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Space and Environm ent: Cinem atic Spaces Film Review

A lien, 1979

T e crew of the deep space tow ing vessel Nostrom o are awaken from hypersleep to investigate a strange signal

from a nearby planet. W hile investigating the signal, they discover it was intended as a warning, and not an

SO S. into.U pon arrival at the planet, three m em bers of the crew investigate the signal's source. D allas,

Lam bert and Kane nd a derelict alien spacecra w here Kane is attacked by an alien organism . D espite

Ripley, portrayed by Sigourney W eaver, refusing to open the hatch for risk of contam inating the ship, Ash,

the science o cer who is later revealed to be a robot sent to ensure the retrieval of an alien organism ,

ignores her orders. A er rem oving K ane's helm et they see that the alien creature has secured itself over his

face and appears to be giving him oxygen, keeping him alive however in a com atose state. T e crew nd that

they cannot rem ove the creature for it has corrosive acid for blood, how ever the alien soon rem oves itself

and the crew nd it dead aer w hich K ane seem s to m ake a full recovery. T en, in perhaps the m ost

m em orable scene, he begins choking and an alien bursts out of his chest, killing him and escaping onto the

Figure 1.

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ship. O ne by one the crew m em bers are killed by the alien m enace until only Ripley rem ains. She destroys

the ship and escapes in the shuttle along w ith the crew 's cat, Jones. Ripley soon discovers that the alien is

aboard the shuttle. She straps herself into a spacesuit, opens the hatch and shoots the alien, forcing it out of

the open doorway. D irected by Ridley Scott, 1979, 'A lien' is a science-ction horror that has proved

im m ensely successful, leading to num erous sequels and m ost recently the prequel 'Prom etheus'.

Sw iss artist-designer H .R. Giger supplied the distinctive "bio-m echanical" concepts for the lm , which help

m ake the alien one of cinem a's scariest creations: a nightm are synthesis of hum anoid form , insect-like

appendages, and m echanized structure that is all the m ore eective for not being seen too clearly for m ost of the

lm . Scheineld.

T e construction of the lm really m akes an audience m em ber feel like they are part of the action. From the

opening sequence w here the cam era m oves through the spacecra and the audience can hear the doors

opening and closing around them , to the repeating point-of-view shots used throughout the lm , the

audience is pulled into the action, m aking the horrors feel m ore real. A key exam ple of this is in the build up

to nding the alien w hen Brett m oves around the ship alone, searching for Jones the cat. D uring this

sequence point-of-view shots are used in conjunction w ith the sound of foot falls creating the illusions that

w hat the audience is seeing is happening to Brett and them selves. T is is also aided by the reality of the

space. D ue to it's age, w hen the lm w as produced everything you see w as real so the actors really appear to

be interacting w ith the space. Aliens practical eects and use of m iniatures has a m ore tangible, gritty feel

than a vast m ajority of m odern sci-. Howard.

Figure 2 Figure 3

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In 'A lien' the stereotypical gender roles seem to be reversed. T e character Ripley, played by actress

Sigourney W eaver, w as original intended for a m an. T is gives the character all the strength and leadership

of a typical m ale protagonist, m aking Ripley a fem ale action icon. W hile the m ale characters are show n to be

w eak, m aking m istakes and ultim ately killed by the alien, Ripley survives due to her strength. In Alien the

roles are clearly reversed, as Ripley is the strong fem ale character who m akes active judgem ents and survives

what is trying to kill her. T e m ale characters activity is largely passive m ost die quickly, others wait for her

com m and. op10Film s

T e lm can be analysed using Freud's theory of dream s. T is theory says that dream s are the gateway to the

subconscious. 'A lien' can be looked at as a m ale nightm are. T e com bination of sexual sym bols and weak

m ale characters show m ale subconscious fear of rape or castration. In m ost of Freud's work, he links m ost

psychological problem s in adults back to the treatm ent they received as children from their m other. T e

ship's m ain com puter system , that the crew m em ber go to for guidance and instruction, is called 'M other',

show ing another link to Freudian theory.

