One More Sequel Equivalant to That of the First

Rating: 10/10 (27 April 2016)

Aliens is directed by James Cameron and is a continuation of 1979's Alien. In this movie, Ellen Ripley (Sigourney Weaver), the soul survivor from the alien attack from the first film, was found floating in space after 57 years in hypersleep. When she awakes, she learns that her daughter and everyone else she knew is dead, and that a colony has since formed on LV-426, the alien planet. Once the station she's on loses signal from the colony, Ripley, along with a crew of marines, must go to LV-426, and see if there are any survivors.
Rarely is a sequel as good as the first film in a franchise. This has only been present in a few film franchises, such as the Terminator franchise, the Mad Max franchise, and the Star Wars franchise. Other than those, no other films come to mind. Except for Aliens. When James Cameron decided to direct a sequel to Alien (1979), he decided to go a different route. Rather than making a horror film, he made an action movie. That was a great move on Cameron's part, and it helped him make a great film, one equal to that of the original.
The hands down best thing about Aliens is the perfect mix between action and suspense. Cameron directed an action movie, not a horror, yet Aliens is surprisingly suspenseful. The suspense is especially a large factor in a specific scene, no spoilers, in which Ripley is locked in a room with a couple of facehuggers; that was white knuckled terror. Even in the action scenes when the marines are fighting the xenomorphs, suspense is present.
On the other hand, the action in Aliens is abundant. In almost every scene, there's action going on somewhere. Although the first act, which involved Ripley getting back to LV-426, doesn't have too much action, the viewer is preparing themselves for it, thanks to the ingenious buildup by the script and actors. Once Ripley reaches the planet, and war breaks out between the aliens and the marines, it's non stop. Although there are breather scenes, or scenes for the viewer to catch their breath, the action almost never lets up, and keeps you on the edge of your seat the entire time.
Another great thing surrounding Aliens is the acting. Of course, Sigourney Weaver owns the role of Ellen Ripley, but she doesn't exactly steal the show. While Ripley is the main character, and the most interesting, all of the other characters are written and portrayed well. Michael Biehn as Hicks was amazing, Bill Paxton was great as Hudson, and Lance Henriksen was fantastic as Bishop. However, Carrie Henn as Newt was absolutely astounding. Without spoiling anything about her character, this was easily one of the best child performances of all time, especially in an action movie.
The last element that Aliens deserves praise for is the basis for the storyline. After the end to the first Alien (1979), continuing the story seemed difficult, but it was pulled off wonderfully in Aliens. Not only did the script have to get Ripley back on screen, but it had to get her back to LV-426 willingly. The way that the script purposes to get Ripley back to the alien planet is perfectly convincing, but isn't brushed over either. The proposal isn't cheap, or quick, it's flawless.
In the end, Aliens is equal to that of Alien (1979), critically. Personally, I prefer Alien (1979) slightly more, but they are both amazing. Anyone who likes action, space operas, or the first film in the franchise will love Aliens.