Still very scary. A brilliant combination of sc-fi and horror

Rating: 9/10 (18 July 2003)

A good way to know if a movie is great, it's to see how it passes the test of time. "Alien" does that. It's a classic. Even by today's standards, it's a really frightening movie.
The main reason why it's so suspenseful is that you almost never see the monster. You have glimpses, but that's it. The ending in the rescue ship shows a little more of it, but not much. Monsters on screen are always more scary when you don't see them. This one is all the more impressive because H.R. Giger did a splendid job with it.
The other thing that makes "Alien" beautiful are the sets. The interiors of the "Nostromo", the exteriors on LV4-26 (also created by H.R. Giger) : all magnificient. A rich movie is a movie where the camera has plenty to show : it definitely does in "Alien".
Jerry Goldsmith's music is also perfect. It doesn't show off at all, it's not overwhelming (like in other Hollywood movies). Instead, it's scaringly efficient. In the beginning of the movie, it's very low, but it helps a lot in creating suspense before the monsters are found.
The acting is also top notch. Sigourney Weaver gives here her breakthrough performance. Ian Holm is chilling as the android Ash, the five other actors are also just fine.
Ridley Scott managed to combine all these elements to create a fantastic atmosphere. My favorite part of "Alien" starts when Ripley is alone and triggers the auto-destruct sytem. The alarm going off, "Mother's" voice, the steam : all this is memorable.
Last but not least, "Alien" is not only a scary monster story, it also has something to say. The attitude of the Weyland-Yutani Company is very interesting. The film talks about perverted capitalism, where human life has no more value. The only thing that matters is to bring the specimen back for study. "Crew expandable". True, other sc-fi movies and books contain that theme. Nevertheless, it's a relevant point. It's a relevant today as it was in 1979.
"Alien" is definitely a must-see (except, maybe, for those who can't stand to be scared by a movie). It combines the best qualities of horror and sc-fi. If this one is my favorite, I do love the three sequels : "Aliens" is a scary, war-like but very human film. "Alien 3" is dark and beautiful, like a Greek tragedy. "Alien Resurrection" is beautifully shot and has an intelligent story.