Movie #91 - Aliens

"This time there's more."

Great tag line. Definitely one of my favourite James Cameron films - however, nothing beats Terminator 2: Judgment Day in my books!

For a horror / action movie, this movie received a great deal of critical acclaim, for acting, directing, and special effects. For 1986 and limited CGI technology, a number of these scenes had to be created with miniatures, life-sized puppets, and innovative filming techniques.

Winner of two Oscars for visual effects and sound effects, Weaver got nominated for Best Actress for her reprisal of the Ellen Ripley character... a recurring character in the original Alien Quadrology. Add in some strong cameos from everyone's favourite Sigma Nu - Michael Biehn, cult weirdo Lance Henriksen, and of course Bill Paxton and weenie Paul Reiser. Although I like Reiser in this asshole role... which is by far better than the crap he usually appears in (see all of his television roles for examples).

Three awesome scenes in this film make this movie worthwhile. 1. Bishop impalement scene - probably the best scene involving milk as a studio prop. You'll know what I mean when you see it. 2. Bishop knife scene - yeah... let's just say thousands of 80's teenagers probably tried to do this in real life, to no avail. I tried to do it with a sharp pencil back in the day and let's just say its better than using a knife. 3. Ripley vs. Queen Alien scene - awesome use of mechanical forklifts... enough said.

If after 22 years, you still haven't seen this movie, I have no sympathies for you. Its a must see if you are a fan of the genre, the franchise, and if you enjoy a great action movie where you don't have to think, but enjoy plain violence - 80's style!