MovieChat Forums > Terra (2009) Discussion > Those aliens

Those aliens

posted 14 years ago by jernej-tojersu
6 replies | jump to latest

I kinda liked the movie, it was above average in my opinion. The biggest gripe I have with this movie is that those aliens were just pathetic. Their design was friggin horrible. They looked like flying rags with marbles for heads.

How the hell were they able to float like that and when Mala actually carried one of the humans back to her house. HOW THE *beep* IS THAT EVEN POSSIBLE. I can sort of understand her being able to float around like someone showed her ass full of helium, but she couldn't have flown with the human like she did.

There's a reason birds have wings, it's called LIFT. Something the makers of this movie don't seem to understand.

Why the hell couldn't they just give the aliens legs, or wings. Now that would be something. Or give them some flying pets that they use, something like pandora did. Anything but having them float around like they do. I mean they're not friggin ghosts.

[–] louie94 14 years ago

The director said, and I'm not joking, that they didn't give them legs becuase budget reasons. I guess it would have cost more to spend more time to animate legs for both the humans and the aliens so they just made them float. I meant it when I said I wasn't joking.

Alpha Mike Foxtrot!-Col. "Hannibal" Smith

[–] valdezlopez 14 years ago

The aliens (Terrans) were designed without legs to cut back on time and budget and avoid spending resources on animating legs (the animating crew for this movie was quite small, compared to other animated productions out there).

Also, to answer the "Mala couldn't fly with the human"... I know, I know, it's a small thing, but, have you considered their atmosphere not consisting of air?

After all, the story shows us over and over that Terra´s atmosphere does not consist of oxygen. Maybe it is made out of something denser. Like what water is to air.

Maybe that explains why there are creatures such as the "whales" roaming/floating around the atmosphere.

I say, this is a whole new world, who knows hot the environment reacts.

[–] saga_heart 14 years ago

Personally, I think that this is one thing that can be attributed to an "alien" world, where some things just can't be explained using Terrestrial physics and the story line takes precedence.

Although your explanation of the denser atmosphere is feasible, then we have to ask our selves why the aliens and their machinery floated like they did while the human fell to the ground like a rock on Earth. Perhaps the key was the density of Terra's elements, and not so much of the atmosphere.

BTW, I noticed that the humans gave the name to the planet, but as far as i could tell, the indigenous population never referred to it by a name. Interesting. Regards!

[–] tiger_yen2001 13 years ago

LOL! Funny is that when I saw that movie, in my mind, these aliens look like sperm and float like a sperm!

[–] Theobz69 12 years ago

OMG tiger yen2001 thats EXACTLY what i was thinkin when i first saw 'em haha. I was just about to post sumthin similar but ya beat me to it lol. I was hopin and/or wonderin if someone was gonna say it or not. Glad i aint the only one tho! lol. These aliens are exactly what flyin sperm would look like. I was also wondering if the ppl/person who created this ever even realized or figured that or took it into account. Im sensing maybe a lil subliminal messaging here i dunno lol. Anywho, i liked the movie regardless. I just...wasn't really expecting to notice that...ESPECIALLY from an animated movie no doubt. Sh!t cracks me up!!! Eh, either way i'd give it a 7 or 8

[–] Rocksterious 11 years ago

My first thought was that the planet must have a lower gravity, so big wings and such, would be unnecessary.
The "flying" whales bore this out, since their extreme size, weight and non-aerodynamic shape, would make flight under an Earth-like gravity impossible.
The atmosphere didn't appear to be anything close to the density of water either, as there seemed to be no restriction to the creatures' movements as you'd see in creatures moving around slowly underwater here on Earth.
The air doesn't appear to offer any resistance at all.
As I said, that's what I thought at first.
However, both theories (weak gravity, dense atmosphere) failed when Mala was able to move around in the same way aboard the "Ark" Spaceship, which had an oxygen rich atmosphere and simulated Earth gravity.
She should have been flopping around on the floor like a fish. (or at least a mermaid)

Oh well, it doesn't do to over-think these things I suppose. lol
Suspension of disbelief is the order of the day here.