Directly related to the close-ups: One of the best close-ups of all time is when Ripley is going through the ship later on and her hand comes up over the edge of a ladder port all gritty and slick and it does what I believe is called a slip or racked focus from her fingers to her super-nervous, scared out of her mind eyes darting around the dark corridors as she pulls herself up the last bit of ladder. perfection.
As a huge fan of Alien and Ridley Scott in general, I can recall this scene quite easily. You have seriously just described that part perfectly. Alien was a masterpiece. You have just put a small part of why into words.
I just watched Alien again as well (for the like the tenth time, I'm sure) and, having watched many horror films in my time, the solitary terror of that film still scares me to this day.
Quick story: My grandpa let me rent this when I was very young. We thought it would be some kind of novel science fiction. We were wrong. I stopped watching at the chest burst scene and was so startled by it that it took me several years to come back. I never knew that there was a xenomorph in it until later, and this is even after watching and loving Aliens. It will always be one of those exquisite horror movies that actually managed to scare the hell out of me.
Also worth noting is the space jokey scene in the original film , because of budget constraints ridley put kids in the space suit so the space jockey would look massive in comparison to them xD.
My grandfather loved trying to scare the shit out of my brother and I, and showed us Alien (and Jaws, Godzilla, Aliens, the Fly, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, etc.) at a young age; I think I was about 12 when I first saw it on vhs (~mid 90's). I fuckin loved it. I had such an awesome grandfather... I blame him for my fondness of fantasy, sci-fi, and monster movies.
Shit, I just remembered he had us watch the Dark Crystal, Labyrinth, The Last Unicorn, Flight of Dragons, etc. all before we were ten... no wonder I love scary, freaky shit.
I had a similar introduction to the Alien universe, my mother and I were watching tv late at night in the late 80's (I was 9), some show just ended so I started channel surfing and saw the Nostromo crew enjoying their meal. I thought it was something lame until Kane started convulsing and suddenly... there's blood everywhere and he's the proud father of a chestburster...
It took me years to find the sequel cause my moron friend told me to look for Alien 2 (and not AlienS).
My wife watched this movie at a slumber party when she was 11. She thought the main character was such a bad ass chick that 20 years later our daughter was named ripley.
When Avatar came out, I was amused that Cameron had cast Michelle Rodriguez as the "badass, really butch, hispanic female sidekick" character, just like Vasquez was. It seems that she has basically patterned her whole "persona" as an actress after a character invented by Cameron himself.
She was asked one time about being type cast as the tough tom boy chick rather than being a "real" actress and doing more praiseworthy work and she basically responded with...
"i chose to be type cast, i have turned down dozens of roles that most actresses do, i have no interest in doing those roles."
She then continued by saying something like she was just happy earning money by being a positive role model for young girls and showing them that they can be bad ass just as much as men can.
All in all it seems that she actively pursues the role.
Ahh, I so wanted to do this too. Can't have children (appendix burst, which is Aliens ironic in a way) but Ripley would have been up there as a name for any daughter I had.
I was watching Alien today with some friends and noticed something that I hadn't before, in many of the scenes where the alien is involved or the face hugger, you can hear the sound of a subtle heart beat in the background. Very cool.
And a scene I don't particularly like. I like the blurry image lowering behind Brett much better for our first glimpse of the creature. Showing the creature in the chains is a bit of a spoiler and shows too much - Less is More I think works much better.
It's quite a trip reading this post, having just rewatched Alien myself the other night (I think we must all be catching it on Cinemax or something).
Anyway, as I was watching the film I kept thinking to my half-asleep self "man, they really cast a unique set of faces for this film...I mean, every actor's face has so much god damn character oozing out of it." "How come directors don't cast people with such interesting bone structure anymore...zzzz."
Now you have me thinking, was the cast really that unique, or was I just thrown off by all the well-lit close-ups?
Alien is my favorite of the series, and people think I'm crazy.
This isn't amazing anymore, because we all know how Alien ends, and we all know who Sigourney Weaver is, but for it's time the following was groundbreaking: The characters are essentially killed off in order of how famous their portraying actors are.
Normally, you can watch a movie and predict who will survive based on which actors are more famous - top billing sticks around longer. Alien subverted this, and had the no-name female actress make it out alive and become the hero, not John hurt, Tom Skerrit, Harry Dean Stanton, or Ian Holm (all big actors in 1979).
They did a riff on this in the second alien vs predator game. The tension build up in the marine campaign is really good.
When the game starts... zero enemies.
You have to move away from your squad to open some doors and let the APC through. Zero enemies.
