Alien: 6/10

Rating: 7/10 (26 July 2014)

Alien, directed by Ridley Scott, is considered by many a classic sci-fi/thriller masterpiece that horror fans young and old must see. This is why I was very disappointed by this film. I'm not saying this is a bad movie. I thought it was okay. But that's what was disappointing to me, it was just okay.
I think we can all agree on how good the special effects and set designs are. Even today, the visuals are still better than a lot of the CGI used today. And most of the cinematography did a great job setting the tone for a lot of scenes. However, I believe that the director might love the visuals way more than he should. There's a lot of establishing shots that go around the interior of the ship. I know this is to build up suspense, but it really slows the pacing. Though, the pacing picks up when the alien is introduced, most of the film is still so slow, if 15 minutes was cut out, I wouldn't have a problem with it.
I was hoping with the slower pace, there would be a lot of character development. But, the only character I really got to know was Ripley (Sigourney Weaver). There's a bit of fun dialogue between the rest of the cast, but we all know that they are just there to be killed off. The biggest surprise was with Ash (Ian Holm), but I'm definitely not spoiling that twist.
Despite the slow pace, when the alien does finally show up, the thrills, scares and suspense makes most of the dull pace worth it. It was done so well, it genuinely made me jump from my seat. With scenes like these, I see what make this film so loved.
Overall, it wasn't the horror classic I was expecting, but I'm still glad I saw this. Perhaps I would have a different reaction if I saw this the day it came to theaters... or perhaps not. The pacing is too slow, most of the characters are forgettable, and the film has aged a bit. But what truly makes this movie is not only the visuals and the tone, but when it brings out the thrills and the kills.