Alien (1979) Review

The following article is a non-spoiler review of Alien (1979).

1977 was a pinnacle of science-fiction cinema. Following the release of Star Wars, esteemed writer and director Ridley Scott was inspired to create his own science fiction franchise, one that would be the antithesis to Star Wars, and from that seed of an idea spawned 1979’s Alien.

Alien is undoubtedly one of the most successful science-fiction films to date, with what seemed to be a one-off film spawning an entire cinematic universe, with now nine franchise movies being released, two being crossovers with another franchise, a television series on the way, and even a theatrical play. Alien is among the longest running franchises in Hollywood and has become a staple in science-fiction, being best known for launching Sigourney Weaver’s mainstream career.

The premise is a simple one – a crew being infected with an alien infestation and being trapped in outer space while a carnivorous alien hunts them. This tale has been repeated a number of times after the release of Alien, with such films as 2017’s Life, yet the simplicity of the film allows for much of the first act to contribute to world-building, which is much needed for the audience’s first foray into a future riddled with space travel, androids, and aliens.

The cast of the film is perhaps one of the strongest of the era, with such notable actors as Ian Holm, John Hurt, Harry Dean Stanton, and Tom Skerritt all joining Sigourney Weaver as her crew members in this epic ensemble. Despite featuring such strong talent, the film is not afraid to kill characters off, and does so in a brutal manner with Xenomorphs crushing skulls and exploding hearts. This is a genre combination movie, marrying the fields of science-fiction and horror, creating a slasher set in space, and a bloody one at that.

The writers make sure every actor has the chance to shine, with fantastic material written for every performer, a hard feat for ensemble movies, especially those made today, which tend push the focus away from the characters and more to the spectacle. Despite the cast featuring icons of Hollywood, Alien was near the start of a lot of their careers, and we really see them earn their stripes – we see in real time the actors pour their hearts out on screen, and it feels like they’re all competing for screen time, which is an incredible watch – I almost see this movie as a documentary of all these great performers’ beginning their careers.

The characters are strong and compelling, with them all reacting believably to the notion of a hostile alien hunting them. Some characters certainly aren’t beloved, such as Veronica Cartwright’s Lambert throwing rationale out the window to instead stand stationery and scream as the Xenomorph slowly approaches her, resulting in other characters getting killed for no reason, but Lambert was supposed to be found annoying,and the reality is a lot of people in the real world behave that way – despite us believing we would have a punch up with an alien, we aren’t all action heroes at heart! One person that would undoubtedly be an action hero is Sigourney Weaver. Weaver is, simply

put, a badass at heart, and knows how to command the screen. It’s hard to see her not as a badass in real life, and I can imagine her bossing Ridley Scott around behind the camera. It’s no surprise why she earned a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, as her range in Alien is second to none, transforming from a kitten lover to an alien hunter.

Alien features a combination of practical and special effects, utilising a lot of the tricks created for Star Wars, such as the combination of miniatures and matte paintings; this tracks following the known friendship between Star Wars creator George Lucas and Ridley Scott. While these are somewhat dated, but provide a charm to the film, reminding us of the greatest era of Hollywood.

Alien is a Hollywood classic, but past its iconography is a masterfully-crafted, well-written, and excellently directed film that inspires intrigue and terror, making a compelling argument for why it is still so relevant today – it’s no wonder this film spawned a franchise. I look forward to rewatching this film in the near future, especially after discovering there’s a director’s cut that many fans prefer.

Alien (1979) is now available on Disney+.