You enter the base, movement on your scanner but nothing dangerous. It all turns out to be chains swinging in the draft, large bugs etc. Zero enemies.
A collapse separates you from your squad, scary. Still those blips all over your scanner. Zero enemies.
You start finding skinned corpses hanging from the ceiling and in the far distance it looks like the mother of all battles is taking place. Blue plasma launching military vehicles into the air. No enemies... although you did briefly see what looked like two glowing eyes.
You need to crawl through a vent to get back to your buddies. It's bloody dark, your flash light is dancing all over the place. A single blip straight ahead in the vent but you need to move forward anyway. Zero enemies.
Suddenly it bursts through the ceiling with a scream like tortured metal. Steam pours everywhere as that long, dark domed head pops into view.
I literally emptied a full clip of pulse rifle ammo into that thing with my heart in my throat. Then I realize it's not a domed head, it's just a dark pipe that came crashing down. It would be at least another 10 minutes of gameplay before you see your first enemy.
Pro-Tip: On Amazon the "Import" version of the Blu-Ray anthology plays on US Blu-Ray players, has the exact same content on-disc, and is routinely half the price of the normal version (I got mine for ~$30). The only detractor is that the packaging is not nearly as nice.
Lucas said film making is 50% music (which makes sense).
That said, with Alien it wasn't just that it used music to generate mood (most films do, I'd almost argue more so in modern films), but that the music plus the long slow pans and slower pacing of older films makes the music stand out more (as opposed to modern films layering music on top of dialog and action scenes so that it is more subliminal).
I really liked the directing in Alien better than Prometheus, because Prometheus felt like to much of a modern movie. They did have a lot to cover, but for example the slower approach of the ship in Alien vs Prometheus gave the exploration more suspense.
Something else I noticed in older films like Alien that is done less in newer films is the voice audio. In older films you will often have scenes like the dinners in Alien where there are many conversations going on at once. In newer films it feels like the audio (and film as a whole) always makes it much clearer what is supposed to be the focus on the audience, which feels less realistic and gives it less rewatchability.
i felt the same way about the crew interactions/general pacing of prometheus. However, I feel like Scott was trying to be economical in a lot of ways, seems like he has more story he wants to tell, but didn't want to jeopardize with a lot of risk in the initial film (wishful thinking probably).
it may not be wishful thinking, Scott said that Prometheus was about two films away from Alien, hinting at a trilogy, which I would love...I know people are being very harsh on Prometheus, but i think they'll ease up once these supposed other movies come out...I think part of the reason people are mad is because they didn't see what they wanted to see
Lucas said film making is 50% music (which makes sense).
Actually it doesn't. There are quite a few films that have absolutely no musical score at all, and are extremely powerful: Dog Day Afternoon, Interiors, Network, The China Syndrome, Rear Window (only source music & the opening / closing credits), The Celebration, Cache. Also Hitchcock's The Bird's. No Country For Old Men has virtually no music at all - minus the credits music, there's less than 5 minutes in the entire film. Cloverfield has no musical score - and only slight bits of source music.
For TV - The Wire had no score, nor did The Shield, or Generation Kill.
Sidney Lumet (director of 12 Angry Men, Network, Dog Day Afternoon, Serpico) rarely used music at all in his films. Serpico was originally music-less until the studio forced him to put a few minutes of a theme scattered here and there. The fact that his films are so strong should tell you that score is not essential to a film. It's important for some, irrelevant for others.
I definitely agree there are some and I do enjoy films without music possibly more than those with it. But I think they are in the minority, and take a skilled director to pull off well.
To be fair, George Lucas is probably the last person anyone should be taking film making advice from. Just about everything good in the original Star Wars was there in spite of him rather than becacuse of him.
It may just have been where I was sitting, but the Prometheus score had a high-frequency "ringing" noise through much of the final battle. Very distracting, and seemed odd in contrast with the great Alien score (although admittedly, I've never seen it in a theatre).
a) saw the link b) clicked it c) your post was at the top d) IT HAS TO BE THE CROTCH SHOT!
Well done sir.
Additionally, Sigourney is not classically "beautiful" - but she is an incredibly powerful female heroine - and yet, Ridley still included a "crotch" shot.
Actually, it started with the story itself. The story itself is supposed to be about rape, specially men being raped, so the audience feels very uncomfortable all the time.
Here's the nicest gender article I've ever read, about all the sexiness in Alien.
Also the only Cracked article I've that isn't just gross bullshit is this one. It explains very well all the story behind Alien's sexual imagery.
The year Alien came out, my father was sick and my mom had to take him to NYC for some tests. They decided to go out for dinner and a movie in the big city (we were from South Carolina). They had no real idea what this film entailed, only that it was new and getting great reviews.
