Rank the Alien films

[elsewhere]

Alien³ is a Ripley centric film. It's the end of her character arc.

 

[roach]

Alien³ is a Ripley centric film. It's the end of her character arc.

every movie was Ripley Centric...but I can guarantee people can name characters

 

[Fanticon]

Alien
Prometheus
Aliens
Alien 3
...I stop there.

 

[DACrowe]

Ash is fantastic in the role and it is interesting to see his glances when he hasn't 'outed' himself yet, like watching the chest burst scene when everyone else is going over to watch and the 'perfection' speech but I personally prefer the Character of Bishop and how he turns around Ripley who hates him at the start of the movie (a nice character arc for Bishop).

Fair enough. I like Bishop, but he's basically a nice person the whole movie and doesn't change at all. Ripley (and the audience) just begrudgingly learn to respect and like him after he saves them all at the end. Ash is just a much more delicious role and performance to watch.

 

[DACrowe]

every movie was Ripley Centric...but I can guarantee people can name characters

That was a clever test.

 

[co2]

Alien is always sure to inspire opinion and conversation

 

[roach]

That was a clever test.

im not sure if you are being sarcastic or not but I'll take it as not until you tell me you were( got itt:t

 

[DCW]

For me its Alien then Prometheus. Enjoyed Aliens but I don't think it's in quite the same league as the other two.

 

[DACrowe]

im not sure if you are being sarcastic or not but I'll take it as not until you tell me you were( got itt:t

No, it's true. Alien, Aliens and even Prometheus (despite what its haters say) all have at least 3 or 4 characters (I'd argue all 7 in Alien) who are memorable. There's not a single character beyond Ripley and the monster worth remembering from Alien 3. Even Alien: Resurrection at least has Call who kind of sticks out.

 

[roach]

Thanks
I like Alien because it started the whole thing...plus it was the first rated R movie I ever saw (because of a mix up HBO listed it as a rated PG film)
I like Aliens because it didn't try to duplicate the first movie and became its own thing...and while people mention the aliens were fodder for the Marines...the aliens took out the whole squad during the first meeting.

 

[CConn]

No, it's true. Alien, Aliens and even Prometheus (despite what its haters say) all have at least 3 or 4 characters (I'd argue all 7 in Alien) who are memorable. There's not a single character beyond Ripley and the monster worth remembering from Alien 3. Even Alien: Resurrection at least has Call who kind of sticks out.

That's because all of the interesting characters are immediately killed off in Alien 3.

 

[Ponyboy]

I'd say Aliens and Prometheus are a bit of a tie for me.

Alien
Aliens
Prometheus
Alien 3
Alien Resurrection

 

[roach]

That's because all of the interesting characters are immediately killed off in Alien 3.

lol and during the opening credits

 

[spider-neil]

That's a really good test for Alien 3. Beyond Ripley (and the Bishop moment) I can't name a signle character from Alien 3 (despite seeing it 3 times) and Alien R (despite seeing it 3 times). I can names ALL the characters in Alien Most of the characters in Aliens (probably 3 characters whose name escapes me) and at least half the characters in Prometheus.

 

[roach]

This is what makes Alien so awesome to me:
For the filming of the chestburster scene the cast members knew that the creature would be bursting out of Hurt, and had seen the chestburster puppet, but they had not been told that fake blood would also be bursting out in every direction from high-pressure pumps and squibs.The scene was shot in one take using an artificial torso filled with blood and viscera, with Hurt's head and arms coming up from underneath the table. The chestburster was shoved up through the torso by a puppeteer who held it on a stick. When the creature burst through the chest a stream of blood shot directly at Veronica Cartwright, shocking her enough that she fell over and went into hysterics. According to Tom Skerritt: "What you saw on camera was the real response. She had no idea what the hell happened. All of a sudden this thing just came up." The creature then runs off-camera, an effect accomplished by cutting a slit in the table for the puppeteer's stick to go through and passing an air hose through the puppet's tail to make it whip about.

 

[regwec]

I can name loads of cast members from Alien 3, but few of the characters they played. I think this is partly because the movie featured almost every British actor from the late 80s/early 90s. I mean, who wouldn't remember Pete Postlethwaite or Charles "WTF is he doing in this" Dance?

 

[co2]

I can name loads of cast members from Alien 3, but few of the characters they played. I think this is partly because the movie featured almost every British actor from the late 80s/early 90s. I mean, who wouldn't remember Pete Postlethwaite or Charles "WTF is he doing in this" Dance?

He's not British, but of course, Charles Dutton.
Yeah, the character names aren't memeorable..cept maybe "86"..but the cast was pretty damn strong.

 

[spider-neil]

I can name loads of cast members from Alien 3, but few of the characters they played. I think this is partly because the movie featured almost every British actor from the late 80s/early 90s. I mean, who wouldn't remember Pete Postlethwaite or Charles "WTF is he doing in this" Dance?

I can name some of the actors in Alien 3, sure, but I'm talking about naming the people they played in the movie.

 

[R_Hythlodeus]

I can name some of the actors in Alien 3, sure, but I'm talking about naming the people they played in the movie.

Like Michael Biehn. I have no idea what his character was called.

In fact, the only names I remember from all 4 movies are Ripley and Bishop.
No big deal

 

[regwec]

In truth, a lot of the characters in "Aliens" were 2D stereotypes. Carter was the corporate slime, Hudson was the "we're all gonna DIIEEEE, man!" guy, Vasquez was a Latin lesbian pit bull. Ripley and Hicks were memorable as the leads, and Bishop was a nice re appraisal of AI lifeforms, but it was hardly a movie strong on character development.

It's funny, because Prometheus has some of the same problems. Apart from Shaw and Holloway, Vickers and Janek were both stereotypes, Fifield was an ass just for its own sake, and the rest were forgettable.

 

[Steyin]

Alien
Prometheus
Alien 3
Aliens
Alien Resurrection


To be honest, I can't stand Cameron, and I don't really consider anything past Alien "cannon" in my head. The whole series works better that way. Hate me all you want for that, but tis how I feel.

 

[spider-neil]

Alien
Prometheus
Alien 3
Aliens
Alien Resurrection


To be honest, I can't stand Cameron, and I don't really consider anything past Alien "cannon" in my head. The whole series works better that way. Hate me all you want for that, but tis how I feel.

No one is going to hate you for having your opinion.
For instance, I don't really like 2001.

 

[roach]

I can name some of the actors in Alien 3, sure, but I'm talking about naming the people they played in the movie.

off the top of my head
Alien
Kane, Ash and Dallas
Aliens
Newt, Hicks, Vasquez,Bishop,Hudson, Sarge, Wiersbowski and Frost (I remember most of their names because they yelled them during the memorable scenes)

Alien3
....Ripley, Human Bishop.....bald prisoner #3

 

[roach]

Alien
Prometheus
Alien 3
Aliens
Alien Resurrection


To be honest, I can't stand Cameron, and I don't really consider anything past Alien "cannon" in my head. The whole series works better that way. Hate me all you want for that, but tis how I feel.

why can't you stand Cameron...not trying to start an argument just interested in the answer

 

[DACrowe]

Some people dislike his hamfisted dialogue, tone or supposed "fascist military" slant (that's way more Michael Bay than James Cameron). And his style can become grating to me in certain films like Avatar and The Abyss. I also am not a huge fan of Titanic or how he depicts women in True Lies.

All that said, he's a great visionary and I love me some Aliens. Terminator 2 is also a classic, in my opinion.