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Aliens |
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Aliens is a 1986 science fiction horror movie starring Sigourney Weaver, Michael Biehn, Lance Henriksen, Carrie Henn, Bill Paxton and Paul Reiser. It is a sequel to the 1979 Alien.
Overview
Directed by James Cameron from a story written by him, David Giler and Walter Hill, the film is more a high-paced, action adventure than the tense sci-fi horror of the first film. It was tremedously successful, following Cameron's The Terminator in helping to establish him as a major action director. The film, like its predecessor, was shot in England on a budget of only about $18 million. The production was somewhat problematic, marred by several disputes between Cameron and the film crew, which eventually led to an all-out strike late in the production.
Plot
In this film, Warrant Officer Ellen Ripley (Sigourney Weaver), the only human survivor of Alien, is rescued from space after 57 years in hypersleep. She learns that a colony has been founded on LV-426, where she first encountered the alien. When contact with the colony is lost Ripley (now a Lieutenant) is drafted to t a squad of gung-ho Colonial Marines to investigate. They travel aboard the vessel Sulaco (like the The Nostromo, a nod to Joseph Conrad)
The marines and Lieutenant Ripley find themselves trapped in the seemingly deserted colony while armies of aliens come after them. The story adds much to the overall mythos of the series, including Cameron's introduction of an "alien queen" to the creatures' life cycle, and introduces the character of the android Bishop, the only character except Ripley to appear in more than one movie in the series (not counting Ripley's cat, Jones).
Analysis
It has been pointed out by some critics that Aliens works as an allegory of the Vietnam War, in that an overly confident military finds itself in a quagmire battling an unseen opponent they cannot comprehend. Sigourney Weaver, who holds strong views on gun control, has stated that she was deeply uncomfortable with the amount of gun violence in the movie, and that Ripley would be required to strap on heavy artillery herself. But she admitted she ended up enjoying the role, and that the gunplay held a seductive appeal.
The film added an additional level of depth to Ripley's character by establishing a daughter who grew old and died while Ripley was lost in space. Thus, when Ripley discovers the little girl, Newt (Carrie Henn), hiding in the ruins of the colony, Newt becomes a surrogate daughter for Ripley, allowing Ripley to overcome her feelings of guilt and achieve closure.
Awards
Aliens was nominated for seven Academy Awards and ended up winning two (Sound Effects Editing and Visual Effects). Sigourney Weaver received her first Academy Award nomination for this film. Another actor whose career benefited from Aliens was Bill Paxton; he plays the reluctant grunt, Hudson, who later defiantly battles to the death when swarmed by the aliens.
Cast
Sigourney Weaver - Lieutenant Ripley
Michael Biehn - Corporal Hicks
Paul Reiser - Carter J. Burke
Lance Henriksen - Bishop
Carrie Henn - Rebecca 'Newt' Jorden
Bill Paxton - Private W. Hudson
William Hope - Lieutenant Gorman
Jenette Goldstein - Private J. Vasquez
Al Matthews - Seargant. Apone
Mark Rolston - Private M. Drake
Colette Hiller - Corporal Ferro
Daniel Kash - Private D. Spunkmeyer
Cynthia Dale Scott - Corporal Dietrich
Ricco Ross - Private R. Frost
Tip Tipping - Private T. Crowe
Trevor Steedman - Private T. Wierzbowski
Paul Maxwell - Van Leuwen
Crew
James Cameron - Director and Screenwriter
Gale Anne Hurd - Producer
David Giler - Executive Producer
Walter Hill - Executive Producer
Gordon Carroll - Exectutive Producer
Adrian Biddle - Cinematographer (replaced Dick Bush)
Ray Lovejoy - Editor
Stan Winston - Creature SFX
James Horner - Composer
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