A Cornerstone for Serious Science Fiction

Rating: 9/10 (26 January 1999)

In 1977, Star Wars and CE3K reminded everyone how much fun SF could be, freeing up the budgets of the major studios. Two years later, Ridley Scott showed us how good an SF story could be told without resorting to "space opera." It is impossible to speak of this movie with mentioning Scott, since the director's hand is so evident in every detail of this seminal masterpiece.
In his first major film, Scott used his artistic background to create a very believable, lived-in world. No brightly-lit ST:TNG corridors of shiny plastic here..dark, noisy, wet corridors from which the monster could jump out with a BOO! And what a creature!
The back-story of the creature went to and fro during the production, but Scott had to cut most of the exposition to keep the tension line going..nice call. H.R. Giger's exquisitely hideous design was an instant classic, inspiring as much terror as the creature's modus operandi.
The cast is exceptional - the only non-veteran actor was Sigourney Weaver, in her first major film. The rest were all accomplished actors long before this movie. Was this some bargain-hunting coup of the casting director, or a commitment to excellence? Don't tell me!
This film spawned a franchise of debatable importance, but more importantly, it paved the way for more serious SF work. Its success led Ridley Scott onto Blade Runner - another classic SF movie with the grunge feel of a nihilistic future.