arguably the most powerful sci-fi film ever

Rating: 10/10 (18 June 2005)

Alien is a study in how to construct horror and terror on the screen, from the amazing set design (including the Alien itself), to the portentously threatening visuals of the various death scenes, to the ending. Lieutenant Ripley became an icon in this brilliant work of genius by Ridley Scott. Although the theme of a lethal threat in a closed space killing people one by one is not new, is has never been done better than in this truly original film. Even knowing what will happen and having seen the film before, it is still hard to watch in a way that the computer graphic monsters of Jurassic Park are not. I think this the finest sci-fi horror film ever made. It simply raised the genre to another level.