Aliens

Whenever you hear about James Cameron, it’s usually about how much of an arrogant jerk he is. Kevin N.Laforest said in his review, “I admit that his acceptance speeches don’t advantage him, but since I don’t know him personally, I can’t say if he’s a good guy or not. What I do know is that he’s one of the most brilliant craftsmen in Hollywood.” You could say that his skills are mostly in special effects, but it gets deeper than this.

Cameron has talents with shooting, editing, pacing and scoring everything so it really makes you enjoy his work. Very few filmmakers can make their audiences enjoy that great. His films usually start out really quiet, as we get to know a handful of characters and put ourselves in the story. Then Cameron starts creating tension, making the film more and more engaging until you’re literally on the edge of your seat, and he keeps put stuff in even when you think he’s done!

Laforest admitted, “That’s what I love about Cameron’s work: no matter your expectations, he achieves to win you over and make you submit to the wild ride he’s got cooked up. You’re so excited that you completely lose your notion of time; at 3h14, “Titanic” is still more exciting than many 90 minute movies!”

“Aliens,” released in 1986, is probably the movie where this is the most obvious because there isn’t really a story, jut simple action enjoyment. This is one of those rare sequels that completely trump the original. In Ridley Scott’s original, you had a group of scientists on a mission on an unknown planet who encountered a dangerous Xenomorph alien who killed them one by one, until it met its match by the one strong woman, Ripley.

In the sequel, Cameron takes these two memorable characters and adds a handful of strong Marines (Michael Biehn, Jenette Goldstein, Bill Paxton, Al Matthews, Lance Henriksen, Mark Rolston, Ricco Ross, Colette Hiller, Daniel Kash, Cynthis Dale Scott, Tip Tipping, Trevor Steedman and Paul Maxwell) and so many Xenomorph aliens! This film takes place 57 years after the first movie, as Ripley is rescued by a corporate jerk, played by Paul Reiser from the hit show “Mad About You.” Not knowing of what the scientists discovered at the time, he sent people to inhabit the planet. Their headquarters doesn’t respond, so he asks Ripley to go back with him and a gang of Marines to see what happened. The place they find is a real purgatory: aliens have killed the humans and taken over. Only a little girl, Newt, played by Carrie Henn, has survived. It’s up to the Marines and mostly Ripley to kill these nasty aliens.

You really have to see “Aliens” to understand how awesome of a movie it really is. Laforest said, “How can I put into words the terrifying atmosphere, the in-your-face violence or the nerve-wrecking suspense of the film? This is truly one of the most frightening films I’ve ever seen.”

Obviously, the Alien series is mainly for Sigoureny Weaver, who must be the toughest broad in Hollywood. Like a female Schwarzenegger, her Ripley is a sympathetic yet take-no-nonsense woman who isn’t afraid to make a stand. Weaver really has a strong on-screen presence. Next to her, even these Xenomorph aliens don’t stand a chance!

As I have already stated, this is one of those movies that has to be seen to be believed. Especially with great lines like, "Game over man! Game over!" and the ever famous line which can be heard by clicking here. If you haven’t seen this one yet, see it. You don’t necessarily need to see the first movie before seeing this one, as a lot of people did that, including my brother. However, I saw them in order, and this one fills people in really quickly that they don’t need to see the first one to know what’s going on. This is a straight up action film, unlike the first one which was like a haunted house movie; this is a war movie, which is just perfect. I like it better than the first, but it’s debatable if it’s actually better.

With James Cameron now directing two superior sequels that could have stopped there, check in Friday to see how the series started to go downhill in this year’s “Halloween Month.”