Some other good ones were the ones about the Alien's biology or anatomy and if it was a biological weapon or a naturally occurring lifeform.
I guess I thought that's what he meant when he mentioned "the facehugger, the chestburster, the full-grown xeno" in his OP. I have to agree with you, the creature's anatomy and biology is what really drew me to this movie. Discussing that was always what "tickled my brain" the most.
I love your analogy of the prehistoric ocean creature. Sharks have been unchanged for millions of years. Evolution doesn't work with an "end goal" in mind so when it finds something that works, it just works. Sharks are easily as terrifying as the alien. I tend to agree with you that a naturally occurring monster is more frightening.
The idea that the creature was somehow manufactured is compelling though and, based on Ridley Scott's commentary on the Alien DVD, I think that was what he was trying to convey. (Side note - for a great drinking game, take a drink every time Ridley Scott says "biomechanical" or "biomechanoid," you'll be hammered by the end of the movie.) I think O'Bannon and Shussett left it intentionally ambiguous and I'm glad.
*edit* Oops, didn't proofread before I posted.
I can only conclude I'm paying off karma at a vastly accelerated rate.
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wears-alan
7 years ago
How much did the Company really know?
How did they find out about the signal?
Was special order 937 only put in Ash or was it a standard order?
If those pen pushers up at city hall don't like it,well, they swivel on this middle digit!
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dgfan
7 years ago
I love your analogy of the prehistoric ocean creature. Sharks have been unchanged for millions of years. Evolution doesn't work with an "end goal" in mind so when it finds something that works, it just works. Sharks are easily as terrifying as the alien. I tend to agree with you that a naturally occurring monster is more frightening.
Exactly. The idea of the Alien being something that might have been around since the Universe was young and an even more dangerous place than now makes it seem that much more menacing to me. The fossil record shows that millions of years ago we had animals or other creatures in the oceans that were far larger, more predatory, and more dangerous than anything around today. I can see the Alien sort of fitting that.
I like the shark analogy. I kind of see it that sharks are sort of like the Alien in a way. They are pure predators that are "unclouded by conscience, remorse, or delusions of morality." I think that's close to the line anyway. They just go on instinct. I was in the water with a large shark years ago in the Gulf of Mexico and for a few seconds there my heart was pounding. This one was big enough that it could have taken me out if it had wanted to and there wouldn't have been anything I could have done to stop it. It just came out of nowhere. Lucky for me it didn't turn in my direction. Later that day a fisherman caught a small Great White on a pier and even though it was small it already had a mouth full of teeth. Kind of like the chestburster had when it screeched at Parker.
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