Thoughts

Thoughts

(On AVP 1): I've read a massive amount of scathing reviews of Alien versus Predator. After watching the movie a few times in the theater, I feel that the popular bad rap is undeserved. Paul Anderson's vision combined the Alien and Predator franchises in a fresh direction, opening the door for future development of the series. Though the film did not have all out war between the species as I had hoped for, the end produect had a sharp well evolved plot with excellent acting and raging battle sequences....

February 21, 2004 /// I saw the director's cut of "Aliens" shortly after its original release in the early 1990's. I have always revered this version over the theatrical release of 1985. It is wonderful to see that the comprehensive artistic vision has found a home in the DVD release, even if not in the cinema. The restored sequences (that pertain to Ripley's daughter and the infection of the colony on LV-426) enrich the depth of human emotion and character development to a far greater extent. I understand that time constraints often necessitate the removal of certain elements of a story, but the continuity of this particular film was most definitely compromised, lacking the back stories of Riply and Newt losing their immediate families.
In some respects, I fundamentally disagreed with the advent of a Queen-centered model for the Alien species. One of the most terrifying aspects of the Alien in the special edition of Alien is the fact that it utilizes asexual reproduction. A creature that reproduces with out (human) love, (animal) attraction, or a mate posesses a frigid nature that defies the Earthly logic of multi-cellular organisms. James Cameron struck out with his own interpretation of the Alien that turned out to be a slam dunk in the box office and in the minds of Alien fans the world over. In retrospect, I've come to love and respect Cameron's vision, and I am ecstatic that Fox embraced his concept for the Quadrilogy. The two Aliens: Special Edition disks provide a fantastic collection of behind-the-scenes features (that even expand on the negative aspects of production), and provide the audience with the ultimate creation of the cinematic genius James Cameron... Mission Complete...

February 13, 2004/// I've been reading a great deal about Paul Anderson (Resident Evil, Event Horizon) who is both writing and directing the upcoming Alien versus Predator movie. There is currently intense debate between those who support the decision by Twentieth Century Fox (for Anderson to head the production), and those who vehemently believe that Anderson is a poor choice. Personally, I have mixed emotions regarding the situation. My primary fear regarding the production of AvP is that the creators will attempt to make the film "all things to all people" so to speak. In regards to Anderson, I think that he played into this sandtrap with the "Resident Evil" film. After considering the brute realistic essence of George Romero's "Day of the Dead" and "Dawn of the Dead" films, I was dissapointed in the watered-down feel of the Resident Evil horror scenes. It seemed as if the producers were trying to corner the 13-17 year old market by toning down the level of violence and filming the movie with prepackaged effects and thrills. I should add that I had played the video game prior to viewing the film, but was not biased against an interpretation that did not mirror the game.... The fact that Anderson wrote "Event Horizon" gives me a glimmer of hope for AvP and for the possibility that it will be a brutal classic among the Alien/Predator films. "Event Horizon" is dark, claustrophobic, hellishly intense, well written, and well acted. So long as Anderson maintains that level of quality in AvP, and does not fall into the pit of overcommercialization, we may quite possibly have an incredible terrifying debut to look foward to this summer. Then again, who am I to speculate???

February 2, 2004/// I finally purchased the Alien quadrilogy this week, and have been watching the movies and extra disks non-stop. I initially had doubts that Fox Entertainment would be putting heart and soul into this boxed set but now my entire outlook has changed. The Alien Quadrilogy is by far the most comprehensive and perfected set that I have seen for any series of movies, hands down. Each disk has a massive amount of information, vital to any hardcore fan. The Special Edition of each movie is spectacular beyond belief. Thus far, my personal favorite has been the special edition of Alien 3. The entire plot and dynamic of the movie has been altered and restored to an original vision that creates a deeper, more realistic, and darker gothic feel. I was astounded at the directing skill of David Fincher (Seven, Fight Club), and I now hold this movie in much higher esteem than I once did. The Alien Quadrilogy does justice to the epic saga that is the essence of the Alien species. Hats off to Fox Entertainment and all those who put their time, energy, and love into this incredible work of art. If this boxed set is to set the tone for the future of the Alien in cinema, we have much to look foward to.

What's Up?///Feb, 3, 2003/// I just finished watching the special edition of Alien for the second time. It was thrilling to see that Ridley Scott restored the footage of the Cocoon Sequence. Considering that James Cameron chose to pursue a queen-centered model (as far as Alien reproduction), I felt that this action was a genuine move by Ridley Scott (and Fox Entertainment for that matter) to embrace the original concept of the Alien lifecycle as envisioned by H.R. Giger, and the storyline's creators (Dan O' Bannon and Ronald Shusett.) The resulting special edition is a spectacular representation of the movie with infinitely more complex interpersonal relationships between each actor, and an overwhelming sense in each scene that the previous edition lacked the icing on the cake (so to speak). The tension between each human character is not as pronounced in the initial cut of Alien, which in the end lessens the psychological thrill of the experience. The exploration of this aspect of the film is a crucial and essential part of the whole. In short, the special edition of Alien holds true to the original conception of the creature, and reflects the utmost care with which each piece of the Alien Quadrilogy set was created.

The Alien devised by H.R. Giger is the most brutal and efficient organism that has ever penetrated the collective imagination of the Sci-Fi community. This site is forever dedicated to providing each fan with the most comprehensive, realistic, and up to date information on the Alien, the speculative biology of the species, and the artwork of H.R. Giger, the inspiration of it all. Your interest and support are infinitely appreciated.......