James Cameron's best action film

Rating: Null/10 (2 January 2001)

James Cameron had become famous for his box-office smash action films like "Terminator 2: Judgement Day" and "True Lies," but I regard "Aliens" as his best. The story involves Ellen Ripley, the only survivor of the cargo ship Nostromo's battle with the vicious "alien", returning to Earth. There, she is asked to join up with a crew of ultra high-tech marines to investigate the dissapearance of colonists on planet LV-426. She joins up and the adventure begins.
The characters of "Aliens" are surprisingly multi-demensional. Ripley is just supposed to be an observer, while the rough marines are supposed to be in charge. However, she quickly becomes the leader when her emotional maturity under pressure becomes a greater quality than being good with a gun. And even when she does become a female Rambo, it is not because she is tough. Its because something of great value has been taken from her (the young girl Newt, the only surviving colonist) and it is worth risking her life to get it back. The other supporting players are less interesting, but all figure in to the plot with some relevance. Paul Reiser is notable as the double-crossing Burke (shades of Cameron's script for "Rambo: First Blood Part II" show up here).
The action is relentless and extremly exciting, without being "joyous". The atmosphere that Cameron creates is so dark, uncomfortable, and scary, that Ripley and the colonists fighting for their lives is also hellish. The director never lets you feel safe, and does a great job increasing the impending doom as the movie continues. Even on the mothership, when Ripley is recounting her tale of the alien to skeptical marines, you can feel that these soldiers have absolutley no idea of what there coming up against.
With an above-average action script, good performances, and excellent direction and cinematography, "Aliens" comes out a winner above Cameron's other solid work
The original "Alien" offers a better script and better performances. But "Aliens" is a very decent sequel.