'A lien' can be sum m ed up as a haunted house m ovie in space, in w hich a m onster terrorises the trapped

hum ans. Com pared to other representations of futuristic worlds, the space created in the lm is m ore gritty

and real, and the alien m enace is truly unlike anything experienced in lm before.

Figure 4.Ripley Figure 5.Alien

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Illustration List

Figure 1.Alien lm poster 1979At:http://ltquinn.blogspot.co.uk/2012/04/alien-1979-review -04-30-12.htm l

Figure 2.Still from Alien At:http://kecaslm .blogspot.co.uk/2012/07/alien-1979-lm -analysis.htm l

Figure 3.Still from Alien At:http://w w w.em pireonline.com /features/cinem as-creepiest-babies/p6

Figure 4.Still from Alien At:http://w w w.dailylm dose.com /2010/11/alien.htm l

Figure 5.Still from Alien At:http://w w w.google.co.uk/im gres?

q=alien+1979&um =1& hl=en& client=safari& sa=N & rls=en& biw =1280&bih=738&tbm =isch& tbnid=AYzs

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Bibliography

into, C.Plot sum m ary At:http://w w w.im db.com /title/tt0078748/plotsum m ary

Scheineld, M .Alien: ReviewAt:http://m ovies.tvguide.com /alien/review /111316

H oward, B.Alien At:http://w w w.gra tiw ithpunctuation.net/2012/04/29/alien/

op10Film s.Analysis: Alien and Fem inismAt:http://w w w.top10lm s.co.uk/archives/1600

