enough to damage its predecessor) when I die my ghost will haunt you for the remainder of your days!
Pacific wrote: OK, I'll hesitantly say I will try and see it, on the basis of a recommendation from a fellow fan of the the Kurt Russell movie.
But, if the film does a 'Terminator 3' (by being bad enough to damage its predecessor) when I die my ghost will haunt you for the remainder of your days!
I feel confident. You probably won't like it as much as the original, but it's definitely worth watching.
I had considered watching it (The Prequel) and came across a scene where they were going to explain the crashing ship. It was basically an Alien Race that took samples of various lifeforms. The Thing was one of those lifeforms and killed the crew. This element was cut sadly and could have made the film worthwhile. Having looked at the reviews of the prequel I would suggest giving it a miss as it forgets to tie in the the John Carpenter one properly and is essentially just a bad reshoot. Avoid like the plague.
Medium of Death wrote: I had considered watching it (The Prequel) and came across a scene where they were going to explain the crashing ship. It was basically an Alien Race that took samples of various lifeforms. The Thing was one of those lifeforms and killed the crew. This element was cut sadly and could have made the film worthwhile. Having looked at the reviews of the prequel I would suggest giving it a miss as it forgets to tie in the the John Carpenter one properly and is essentially just a bad reshoot. Avoid like the plague.
Raising the old first hand knowledge flag - it is similar to The Thing, in that it takes place in an Antarctic station while an alien life form gradually kills/replaces the residents, but calling it 'essentially just a bad reshoot' is silly. How different could they have made it and still had it fit into the continuum established in the original? I would seriously recommend watching it, as at least then if you didn't like it you would be able to attack it from a position of strength.
Medium of Death wrote: I had considered watching it (The Prequel) and came across a scene where they were going to explain the crashing ship. It was basically an Alien Race that took samples of various lifeforms. The Thing was one of those lifeforms and killed the crew. This element was cut sadly and could have made the film worthwhile. Having looked at the reviews of the prequel I would suggest giving it a miss as it forgets to tie in the the John Carpenter one properly and is essentially just a bad reshoot. Avoid like the plague.
Raising the old first hand knowledge flag - it is similar to The Thing, in that it takes place in an Antarctic station while an alien life form gradually kills/replaces the residents, but calling it 'essentially just a bad reshoot' is silly. How different could they have made it and still had it fit into the continuum established in the original? I would seriously recommend watching it, as at least then if you didn't like it you would be able to attack it from a position of strength.
Fine, I'm curious enough to watch it. If I can get it relatively cheaply I'll pick it up at the weekend and I'll get back to you!
I really don't mind Resurrection. I like the premise of the military doing cross species manipulation. I also liked the new and improved Ripley...definitely a more aggressive/predatory nature in her.
That, and I'm a sucker for Ron Perlman.
3 was...ok...not great...definitely the least of all the movies.
I always thought one of the cool things about The Thing was that they didn't really explain about the ship, where it had come from, what it was doing or what happened (other than speculation) - the sense of mystery is always so much stronger, and you could arguably say the same thing about Alien when the crew of the Nostromo first enter the ship and see the space jockey - it's a great moment! Opposite to this, is Jodie Foster crossing the galaxy to meet alien life for the first time and.. it's her dad.. !
In the spirit of all things Aliens at the moment, have just ordered the Nintendo DS game, Aliens: Infestation. Has anyone else played it?
I suppose that's why "THE THING" is still a great mystery, there is so much left unsolved.
Just watched it there and it's fantastic, despite having watched it several times it's hard to pin down who turns at which point.
Interestingly the director commentary towards the end basically hints at the mystery. Kurt Russell and John Carpentor speculate whether you know that you've become a "thing", whether the "thing" knows who else is infected and who if any of either men left at the end are infected.
Medium of Death wrote: I suppose that's why "THE THING" is still a great mystery, there is so much left unsolved.
Just watched it there and it's fantastic, despite having watched it several times it's hard to pin down who turns at which point.
Interestingly the director commentary towards the end basically hints at the mystery. Kurt Russell and John Carpentor speculate whether you know that you've become a "thing", whether the "thing" knows who else is infected and who if any of either men left at the end are infected.
Which is why it is one of about 3 movies that ever actually scared me beyond a 'loud noises you jump' level.
