Aliens

While Ridley Scott's Alien is a science fiction horror, James Cameron does a face lift-off by writing & directing the sequel as a science fiction action! And when we begin talking about a James Cameron's film, the discussion can easily be dissected into 2 distinct facets - screenwriting and filmmaking. Almost everything about these two are spot on and full of genuine effort! Look at the title, he just made the first film a plural, which also subtly suggests that there's going to be more than just one alien in this feature. How smart is that? Also, it's clear as crystal here that James Cameron intends to make a film of his own, rather than a Part 2 of something.

Picking up from where the previous film left off, it is extremely shocking to learn that Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) has been asleep for 57 years! She has lost her daughter in the process, whom she promised she would return to after the initial voyage. This fact here tells us why she connects with Newt (Carrie Henn) and takes care of the kid like her own. However, the relation is only say, 70% effective. The bond does grow stronger as climax creeps onto surface. Also, Ripley deals with a trauma caused by the past incidents. After a solid series of persuasions, hesitations & repulsions, our protagonist decides to deal with her fear face to face! And herewith begins our hero's journey!

Scene construction here is top notch! It's smoothly & diligently planned, resulting in an even pace with the right rate of activities per second! Furthermore, James Cameron has also used the first feature as ground formation and expanded it by extrapolating the story arena into the future. Terraformers & planet engineers show us that the world is getting bigger, literally. Oxygen tanks for respiration isn't needed anymore, since the air in the foreign planets is breathable now following the advent of atmospheric compressors. Justification for the cat Jones is sold through the inclusion of family in space. Dialogues are good to listen to. Timeline of travel & occurrences are properly kept in mind during the process of writing.

The writer-director clearly knows how to install elements to make necessary thrills work. Motion tracker, power cut, Burkes' (Pau Reiser) security camera sabotage, magazines given up; you name it! The biggest factor of tension comes from not disclosing the aliens upfront. This allows the audiences to drive through the runtime with anticipation of meeting the foreign guys. The reveal is surely strong, with a Xenomorph blended in the background ambushing for attack! But, when the first battle erupts in Mid-Point, the tension is somewhat deflated. A clear encounter with the aliens isn't completely available to be seen. All you witness is a bunch of explosions with alien bodies splitting apart. With this being said, post Mid-Point scheme to barricade the Aliens' entrance is interesting! the climax duel knocks the teeth out of you! Ripley's encounter with Alien Queen, with the latter scavenging for Newt is a nerve-wrecking experience to watch! It's an intelligent move & execution, to use the loader against the fatal species.

Sigourney Weaver's acting is no joke, fantastic! Do notice how she twitches in shock when someone unexpectedly touches her. The performances by the rest are interesting, and the characters' one-liner characterizations are established explicitly, for instance the 'knife-through-finger-gap' clip to cement Bishop's nature as an android. Burkes' motivation for bio-weapon works, but the idea to use 157 colonists as sacrifice and all doesn't function logically in narrative terms. Coming to think of it, this movie doesn't need a villain at all. It would have worked just fine. Ripley's initial escape from Alien Queen by threatening to burn the eggs if she's not allowed to leave is also silly. Final heroic saviour act by our main character is pulsating, but she breaks her own law by doing so; how, you may ask? When the corporals were freshly abducted by the aliens, Ripley didn't go for their rescue, claiming the victims would have been cocooned by the time of their arrival. But, when the same happens for Newt; a girl she cares most about, she goes total opposite of what her logic of argument was. This exhibits double standard, and based on the universe's code of conduct, how is Newt unaffected or survived after being sealed shut by the aliens like all the other preys? The rest didn't! Emergency venting issue and stuffs alike complexes the plot, whereby it should be focused on developing the encounters with the antagonists even more instead. The Alien Queen is an intelligent life form, but for it to catch a lift and ascend is laughter-inducing. It is not that it's not possible or isn't within the universe's context, but a more serious approach could have been used to replace this sequence easily. Crawling up, maybe?

James Horner's background score is flabbergasting! Ray Lovejoy's editing is precise, with Ripley's face cross-fading with Earth's for testimony. Adrian Biddle's cinematography is of impeccable quality! What a production design this film has! Just take a look at all the props used, from the military vehicles to the set designs! You would go on to see how this has heavily influenced the director's own Avatar. And Stan Winston's practical effects are unbeatable! Queen Xenomorph & half-ripped Bishop (Lance Henriksen) are to snatch your eyeballs out for! However, since the story is currently happening half a century away from the preceding picture, shouldn't the way computers look change drastically too? The analogue template is the same one used in Ridley Scott's Alien. Video display conversation is the only obvious & visible improvement made.