A great action film, but not the classic "Alien" is

Rating: 8/10 (21 June 1999)

This is one of the best 'edge of your seat' sci-fi action films ever made, yet the original "Alien" still emerges as the more groundbreaking and daring film.
James Cameron was careful to give Ripley a plausible reason to return for another bout with the face-huggers et al (and it's too bad the same attention to plausibility wasn't provided in the next two films.) By the end of "Alien", Ripley stood out as being the one character with the smarts we wish all horror movie characters possesssed. In "Aliens" she becomes a kick-ass action goddess, which makes for an enjoyable romp yet turns the movie into something more cartoonish than the original.
The original had style and atmosphere in spades. It wasn't afraid to take 45 minutes to really get going, and in that time we really got to know the characters. There were layers of interaction going on between the Nostromo's crew that are lacking in "Aliens". The marines are more simply drawn, but character isn't really what "Aliens" is about anyway. The addition of a prominent child character, normally the death knell to any good horror movie, is handled surprisingly well in "Aliens", and her relationship with Ripley is genuinely touching.
When Dallas, Parker, or Lambert died in the original, there was a visceral impact. Most of the characters in "Aliens" are far more expendable, and their deaths don't really have the same 'oomph', not only because they aren't as well-defined, but because the movie is so busy hurtling on to the next whiz-bang action sequence.
While the first movie's timing was more predictable for the hard-core horror-movie fan, "Aliens" is more inventive in keeping us on our toes, and in that way surpasses the original. However, we know Ripley is the heroine. In "Alien", we didn't know that, and so the tension was much greater because we didn't have a 'safe' character we could be fairly certain would live.
"Alien" was the true innovator, both in style and substance, with it's organic look and feel. "Aliens" smartly and effectively plays off of it. While not as atmospheric and layered, it's one heck of a ride for even the most jaded moviegoer.