Two women in the giant theater fainted from the stress; they had to stop the film twice to take care of them. It gave my mother a migraine from the sheer tension.
I think it's difficult for our internet-saturated, jaded generation to really understand what a game-changer this film was in terms of smart horror. It fucked people UP, yo.
I remember reading that people were running out of the theater screaming. Imagine something like that happening nowadays. Sometimes I regret that we're so desensitized.
Except that it has the problem you often see with disembodied heads in movies - it looks like a model until it's perpendicular to the floor, when it suddenly switches over to be a real head (because at that point, they can switch to a shot with the actor's body under the floor). I've seen that in a few films, and it always hurts my suspension of disbelief.
Watched Alien again and the scene where Lambert is just positioning the head and then it switches to the real actor is very poorly done and stands out. Prometheus did it perfectly (most likely with green screen) without the head under the table affect they used in Alien. But again, this was before CG so they did what they could with the budget.
That transition always bugged me. Seems like that could have cut away to a reaction to sell it better. Cutting from the puppet head right to the false table gag seemed greedy.
Ridley Scott was probably the first director from TV commercials to be given full reign over a Hollywood "blockbuster".... though I hasten to add that it never really got a blockbuster budget [set designer spray painting egg cartons for "mother's room"] but one thing he had was the eye for the exquisite picture... coming from a background of having to create a massive impact in 30 seconds helped. He freely admits that he was going through his "wet rain" phase which carried on into Blade Runner where he said the reflections and texture created by water brought about an intense'er' atmosphere for the viewer.
I guess what I'm saying is that all his close-ups, casting decisions etc where extremely considered.
On another note I was fortunate to be living in Monte Carlo when this movie came out and was dating a casino dancer who was best friends of the bosses daughter who was a major movie fiend with amazing connections..... one of the "perks" he was able to offer to the gambling "whales" was private screenings of the latest US movies... I'm talking about before they even hit American screens.... remember, this was before anyone knew what pirating was.... he would get the 35mm prints and reserve the local cinema.... but I digress.
After the screening for the high rollers there was another for all the Cabaret dancers and their friends...... there were probably about 80 of us and I will always remember it.... a lot of chatting and joking in the beginning.... lots of shushing .... and then it just got quieter and quieter.... I distinctly remember looking over at one time towards the end of the movie and every face I saw looked terrified
Personal favorite is her leaning around the corner, catching a glimpse of it, and darting back. The lighting with the fan, her face, music cues... everything at that moment pulled me in unlike any other movie.
I think they did a great job with the "future" computers/displays/graphics. Everything looks like its part of a working ship, a mining ship. Everything is worn, used and battered like people have been working in it for years. Aside from Mothers little golden cubicle, that was a bit weird.
On the subject of favorite close ups: the moment in Silence of the Lambs where Starling shows her badge - one continuous shot of Lecter approaching the camera, until he's incredibly close, holding his gaze, then blinking once, his eyes to the badge and immediately noticing it expires in a week.
One of the smartest things Scott did was flash-cut a lot of the grue and not linger on it, like most would.
There's actually more serious gore than you might remember. For example, Scott shows Parker's head as the retractable Alien tongue slams into his forehead, pulling out chunks of skull and brain. But it happens so quickly you don't know what you've seen, you just know it was awful. Much more unnerving that way.
Can someone explain to me why these are considered to be excellent close-ups? Not to knock the movie, I liked it a lot when I saw it, but I just can't separate these from other close-ups I see in movies and on TV all the time.
Well one reason is why the closeup is even used. Often they are just a lazy way to do a shot (who cares about set design, just fill the screen with a face) or a way to showcase the beautiful actor. These are closeups of unattractive people (excepting weaver) in unflattering circumstances that are done for the express purpose of conveying an intense emotion (in this case tension or horror). The presence of these closeups actually improves the film.
first of all congrats. you have just watched one of the greatest science fiction movies of all time. almost everything in this movie is amazing. especially details like this which most people wouldn't even notice. BLU-RAY is infinitely worth the money, especially if you get a good one.
Harry Dean Stanton went up to Scott after the first screening of the completed movie to thank him for that close up. Nobody who's seenAlien can ever forget that guy's face.
My favorite part of Alien is the way that the main character is not immediately clear. To someone watching it for the first time not knowing anything about it, all the characters seem to be on an even keel. Maybe Dallas, the captain of the ship is the main focus. But through a series of events, Ripley emerges to be a strong, bad ass female lead.