Spoilering a comment regarding events in Aliens 3, in case you haven't seen it (I haven't):
Spoiler:
Jehan-reznor wrote: Aliens 3 in itself is not a bad movie, i saw aliens 3 in the movie theater and loving aliens.
the anxiety and relief to finally see Newt, Ripley and Hicks made it out of the movie only to see them get killed in the first 5 minutes of aliens 3, just killed the movie for me, i was fuming for the rest of the movie.
They could have handled it differently, Arresting ripley for destroying weyland property or something. The idea that the studio greenlighted that story just baffles me.
Wait, what? Not sure I want to watch it now . I was really happy with Alien and Aliens, much more so than the Predator movies, so I don't want to ruin it...
I did enjoy Prometheus, though, and people don't seem to love that. But you're saying this about Newt, really? Hmm....
That spoilered point ends up being very important to the theme of the movie. If you watch Alien 3, please be sure to watch the 2010 version of the Assembly Cut.
Manchu wrote: If you watch Alien 3, please be sure to watch the 2010 version of the Assembly Cut.
To distinguish further, this is the version sometimes known as Alien 3 Special Edition - runtime 2:24 - not the theatrical 1:54 version.
Both versions are on the Quadrilogy, which - this is really weird - often shows up on Amazon.co.uk for about 12 bucks USD and free shipping if you have Amazon Prime. I got this and although it obviously took about 3 weeks to arrive, this version is not region locked and plays back fine in the US. Thanks, Slickdeals!
What you linked ain't the Quadrilogy; that's the Anthology. (Here it is.) This is actually an important disctintion for Alien 3 because the Quadrilogy Assembly Cut has such poor audio in places that it needed to be re-recorded, which is what you get in the Anthology.
Medium of Death wrote: I suppose that's why "THE THING" is still a great mystery, there is so much left unsolved.
Just watched it there and it's fantastic, despite having watched it several times it's hard to pin down who turns at which point.
Interestingly the director commentary towards the end basically hints at the mystery. Kurt Russell and John Carpentor speculate whether you know that you've become a "thing", whether the "thing" knows who else is infected and who if any of either men left at the end are infected.
Which is why it is one of about 3 movies that ever actually scared me beyond a 'loud noises you jump' level.
watched snakes on a plane last night. I am ashamed to say I jumped, BUT ONLY ONCE.
Pacific wrote: Jodie Foster crossing the galaxy to meet alien life for the first time and.. it's her dad.. !
the feth you talking 'bout?
Calm down mate. He's talking about Contact, the film. Basically the aliens in that just take on the form that Jodie Fosters character finds the most... familiar? I've not watched it in years and don't plan to anytime soon.
So I was randomly reading this wiki page, and there was a snippet that was interesting.
Government
There is virtually no indication of government in any of the films, the Yautja are portrayed as operating in groups with clear leaders but no indication of how they the society functions is given. In Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem when a predator ship crashed it was shown there was a quick response to the situation, indicating a governing force that monitors the hunts.
I guess this means Gary Busey's plan to capture one in Predator 2 was probably doomed regardless of how the capture itself went.
On the other hand.. should anything in that film be regarded as 'canon' ?
Calm down mate. He's talking about Contact, the film. Basically the aliens in that just take on the form that Jodie Fosters character finds the most... familiar? I've not watched it in years and don't plan to anytime soon.
Yup that's the one! Was trying to make a point about de-mystifying things, and that a lot of the time its a disappointment.
Just got this game the other day for the Nintendo DS
All in all, a fun little game and would thoroughly recommend it. Gameplay wise its a side on shooter, with light puzzle and item-finding elements. Graphics/presentation are very cool, especially the character models. One cool element is that if one of your marines dies, they're out for the rest of the game! Of course, my ice-cool Hicks-type guy died first. I have been told that if you get taken out by a face-hugger, another character has a time-limit to try and get them (although all of mine have been killed by alien warriors so far so no chance to test that out!)
Think you can get it for about £5-6 though, so well worth the money for a few hours entertainment.
Ive just watched Prometheous. It was the most horrible, useless waste of 2 hours in my life. The film was poorly played, the acting was bad and the storyline non existent. I really cannot believe that anyone enjoyed it. I mean, what was with those weird worm things? And that huge as feth face hugger monster squid thingy? And the weird proto alien at the end was both sequal bait and B-A-D. Even 3 was a better watch.
