Alien

Classified as one of the best sci-fi/body-horror films ever made, Alien was a box office hit. Whether its commercial success was because audiences craved more sci-fi blockbusters after the hits Star Wars (1977) and Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977) didn't really matter at the time. It helped revolutionise the sci-fi genre and created a multi-billion dollar franchise.

But Alien isn't purely science-fiction. Horror and thriller influences are clearly evident. Watching it now, you'll probably have hysterics at the chest-rupturing emergence of the baby alien and lampoon the dated set design. But the 1979 sensation is still one scary biatch.

The pacing of the film is incredible. Where most horrors these days tend to rush through scenes to get to the blood, guts and gore, Alien takes its time. There are prolonged scenes where the camera wanders through the ship, or a crew member silently moseys on down an air shaft unaware of their impending slimey death. The silent pace at times creates unbearable tension and your mind is left screaming "Come on! Kill the poor bastard already!" At times even the slightest noises and movement make you jump off the edge of the seat you've been occupying since the opening credits.

However, the stretched silence that lingers throughout the film isn't due to lack of a soundtrack. Jerry Goldsmith's musical score doesn't focus on orchestral theme songs, but instead lays down atonal sounds that enhance the eerie atmosphere inside the space ship Nostromo, and also increase the sense of impending doom.

Artist H.R. Giger won an Oscar for his work in creating the asexual alien who picked off the inhabitants of the Nostromo one by one. Inspired by his painting Necronom IV, the alien is meant to be an androgynous being, but strong feminine features are visible. The extraterrestrial appears almost metallic with an extended head, sharp claws and acid blood. But it's the double mouth that freaked us out the most. When the primary orifice opened a second mouth emerged behind razor-sharp teeth on which appeared to be the alien's tongue, striking the deadly blow.

Finally and probably most importantly (depending on your chromosome count), Alien contributed to the development of the female heroine. Ripley shattered the pretty, petite mould Hollywood had placed on actresses. Although her character is more developed in the subsequent sequels, Alien built the foundation for the flame-throwing, ass-kicking, head-shaving, badass who would've sneered at the prom queens in Charlie's Angels.

- Megan Kakora

QUOTES FROM THE MOVIE:
Dallas: [looks at a pen being dissolved by alien's body fluid] I haven't seen anything like that except, uh, molecular acid.
Brett: It must be using it for blood.
Parker: It's got a wonderful defense mechanism. You don't dare kill it.

Parker: It's a robot. Ash is a god damn robot.

Ripley: Ash, that transmission - Mother's deciphered part of it. It doesn't look like an S.O.S.
Ash: What is it, then?
Ripley: Well, I, it looks like a warning. I'm gonna go out after them.
Ash: What's the point? I mean by the, the time it takes to get there, you'll, they'll know if it's a warning or not, yes?

Ripley: [nervously eyeing Alien while she pushes buttons] You are my lucky star. You... Lucky, lucky, lucky, lucky, lucky.

Ripley: Final report of the commercial starship Nostromo, third officer reporting. The other members of the crew, Kane, Lambert, Parker, Brett, Ash and Captain Dallas, are dead. Cargo and ship destroyed. I should reach the frontier in about six weeks. With a little luck, the network will pick me up. This is Ripley, last survivor of the Nostromo, signing off. [to Jonesy the cat]
Ripley: Come on, cat.

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