A rarity in the world of sequels....

Rating: 10/10 (18 May 2000)

Can it be possible; a sequel that is as good, if not better, than the original? Yes, it not only can be possible, it is, and "Aliens" not only proves a fantastic sci-fi movie in its own right but again proves the power that Sigourney Weaver has in the right film, as well as the over-powering direction of James Cameron.
Picking up 200 years after the fact, Weaver is once again thrown into a battle along with the Space Marines that are called to the planet where Weaver's team originally found the alien of the first film. The colonies that have been built there have been obliterated of all life and they are being sent there to wipe out every last alien on the planet.
Of course, in a movie like this, nothing is as it seems, and that's a positive quality. Weaver misses nary a beat as Ripley, a woman as un-trusting of aliens, most humans and just about anything else in general as she was before. It's only when they discover a small girl (Carrie Hehn) left alive that she finally finds something that perhaps shows she has some feeling left.
Of course, there are other great performances by Biehn, Henriksen, Goldstein, Paxton and Reiser, playing well fleshed-out characters against a backdrop of desperation, fear and outright gut-wrenching horror as they find out their mission wasn't as easy as they all thought.

But then comes James Cameron. Having proven his mettle with "The Terminator", he works with a bigger budget and shows just as much ingenuity and flair for big, flashy action as any ten action directors. But even if the story seems routine, Cameron's approach is not; he makes every single moment seem as fresh now as if it were being seen for the first time in motion picture history. Always a good thing in science fiction, where there aren't exactly new ideas coming out every day.
As with the original "Alien" (and Cameron's "Terminator"), the last half-hour or so is so much edge-of-your-seat and nail-biting tension that you'll feel like a wrung-out wash rag by the time all is said and done, and rightly so. And, more than ever, you'll empathize with Weaver as her character fights not only for her own survival, but for that of others as well.
So, "Aliens" is great science fiction and great film-making, but is it a worthy addition to the saga? Most definitely, especially when you consider that most sci-fi films can't muster HALF the story this one does, much less a sequel to one.
Ten stars (eleven if I only could) to "Aliens", one of the best science fiction sequels ("Star Wars" movies excluded) ever.