I like the first 2 Alien films and the first 2 Predator films (and the first 2 Terminator films). But that's where they should have ended. I've pretty much refused to watch any of the followups. Seeing Alien 3 was bad enough.
Aliens didn't leave room for another film in the same vein as the first 2. The next would have to expand the universe and not focus on the very obviously eliminated threat from LV-426, but instead they went the worst possible route they could think of: diabolus ex machina. There's no justifying the beginning of that film. In a bubble, Alien 3 would be surprisingly good considering the trouble they went through to make it, but as the 3rd Alien film and a direct follow up to Aliens, it's terrible.
And speaking of Avatar...it's amazing how Cameron could fall so far. He went from Heinlein worship with Aliens to pissing on Heinlein's grave with Avatar (and I'm probably the one person on the planet who noticed that the "twins" plot setup in Avatar is probably "inspired" by a Heinlein story). Rocket across the galaxy to easily eliminate an alien threat with orbital bombardment? Ain't got time for that! Let's push a makeshift bomb out of a slow moving aircraft at low altitude against an enemy that we know can zerg us! And let's send a completely useless ground attack force, because ROBOTS.
Pacific wrote: Totally agree. the scene where McReady (Kurt Russell) has the 'suspects' tied down to chairs, and testing their blood with the hot wire, is IMO one of the tensest, most hand-in-mouth moments ever put to screen. The ways it plays with the tension is just a masterful piece of horror.
And, that ending!
I haven't watched the remake because I know there is no way it can match that movie.
Just to note - it's not a remake, it's a prequel. it's about what happened to the station that found the Thing first, and ends exactly where the first movie starts. Aside from better creature effects, the visuals all blend in as well. I was pretty impressed with how they managed that. The only downside is there's almost zero tension.
master of ordinance wrote: Ive just watched Prometheous. It was the most horrible, useless waste of 2 hours in my life. The film was poorly played, the acting was bad and the storyline non existent. I really cannot believe that anyone enjoyed it. I mean, what was with those weird worm things? And that huge as feth face hugger monster squid thingy? And the weird proto alien at the end was both sequal bait and B-A-D. Even 3 was a better watch.
You will actually be hard pressed to find anyone who enjoyed it. Anyone who went in expecting greatness ala Bladerunner or Alien wanted to assemble a mob and burn down RIdley Scott's mansion. After all, the video vignettes of Weyland and Fassbender's character were epic. its like Ridley Scott snorted heroin instead of cocaine or something and the vomitous filth he vomited up became a movie.
How dare people have their own opinions! What's this world coming to?
I never said that. I meant that I disliked it to the point of disbelief. But if you take away its link to the Alien universe then I am sure it is a very good stand alone film. I just happened to hate it.
I also loved The Thing. The original has such an amazing atmosphere as people are trying to stop the monster from expanding. Sadly the prequel did have some bad points, including the fact that the ship was actually entirely unearthed by the scientists, where as in the prequel they dig a tunnel to it.
Also, in the original the spaceship appears to have taken off, where as in the prequel it never does.
Apart from that, it is still a good film.
master of ordinance wrote: Ive just watched Prometheous. It was the most horrible, useless waste of 2 hours in my life. The film was poorly played, the acting was bad and the storyline non existent. I really cannot believe that anyone enjoyed it. I mean, what was with those weird worm things? And that huge as feth face hugger monster squid thingy? And the weird proto alien at the end was both sequal bait and B-A-D. Even 3 was a better watch.
You will actually be hard pressed to find anyone who enjoyed it. Anyone who went in expecting greatness ala Bladerunner or Alien wanted to assemble a mob and burn down RIdley Scott's mansion. After all, the video vignettes of Weyland and Fassbender's character were epic. its like Ridley Scott snorted heroin instead of cocaine or something and the vomitous filth he vomited up became a movie.
Consider me a part of that mob. I just pray he never makes a sequel to it. I actually preferred AvP:R to it.
If you read the original script for Prometheus you can see what could have been. Makes a bit more sense and was quite interesting. Was canned because they didn't want the Xenomorph in the film. I recommend reading through it, grab a cup of tea and enjoy!
Medium of Death wrote: If you read the original script for Prometheus you can see what could have been. Makes a bit more sense and was quite interesting. Was canned because they didn't want the Xenomorph in the film. I recommend reading through it, grab a cup of tea and enjoy!