http://ltquinn.blogspot.co.uk/2012/04/alien-1979-review-04-30-12.htmlhttp://kecasfilm.blogspot.co.uk/2012/07/alien-1979-film-analysis.htmlhttp://kecasfilm.blogspot.co.uk/2012/07/alien-1979-film-analysis.htmlhttp://www.empireonline.com/features/cinemas-creepiest-babies/p6http://www.empireonline.com/features/cinemas-creepiest-babies/p6http://www.empireonline.com/features/cinemas-creepiest-babies/p6http://www.dailyfilmdose.com/2010/11/alien.htmlhttp://www.dailyfilmdose.com/2010/11/alien.htmlhttp://www.google.co.uk/imgres?q=alien+1979&um=1&hl=en&client=safari&sa=N&rls=en&biw=1280&bih=738&tbm=isch&tbnid=TAYzs3Ji7OfgMM:&imgrefurl=http://www.propstore.com/warrior.htm&docid=_KNnhElbjbtexM&imgurl=http://www.propstore.com/content/propstorecollection/warrior/dvd1.jpg&w=1000&h=563&ei=_OKGUM6wIa-U0QXYqoHQBQ&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=189&vpy=286&dur=1574&hovh=168&hovw=299&tx=251&ty=103&sig=108892026383625342798&page=3&tbnh=127&tbnw=236&start=47&ndsp=26&ved=1t:429,r:43,s:20,i:316http://www.google.co.uk/imgres?q=alien+1979&um=1&hl=en&client=safari&sa=N&rls=en&biw=1280&bih=738&tbm=isch&tbnid=TAYzs3Ji7OfgMM:&imgrefurl=http://www.propstore.com/warrior.htm&docid=_KNnhElbjbtexM&imgurl=http://www.propstore.com/content/propstorecollection/warrior/dvd1.jpg&w=1000&h=563&ei=_OKGUM6wIa-U0QXYqoHQBQ&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=189&vpy=286&dur=1574&hovh=168&hovw=299&tx=251&ty=103&sig=108892026383625342798&page=3&tbnh=127&tbnw=236&start=47&ndsp=26&ved=1t:429,r:43,s:20,i:316http://www.google.co.uk/imgres?q=alien+1979&um=1&hl=en&client=safari&sa=N&rls=en&biw=1280&bih=738&tbm=isch&tbnid=TAYzs3Ji7OfgMM:&imgrefurl=http://www.propstore.com/warrior.htm&docid=_KNnhElbjbtexM&imgurl=http://www.propstore.com/content/propstorecollection/warrior/dvd1.jpg&w=1000&h=563&ei=_OKGUM6wIa-U0QXYqoHQBQ&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=189&vpy=286&dur=1574&hovh=168&hovw=299&tx=251&ty=103&sig=108892026383625342798&page=3&tbnh=127&tbnw=236&start=47&ndsp=26&ved=1t:429,r:43,s:20,i:316http://www.google.co.uk/imgres?q=alien+1979&um=1&hl=en&client=safari&sa=N&rls=en&biw=1280&bih=738&tbm=isch&tbnid=TAYzs3Ji7OfgMM:&imgrefurl=http://www.propstore.com/warrior.htm&docid=_KNnhElbjbtexM&imgurl=http://www.propstore.com/content/propstorecollection/warrior/dvd1.jpg&w=1000&h=563&ei=_OKGUM6wIa-U0QXYqoHQBQ&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=189&vpy=286&dur=1574&hovh=168&hovw=299&tx=251&ty=103&sig=108892026383625342798&page=3&tbnh=127&tbnw=236&start=47&ndsp=26&ved=1t:429,r:43,s:20,i:316http://www.google.co.uk/imgres?q=alien+1979&um=1&hl=en&client=safari&sa=N&rls=en&biw=1280&bih=738&tbm=isch&tbnid=TAYzs3Ji7OfgMM:&imgrefurl=http://www.propstore.com/warrior.htm&docid=_KNnhElbjbtexM&imgurl=http://www.propstore.com/content/propstorecollection/warrior/dvd1.jpg&w=1000&h=563&ei=_OKGUM6wIa-U0QXYqoHQBQ&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=189&vpy=286&dur=1574&hovh=168&hovw=299&tx=251&ty=103&sig=108892026383625342798&page=3&tbnh=127&tbnw=236&start=47&ndsp=26&ved=1t:429,r:43,s:20,i:316http://www.google.co.uk/imgres?q=alien+1979&um=1&hl=en&client=safari&sa=N&rls=en&biw=1280&bih=738&tbm=isch&tbnid=TAYzs3Ji7OfgMM:&imgrefurl=http://www.propstore.com/warrior.htm&docid=_KNnhElbjbtexM&imgurl=http://www.propstore.com/content/propstorecollection/warrior/dvd1.jpg&w=1000&h=563&ei=_OKGUM6wIa-U0QXYqoHQBQ&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=189&vpy=286&dur=1574&hovh=168&hovw=299&tx=251&ty=103&sig=108892026383625342798&page=3&tbnh=127&tbnw=236&start=47&ndsp=26&ved=1t:429,r:43,s:20,i:316http://www.google.co.uk/imgres?q=alien+1979&um=1&hl=en&client=safari&sa=N&rls=en&biw=1280&bih=738&tbm=isch&tbnid=TAYzs3Ji7OfgMM:&imgrefurl=http://www.propstore.com/warrior.htm&docid=_KNnhElbjbtexM&imgurl=http://www.propstore.com/content/propstorecollection/warrior/dvd1.jpg&w=1000&h=563&ei=_OKGUM6wIa-U0QXYqoHQBQ&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=189&vpy=286&dur=1574&hovh=168&hovw=299&tx=251&ty=103&sig=108892026383625342798&page=3&tbnh=127&tbnw=236&start=47&ndsp=26&ved=1t:429,r:43,s:20,i:316http://www.google.co.uk/imgres?q=alien+1979&um=1&hl=en&client=safari&sa=N&rls=en&biw=1280&bih=738&tbm=isch&tbnid=TAYzs3Ji7OfgMM:&imgrefurl=http://www.propstore.com/warrior.htm&docid=_KNnhElbjbtexM&imgurl=http://www.propstore.com/content/propstorecollection/warrior/dvd1.jpg&w=1000&h=563&ei=_OKGUM6wIa-U0QXYqoHQBQ&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=189&vpy=286&dur=1574&hovh=168&hovw=299&tx=251&ty=103&sig=108892026383625342798&page=3&tbnh=127&tbnw=236&start=47&ndsp=26&ved=1t:429,r:43,s:20,i:316http://www.google.co.uk/imgres?q=alien+1979&um=1&hl=en&client=safari&sa=N&rls=en&biw=1280&bih=738&tbm=isch&tbnid=TAYzs3Ji7OfgMM:&imgrefurl=http://www.propstore.com/warrior.htm&docid=_KNnhElbjbtexM&imgurl=http://www.propstore.com/content/propstorecollection/warrior/dvd1.jpg&w=1000&h=563&ei=_OKGUM6wIa-U0QXYqoHQBQ&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=189&vpy=286&dur=1574&hovh=168&hovw=299&tx=251&ty=103&sig=108892026383625342798&page=3&tbnh=127&tbnw=236&start=47&ndsp=26&ved=1t:429,r:43,s:20,i:316http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0078748/plotsummaryhttp://movies.tvguide.com/alien/review/111316http://www.graffitiwithpunctuation.net/2012/04/29/alien/http://www.graffitiwithpunctuation.net/2012/04/29/alien/http://www.top10films.co.uk/archives/1600http://www.top10films.co.uk/archives/1600http://www.top10films.co.uk/archives/1600http://ltquinn.blogspot.co.uk/2012/04/alien-1979-review-04-30-12.htmlhttp://kecasfilm.blogspot.co.uk/2012/07/alien-1979-film-analysis.htmlhttp://www.empireonline.com/features/cinemas-creepiest-babies/p6http://movies.tvguide.com/alien/review/111316http://www.graffitiwithpunctuation.net/2012/04/29/alien/http://www.top10films.co.uk/archives/1600http://www.dailyfilmdose.com/2010/11/alien.htmlhttp://www.google.co.uk/imgres?q=alien+1979&um=1&hl=en&client=safari&sa=N&rls=en&biw=1280&bih=738&tbm=isch&tbnid=TAYzs3Ji7OfgMM:&imgrefurl=http://www.propstore.com/warrior.htm&docid=_KNnhElbjbtexM&imgurl=http://www.propstore.com/content/propstorecollection/warrior/dvd1.jpg&w=1000&h=563&ei=_OKGUM6wIa-U0QXYqoHQBQ&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=189&vpy=286&dur=1574&hovh=168&hovw=299&tx=251&ty=103&sig=108892026383625342798&page=3&tbnh=127&tbnw=236&start=47&ndsp=26&ved=1t:429,r:43,s:20,i:316http://www.google.co.uk/imgres?q=alien+1979&um=1&hl=en&client=safari&sa=N&rls=en&biw=1280&bih=738&tbm=isch&tbnid=TAYzs3Ji7OfgMM:&imgrefurl=http://www.propstore.com/warrior.htm&docid=_KNnhElbjbtexM&imgurl=http://www.propstore.com/content/propstorecollection/warrior/dvd1.jpg&w=1000&h=563&ei=_OKGUM6wIa-U0QXYqoHQBQ&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=189&vpy=286&dur=1574&hovh=168&hovw=299&tx=251&ty=103&sig=108892026383625342798&page=3&tbnh=127&tbnw=236&start=47&ndsp=26&ved=1t:429,r:43,s:20,i:316http://www.google.co.uk/imgres?q=alien+1979&um=1&hl=en&client=safari&sa=N&rls=en&biw=1280&bih=738&tbm=isch&tbnid=TAYzs3Ji7OfgMM:&imgrefurl=http://www.propstore.com/warrior.htm&docid=_KNnhElbjbtexM&imgurl=http://www.propstore.com/content/propstorecollection/warrior/dvd1.jpg&w=1000&h=563&ei=_OKGUM6wIa-U0QXYqoHQBQ&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=189&vpy=286&dur=1574&hovh=168&hovw=299&tx=251&ty=103&sig=108892026383625342798&page=3&tbnh=127&tbnw=236&start=47&ndsp=26&ved=1t:429,r:43,s:20,i:316http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0078748/plotsummary