They are 2 completely different movies, 1 horror, the other, action/adventure. I’ve never liked Dan O’Bannon. I don’t think that he likes people. You already know my complaint about this being a regurgitation of the “trapped in a house with [yet another] monster trope,” utterly derivative. To his credit, 0’Bannon’s Alien called for the Alien to pass through I think it was 7 stages of metamorphosis, from
zygote to mature, each becoming increasingly deadly. THAT was cool. And THAT was instantly jettisoned by the second movie, presumably because the studio and the writers could not be bothered.
Enter Cameron, who said, “Fuck you feckless nonentities, this is now a rollicking action film that will KICK ASS from here to Andromeda and back again. Let’s keep it
simple, exciting and fun.”
Wise old Chinese saying (as if there were any old
Chinese sayings that are not wise): “There are 2 ways to do anything: the easy way, and the simple way.” Simplicity is perceived as being very hard to achieve. The perception is correct.
And this movie gave us ELLEN
RIPLEY. In the pantheon of woman heroes, which is considerable, name me 1 who has more guts than Ripley and as much acting chops as Sigourney Weaver. Maybe, MAYBE Charlize Theron, who has not had a script quite like Aliens. [Rod Serling voice] Submitted for your consideration: Sigourney Weaver is the greatest woman movie heroine of all time AND she kicked ass in Galaxy Quest and in Death and the Maiden. What can’t she do?
Nothing.
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Wint3rFir3 (7146)
2 years ago
I can see your point about the action flick being a better fit for Alien than the house monster trope (although I don't know that it was that much of a trope in 1979). However, I hate the fact that Ellen Ripley of Aliens and not Alien is considered the prototype for the female action hero, and how everyone dregs up this character as the go to example of how female action heroes should be.
It reminds me of how Sarah Connor of T2 is the other go to example of how women should be in action movies, even though imo she was much more courageous and enjoyable as a character in the first film. It just reminds of how women in action films are treated as though they should be monolithic, and I hate that for women.
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R_Kane (15828)
2 years ago
I have always maintained that Valaria in Conan the Barbarian is the very first convincing woman warrior I saw in a movie. Hands down! That was in 1982. Aliens came out in 1986.
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Wint3rFir3 (7146)
2 years ago
Not Barbarella in 1968? Lol Valeria was pretty cool, but I think Zula was way more convincing as a warrior. Then again, I'm pretty easy to convince when it comes to warrior women, as I grew up watching Xena, Mortal Kombat and Tia Carrere's Akivasha of Kull the Conqueror, plus I saw a lot of athletic women on TV in cartoons like X-men.
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R_Kane (15828)
2 years ago
I am a martial arts instructor. Fighting is, first, about preventing conflict, then, second, about killing conflict, and it is from those perspectives that I judge. Sandhal Bergman, a lead dancer on Broadway, was an actual world-class athlete who, like Ziyi Zhang in Crouching…/Hidden, easily learned martial style. I stand by my statement that she is the first CONVINCING woman warrior I saw on film. So did the rest of my dojo when I played them the movie.
To forward to the modern day, the character of Baldwin in the superb albeit sadly truncated series Counterpart is a badass par excellence.
One of my woman colleagues at the dojo shared an observation with me: “When men fight, they try to make themselves bigger. When women fight, we try to make ourselves smaller, to be a smaller target.”
I have long thought that women are generally smarter than men.”
I enjoy your posts.
PS There was a time when I wanted to marry Tia Carrere. I thought she was 1 of the 2 most beautiful women in the world. She and her husband were both kickboxers.
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Wint3rFir3 (7146)
2 years ago
Very true, women often fight to make themselves smaller. It's not usually about ego and glory, it's about taking the least damage in the most efficient and time-saving way and getting it over with quickly and neatly.
Yeah, Tia Carrere had that affect on many people. I recall thinking she was one of the most beautiful people I'd ever seen as a kid, probably before I even had a clear definition of beauty set in my mind.
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R_Kane (15828)
2 years ago
You probably remember the scene in the Wayne’s World movie where Wayne and Garth meet Heather Locklear, fall to their knees and genuflect while chanting “We’re not worthy.” Well, I think Tia puts Heather in the freaking shade, and I have always admired Heather as an athlete and a woman. You have good taste. Not for nothing, I have always admired the poetry of your screen name. It looks like you put thought into it, as I did. So few others seem to follow suit.
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Wint3rFir3 (7146)
2 years ago
I actually don't remember Wayne's World that well, but Heather Locklear was a beauty - but not imo comparable to Tia Carrere. But that may be a matter of taste, and thanks I think it's good as well haha. It's sad that Locklear has gone the route of drug abuse, while Carrere has mostly aged gracefully.
I picked my name pretty easily because I'm a fan of Stephen King's IT mini series, which I'd probably re-watched recently at the time of choosing, and of Annette O'Toole, so there was no grand scheme that went into it. It was a pretty piece of wording that honored that series and O'Toole at the same time, and it always reminds me of the coziness of winter-time, so nothing to it really.
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R_Kane (15828)
2 years ago
I have always fancied Anette O’Toole, especially in Cat People. She is my kind of woman. You are my kind of friend.
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