Medium of Death wrote: If you read the original script for Prometheus you can see what could have been. Makes a bit more sense and was quite interesting. Was canned because they didn't want the Xenomorph in the film. I recommend reading through it, grab a cup of tea and enjoy!
I actually liked Alien: Resurrection last time I saw it. You just kinda have to be willing to go with it since it's basically a comedy movie rather than ultra serious. If you can get past that it's enjoyable.
I can see why some people might not be able to, though. It's a bit of a departure.
Just to note - it's not a remake, it's a prequel. it's about what happened to the station that found the Thing first, and ends exactly where the first movie starts. Aside from better creature effects, the visuals all blend in as well. I was pretty impressed with how they managed that. The only downside is there's almost zero tension.
Ah that's a shame then.. actually the thing I thought most striking about the Kurt Russell film was the tension!
And the special effects kind of had a charm of their own.. almost in the same way that the effects in the original Red Dwarf series were a million times better than the CGI in the more modern re-launch
master of ordinance wrote:
... I actually preferred AvP:R to it.
Now look.. I was actually taking you seriously until that point
So, I re-watched AvP today, and something struck me.....
Spoiler:
Lance (who plays Weyland) is stabbed by one of the Predators because he flamed it in the back (dumb move!).
He falls to the ground, and for all appearances....seems to be dead.
*IF* he wasn't dead at that moment in time....
I would think that the huge ass fireball/explosion and the accompanying disintegration of the ground around the area where he fell would have finished the job (sorry, I don't believe there was any way that he crawled anywhere safe if he were alive).
So....
Does AvP have any real place in the Ridley Scott canon of the Aliens world?
TheMeanDM wrote: So, I re-watched AvP today, and something struck me.....
Spoiler:
Lance (who plays Weyland) is stabbed by one of the Predators because he flamed it in the back (dumb move!).
He falls to the ground, and for all appearances....seems to be dead.
*IF* he wasn't dead at that moment in time....
I would think that the huge ass fireball/explosion and the accompanying disintegration of the ground around the area where he fell would have finished the job (sorry, I don't believe there was any way that he crawled anywhere safe if he were alive).
So....
Does AvP have any real place in the Ridley Scott canon of the Aliens world?
If so....how did Weyland survive?
Spoiler:
I guess you can choose either the Weyland of AvP or the Weyland of Prometheus as the prequel to the latter movies. Or neither. I think I'm going with neither.
(watched it again for the benefit of, my son...it's funny, but even at 10 he could foretell what was going to happen to whom, etc...no fear whatsoever--he wants to make a Minecraft mod of it!).
The one Predator that cuts off the tail of the Xenomorph has his hand blades melted by the acid.
Their armor, when splashed with the acid, begins to melt.
Now look.. I was actually taking you seriously until that point
Hey, atleast AvP:R had actual Xenomorphs in it but its still down at the bottom. The same level as Prometheous. Neither should have been made as they where.
TheMeanDM wrote:Something else that bugs me about AvP
(watched it again for the benefit of, my son...it's funny, but even at 10 he could foretell what was going to happen to whom, etc...no fear whatsoever--he wants to make a Minecraft mod of it!).
The one Predator that cuts off the tail of the Xenomorph has his hand blades melted by the acid.
Their armor, when splashed with the acid, begins to melt.
But the spear? And the Krull-like weapon?
Neither are at all damaged.
Kind of bugs me....
That actually got me too. In the fluff their weapons and armour are immune to the acid blood. I think that some parts are actually made out of Xenomorph chitin. So why do they melt
And i personally observe Prometheous as non canon and unrelated. So the AvP Weyland is the nearest i get to a canon Weyland.
Even if you didn't like it (and it was broken on so various levels), at least it represented some kind of effort by the creators. There are so many little touches, the atmosphere of the movie, the references to philosophy that underpins the whole thing - you can tell a lot of thought went into (look it up - there are a fair number of article and forum groups talking about it). What I'm trying to say is that, even if something falls on its arse and doesn't set out what it tried to originally achieved, there has to be some merit given for the attempt. AvP was so fething gak on multiple levels, singularly lacking in any kind of vision, creativity, story, even the gore and action because the gutless studio couldn't do without the clink of teenagers pocket money.. it fails at all of them. So.. in that sense, I think saying Prometheus is on the same level is.. well, kind of insulting I feel.