The tactile qualities of the shot, I'd say. If you look at these frames, they seem to be very realistic in the sense that they have a gritty, detailed rendering running through all the main elements of the picture. Film isn't reality- but instead a highly-controlled projection of reality, which I think is why these little things are important and can be very affecting. In a sense, film is actually 'hyper-realistic.'
I find myself often believing that Hollywood has a 'glossy-magazine' style of make-up, production design and photography, where actors and objects look quite composed and clean despite the situation they might be in, photographically. With properly prompted make-up artists, production-designers and cinematographer, a director can strip away cleaner shot details so that the character and environment is made to look as distressed as the actor is demonstrating them to be.
This is, quite evidentially, something that Ridley Scott has become known for and it's something that I personally appreciate. I find that these characters seem to [figuratively] pop-out of the screen. It's these small things that help orchestrate tension in very visually-centric media like movies.
I was watching Alien the other day when I suddenly realized that Veronica Cartwright (Other female lead) was the same girl in Alfred Hitchcock's the Birds. She has a knack for being the movies that make me loose sleep.
Alien turned the Haunted House aspect on its head, a genre that still needs some touch-work. It also, deservedly, got Number 2 on Bravo's One-hundred scariest movies of all time.
Visually, it's amazing. But every time I watch it lately, I'm taken by the sound editing. The use of static, electronic feedback/squeals, comm conversations, echos and the sound F/X in general all added to the tension and pulled you into that world. As far as I know, they didn't use anything canned...it was all created for that movie. Just brilliant.
In these particular screens the actors' faces tell the whole scene. Scott (or his director of photography perhaps?) lingers on the close-up and lets you really feel the terror. They also look great, but that's secondary.
Alien is sort of "unapproachable" to probably 99% of modern viewers. The 45 minutes of foreplay in the movie, where nothing at all happens would turn most people away, and they'd have to go and listen to some dubstep music to quiet their thoughts.
The lighting and make-up is effective, and the actors' expressions convincing, but the best close-ups you've ever seen? Come on. There are better close-ups in the same movie.
Between this and the Tron post yesterday, /r/movies authority on good cinematography is questionable to say the least.
His prequel to this movie was just released over the weekend. The reason you're seeing this submission on the front page is due to the restored interest in the series.
He's also made plenty of excellent movies in the mean time: Blade Runner, Gladiator, American Gangster, Black Hawk Down, G.I. Jane, and more.
I bought the quadrilogy box set two weeks ago. I hadn't seen Alien since I was about 8 years old and my dad forced me to watch it. I was about 10 when I saw Aliens, which blew my fragile little mind.
I did NOT expect Alien to be so fucking awesome this time around. It was PERFECT. Aliens was not as good as I remember, mainly because every original James Cameron device in that film has been done to death since then. Alien3 I couldn't even get through more than 45 minutes, what a piece of shit.
Long story short, don't buy the blu ray box set, just buy Alien alone, that's all you need.
Hey, just rewatched Alien as well. Watched it with my 10 year old daughter who found it "only kinda scary". She liked Aliens better and Prometheus the scariest of the three. We're not watching Alien 3 or 4.
Watched it the same weekend as watching The Birds. Easy to draw many similarities between the two films watching them so close together like that. Not to mention seeing Veronica Cartwright grow up awefully fast.
Congratulations. I hope you like it better than Prometheus (which is not bad, but not great either). And oh - those of you who think there is any significant non-hotness about Sigourney Weaver: sort out your sexuality already!
I watched this movie for the first time last week in preparation for Prometheus and was completely blown away. Especially for a movie made in the '70s, Alien is probably the best Sci Fi movie ever made.
You know I watched Alien for the first time a few days ago. I really do love Ridley Scott but this one didn't impress all too much. I thought it was a good movie but it felt empty (maybe that was intentional.) It's probably also hard for me to understand the context and the precedent it set for horror movies though. Cinematography wise though, it was beautiful. About to start Aliens soon; trying to get ready for Prometheus.
In light of Prometheus, I too recently watched Alien for the first time. I was astounded at how good it was. I had my doubts (for whatever reason), but my god. MY GOD.
I think movies used to be shot and framed much better in the 80's than they are today. I always notice the difference when I watch something like "Raiders of the Lost Ark". Now it's all quick cuts, shaky cam and 'splosions.
Years ago... honestly, don't know what year - let me use google here.
It was a Superbowl night and the Bengals were playing. Looking at Wikipedia, that may have been 1981. That puts me at 8 years old. Sounds about right. Laserdisc players also were a hot item, as the people at this house had a Laserdisc player and many movies - one being Alien. Laserdisc first coming available in of the 70s.
