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Writer's pictureSohan Sahoo

Alien: A Great Horror Movie

Updated: Feb 23, 2023


Reviews by:

  • @s.sohan2005

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Alien is a classic horror movie with Sci-fi elements in it. After 40 years this masterpiece still holds up pretty well for the most part. Ridley Scott along with screenwriters Dan O Bannon and Ronald Sushet create an essay about space being an extension of human paranoia, the hell of people, nihilism, and not an adventure of seeking new things we see in other sci-fi franchises. This movie on its fundamental is just a "haunted house in space" but it is far from that but a brilliant horror movie that takes its time to slowly envelope you in fear.


The biggest strength of "Alien" is its slow pacing which slowly builds throughout the movie instead of cheap jumpscares seen in today's horror movies (looking at u Annabelle Comes Home) but it gets under your skin slowly and then when the payoffs happen due to the kills u feel the horror and shock of characters you root for dying.


I love the grim tone throughout the movie which is expressed through the crude and crass style of Nostromo. It gives off a more jaded feel instead of other well-known ships in sci-fi. The characters are normal people instead of heroic figures and that gives them a sense of relatability and grounds the whole movie and u root for them. They are easily likable and u feel a sense of terror and dread when something terrible happens to them.


This movie uses a pretty clumsy plot device by the changing size of the alien through molecular acid and making it a perfect organism through its body but the execution of that plot device gives room for some great thrilling moments and scares. It allows for uneasiness in the atmosphere as we have no idea how the alien looks. The alien is kept mysterious throughout the movie which works to its advantage. That is the sign of a great horror movie.


The most underrated part of this movie is Jerry Goldsmith's score. It is particularly eerie and dreadful and fills u with uncertainty for our protagonists, especially Ripley.


The direction of this movie is impeccable and it is an outstanding achievement as Ridley Scott had a lot on his plate. The direction for The Alien and capturing the movements and storyboards by practical effects is no mean feat. The cinematography by Derek Vanlint rises up to the occasion.


The screenplay by Dan O Bannon is intelligent and full of interesting horror ideas to explore i.e. body horror, psychological horror, etc in the case of Ellen Ripley. The screenplay finds a meticulous balance between horror and character development with great twists and turns which makes the movie special and iconic after 40 years.



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