AvP: Requiem at least had the advantage of, in following the first movie, the entire film could have been a 90-minute still shot of the Predators anus, and still received more favourable reviews than its predecessor.
I regard Prometheus as something of a broken masterpiece - it had a lot of vision, some tremendously tense moments, some hand-on-mouth moments (the 'self surgery') and a wonderful sense of mystery surrounding things - my friends and I spent hours talking about it in the pub afterwards, which has to say something. And even though Charlize Theron wasted her role (as well as not being able to run left or right) Idris Elba & Noomi Rappace made up for that. And Michael Fassbender was bloody brilliant.
Pacific wrote: Even if you didn't like it (and it was broken on so various levels), at least it represented some kind of effort by the creators. There are so many little touches, the atmosphere of the movie, the references to philosophy that underpins the whole thing - you can tell a lot of thought went into (look it up - there are a fair number of article and forum groups talking about it). What I'm trying to say is that, even if something falls on its arse and doesn't set out what it tried to originally achieved, there has to be some merit given for the attempt. AvP was so fething gak on multiple levels, singularly lacking in any kind of vision, creativity, story, even the gore and action because the gutless studio couldn't do without the clink of teenagers pocket money.. it fails at all of them. So.. in that sense, I think saying Prometheus is on the same level is.. well, kind of insulting I feel.
AvP: Requiem at least had the advantage of, in following the first movie, the entire film could have been a 90-minute still shot of the Predators anus, and still received more favourable reviews than its predecessor.
I regard Prometheus as something of a broken masterpiece - it had a lot of vision, some tremendously tense moments, some hand-on-mouth moments (the 'self surgery') and a wonderful sense of mystery surrounding things - my friends and I spent hours talking about it in the pub afterwards, which has to say something. And even though Charlize Theron wasted her role (as well as not being able to run left or right) Idris Elba & Noomi Rappace made up for that. And Michael Fassbender was bloody brilliant.
Anyway!
Yeah, AvP was basically just a z-movie, throwing out the same old crap for a non-critical audience that just wanted to see their favourite movies fight, and it wasn't even a very good effort at that.
I agree that Prometheus was ambitious, aiming to combine sci-fi and mythology in a really interesting and potentially thought provoking way. Unfortunately none of it was really explored in any real depth, instead things were just mentioned and moved past as some other issue was raised.
The question then, is whether we give Prometheus more credit just for trying, and I'm not sure the answer is that we should. Thing is, there aren't a lot of big budget films aimed squarely at adults who like to think, and I think the major reason why is because no-one has made a lot of money making films like that. So they don't get made, and so we don't get one that makes a lot of money, and so they don't get made and so on. Prometheus was the film that could change all of that, because the commercial viability was there with the connection to the Alien franchise, and they had a serious, heavyweight director wanting to tackle interesting material. This could have been the movie that paved the way for a resurgence of big budget, serious sci-fi.
But they flubbed it, and the movie sucked, and as much as people might have talked about the film afterwards, no-one left saying 'I really want to go and see more movies that treat sci-fi concepts in a serious, adult way'. And maybe that's a little unfair and Prometheus shouldn't be judged on anything other than the movie that it is, and in that case yeah its a lot better than crud like AvP, but I just can't see it that way, what I can see is that when they make an adult sci-fi film and they make it badly, that makes it so much harder to get another one made.
Yes think that's a pretty fair thing to say Sebster. Not sure about another one being made? Obviously the ending was made with sequels in mind, but not sure what the takings of the film were on top of what was probably quite expensive to make.
Interesting you saying about ideas being mentioned but then not possibly explored, I agree and wonder if this was another one of Ridley Scott's films that suffered badly in the editing room? I remember reading about Gladiator, and how we still haven't seen the film as Ridley Scott intended; whole sequences dealing with the politics going on throughout the film (with Derek Jacoby's sequences in particular suffering badly) - apparently much more was made of the story in terms of historical context, of how Maximus was the linchpin of a coup, really transforming it beyond an action film into a true swords & sandals epic. But, it would have pushed the film above 4 hours and so deemed unsuitable for theatrical release. I wonder if this was the same case for Prometheus?
Anyway, I know Prometheus tends to be a really contentious film, but now for something hopefully less divisive!
The playtester's comments certainly sound very encouraging.
