Aliens
“Get Away From Her, You Bitch!” -Ripley
Sequels definitely can struggle, and usually do unless you are Star Wars or Christopher Nolan’s Batman trilogy, but the Alien franchise got it right. One of the coolest things that the Alien franchise does is that they use different directors. With James Cameron taking the helm, it trades Ridley Scott's chilling suspense into a bonafide action movie. It's a testament to the franchise's strength that it can excel in both styles. Obviously after the first, some new characters needed to be added, and I think we have the right mixture of personalities. From reading reviews, I may be on an island here, but I think Newt was the best addition to the cast. It creates a new obstacle for escape while also giving Ripley a much more emotional level. Thankfully, Aliens doesn't abandon the practical effects that made the original's Xenomorphs so iconic. We got to witness more of them, and it still almost wasn’t enough! This blend of practical effects and emerging CGI ensures the film holds up even decades later.
Aliens understands what made the first film work. This film still leans on Sigourney Weaver, the Aliens are still terrifying, and even if it leans more to action the suspense still gets to you. At first the action seemed like it may be too much, finding a great balance and creating a sequel that in my opinion exceeds its predecessor. For a franchise I was skeptical of, I am finding a new found love for it, even if I read that they start to decline now. Aliens stands as another masterpiece, a worthy successor that surpasses its predecessor!
-J
Re-watching this again, one thing became clear for E and I, and that is that the original is superior. An entirely different tone, Aliens lacks the tense, gripping horror and the laser-sharp logic that the characters shared in the original. It’s more akin to a war film than horror, but that said, it’s undeniably fun. You can see what James Cameron would later work out in his Avatar series, with his space marines and their energy, camaraderie, and heroism. You also see the beginning of his obsessions with mech suits, which doesn’t have the same punch in Aliens as in the Avatar movies, but you have to get him the benefit of the doubt due to the era. The lore that’s added to xenomorph species with the queen is brilliant, and the whole sequence of entering and escaping the nest was a masterclass. The addition of Newt to the mix was an interesting element to showcase another side of Ripley, but her character was written inconsistently, to the point that it brought me out of the film a bit. Again, I’m nitpicking, as it still is an amazing movie, and certainly propelled one of the greatest movie franchises in existence.
-Z
