Theatrical Or "Alternate Cut" !!

Rating: 9/10 (4 August 2006)

1979! ...Guess it was pure luck being among hundreds of thousands of ignorant attendees standing in that long line on opening weekend.
Ignorance Sure Was Bliss! The morning paper's rave review gives only tiny tid-bits away. "20th Century Fox opens 'ALIEN' on 'Star Wars' two year opening day anniversary." (The 1st hour of the movie is vaguely summarized). "Then the Alien emerges in a most powerful and bloody scene", states the article; "...and who will survive?" That night, the audience had no clue what was about to burst forth. Powerful! Bloody! Horrifying beyond anyone's imagination. Horror hasn't been the same since.
No household name actors...at that time.
First movie where I heard guys screaming as loud (if not louder) than the girls. And that was at least 30 minutes before the Alien emerges. After that; the screams only got louder! That weekend; the one scene everyone gave away was...the One Scene!! Nobody had ever seen anything like it before. So who can blame the screams!! And unfortunately...the give-a-way.
Top Notch Horror/SciFi! If not THE Top Notch of that combined genre! An opinion that's strictly an opinion. The original version seems to hold up better as a "docu-thriller". Maybe that makes it scarier. The editing flows easier. The scenes have a better opportunity to play out. As a result, the tension seems to tighten as the story progresses. Director Ridley Scott, in the DVD intro pamphlet (but not in the DVD itself), admits he prefers the original version better. I gotta agree! But the new scenes ARE great scenes.
Maybe I'm biased. The earlier laser disc edition included those deleted scenes separately from the movie. So it's impossible feeling the same excitement of discovering this new footage for the first time edited into story form. Personally, I would have loved to see the deleted scenes added without losing any theatrical footage. Why? Great film making! Great story! And Great characters! Might have been more enriching.
But the 2003 version is still fun! No wonder there's legions of fans for 'Alien' and 'Aliens'.
Makes one of the best double features. Grab that popcorn and crank up that DTS and Dolby volume.
Well done, low key and flawless acting. Unique directorial style! The Sound! The Editing! And Geiger's other-worldly symbolic design! This groundbreaker is an absolute must-see.
9 out of 10.