I may be wrong with this, but wasn't there another game years ago that followed a similar kind of format? Almost a Monkey Island/King's Quest style point and click game, where you played a single character running around and trying to escape with an alien after you? This is possibly going back 20 years or so, a PC game..
With all this talk of the new Alien game it reminded me of another exciting game in the works called "Routine". It's survival horror on an 80's inspired Moon station. What's not to love?
It's an indy game that seems to have gone quite. I really, really, really hope it doesn't fade away.
This sounds like very much what they'd be going for with Isolation.
I can't get hyped up for Isolation. Colonial Marines really took a crap from on high on my faith in a decent Alien game. I'll have my fingers crossed, but I won't let them hurt me again!
Ouze wrote: I guess it's about time for some video game developer to take another dump on the franchise. I look forward to another solid 30/100 on metacritic.
I can understand people being massively cynical after Colonial Marines, and some of the other games over the years (the AvP RTS springs to mind also), but it's definitely worthwhile reading the write-up on that link I posted.
I'm not going to try to kick that football again, Lucy - this time, I'm waiting until it comes out and gets reviews better than 60% before I even think of being excited. For all I know that Alpha gameplay trailer is just like that Gearbox A:CM trailer that contained all sorts of nonexistent content.
HiveFleetPlastic wrote: I actually liked Alien: Resurrection last time I saw it. You just kinda have to be willing to go with it since it's basically a comedy movie rather than ultra serious. If you can get past that it's enjoyable.
A+ review. After A3, it would be kind of weird to try to go serious again. I mean, look at Prometheus where Sir Ridley was convinced you couldn't even use the xenomorph anymore.
HiveFleetPlastic wrote: I actually liked Alien: Resurrection last time I saw it. You just kinda have to be willing to go with it since it's basically a comedy movie rather than ultra serious. If you can get past that it's enjoyable.
A+ review. After A3, it would be kind of weird to try to go serious again. I mean, look at Prometheus where Sir Ridley was convinced you couldn't even use the xenomorph anymore.
Just watch movie defense force about 3 and resurrection and then watch the movies. Put's you in the right state of mind.
Manchu wrote: I mean, look at Prometheus where Sir Ridley was convinced you couldn't even use the xenomorph anymore.
On the other hand, look at Prometheus. Hell, look at The Counsellor. If you make a movie where Cameron Diaz grinds herself to orgasm on the windshield of a Ferrari and still can't break a 30% audience rating on Rotten Tomatoes, you suck at your job.
Manchu wrote: I mean, look at Prometheus where Sir Ridley was convinced you couldn't even use the xenomorph anymore.
On the other hand, look at Prometheus. Hell, look at The Counsellor. If you make a movie where Cameron Diaz grinds herself to orgasm on the windshield of a Ferrari and still can't break a 30% audience rating on Rotten Tomatoes, you suck at your job.
Cameron Diaz being in the movie means I probably won't watch it regardless. She's got no ass and can't act.
I think that's basically when you see her without make-up.. like so many movie stars actually.
Another quick comment on the Alien game, from the Gamesradar website. Yes I know there is the possibility I'm setting myself up for massive disappointment here, but god-damnit I want to allow myself to get a bit excited!
From the '100 most anticipated games of 2014'
Forget the deflating debacle of Colonial Marines. Gearbox’s game has about as much relevance to Creative Assembly’s Alien: Isolation as Batman: Dark Tomorrow had to Arkham Asylum. Finally adapting the right Alien film (ie. the first one), Alien Isolation promises to be a gruelling, terrifying, survival-horror nightmare of a game, centred around a dynamic, fiercely intelligent, purely AI driven Alien and the total dread of being trapped alone and helpless in the dark.
Made up of years of dedicated work by a development team who really seem to understand the DNA of Ridley Scott’s 1979 sci-fi horror classic, as well as rafts of rare and hitherto undiscovered source material from the production, Alien: Isolation looks as flawlessly authentic as it look relentlessly terrifying. And having been unrepentantly traumatised by a hands-on demo, we can vouch that that’s very terrifying indeed.
and much appreciated! The advice has been very helpful and I'm hoping to get initiated to the old movies this weekend!
. The fact that they are back on LV426 after the Atmosphere Processor exploded is just perplexing, that any of the colony survived just seems incredulous. Ridiculous game, ridiculous plot, would happily ignore forever.