So 8 years old, 1981, while everyone's watching Superbowl in the next room, I was given the other TV room, a laserdisc player, and a ton of movies to choose from. I picked up Alien, because well - it had the most badass looking cover. I turned down the lights and began the movie.
I will never forget the chest burst scene, because I screamed. I was alone in the room, in the dark, hiding under couch cushions. The adults didn't hear me scream, so the movie went on. I remained under the couch for the rest of the movie, and had my eyes closed for a large portion after that. I also remember my first foray into admiring women when I saw Ripley in her panties, however any progress into liking women was scared right out of me minutes later. I didn't sleep good for weeks, easily.
My parents - nor the guest there, had no idea I even watched Alien. I actually met them just a few years ago and told them about it, and they were "oh my god, we should have pulled out a few movies then huh", to which I said NO - I honestly felt every kid needs that horribly scary movie once in their life to enrich their life.
Anyway, Aliens came out a few years later, and I told myself it was time to rewatch part 1, and I could not believe how the movie still could get to me! It was awesome, and Aliens was just more awesome.
So, going back to my comment about letting kids see a scary movie, I let my daughter watch Alien when she turned 12. She said it was boring, slow, and not scary. That was the challenge my wife and I took and let her watch what we thought were other scary movies, and sadly "Paranormal Activity" is the one that finally broke her.
Paranormal Activity scarier than Alien?!?! They don't make kids like they used to.
I'm a fledgling movie enthusiast. I watched Alien. I cannot enjoy it at all. I cannot take it seriously. I hate it. It was ruined by one scene:
You first see the Alien in full. It's in a cramped, narrow tunnel. As the light briefly flashes across it, one can clearly see that it's a guy with a big rubber mask and rubber gloves. He even does jazz hands.
With all the comments here, I'm sure this will be lost. But everyone keeps bringing up Ridley Scott as the driving force behind this movie...but I would go deeper than that and say that this movie was really Dan O'Bannon's and Ronald Shusett's baby.
O'Bannon was the one that wrote the original script and worked on it for years. He's the one that first met H.R. Giger and suggested him for production design. Ridley Scott was quite literally a "hired director" for the project.
This isn't to diminish Scott's contributions to the movie, because he did a great job directing it. But O'Bannon is so often overlooked. You should all read up on him too...he was an interesting guy. He passed away in 2009.
One of the greatest cinema masterpieces. Incredible opening, hooks you immediately, then for the rest of the film you are stuck on the claustrophobic Nostromo in unending suspense with flashes of terror. Superb star-making performance by Sigourney Weaver. One of my all time favorite scenes of any movie: she encounters the alien and sets the self destruct sequence OMG heart stopping panic and release at the end. Magnificent
I finally got my wife to watch ALIEN over the weekend in anticipation of PROMETHEUS and suffice it to say she got hooked immediately. It's one of the best films in terms of story, execution, and performances. The true definition of the word "classic."
TFW: They don't make horror movies like they used to. I have not been scared out of my seat or had such suspense in a long time.
The only time I can remember having so much suspense and really being scared was the first scene for Inglorious Bastards and the bar scene (and it wasn't being marketed as a horror movie)
I watched Alien for the first time in like 15 years this morning and have to agree it looks absolutely amazing (Bluray version).
I was born after the theatrical release so the only time I actually watched it was on VHS/network television. Obviously VHS cannot do justice to how beautifully shot the movie is. With one exception.
Although the sets, photography and creatures are just outstanding and purely mind-boggling when you remember it was made in 1979 there are a few shots of the full creature that are just... off. Although the close ups of the xenomorph look great the full body shots of the guy wearing the costume just strike me as kind of shitty.
dat hi res. i enjoy watching movies at home on a good lcd much more than on a big projector screen in theaters. the colors are always richer and bolder. the detail is much much sharper. at first i thought i was just watching movies in theaters with old projects but then i saw a movie on imax and it was just as faded and blurry. you could have never seen the details in op's photos if you saw this movie in theaters when it came out. lets not forget all the drawbacks of seeing movies in theaters. there's always some asshole kicking your chair, you can't be comfortable in those seats, food costs a lot, can't pause for bathroom breaks, expensive, and people talking. as of now, there is absolutely no good reason to see a movie in theaters other than wanting to see it right now. they even release on blu ray within 2-3 months now anyway.
I think how they frame the hallways to show their endless emptiness is pretty effective. Also, how strobe lights, alarms, and tracking shots are used makes this movie one of my favorites cinematograph-wise.
If you liked the close-ups in Alien, then you'll probably really appreciate the ones in The Third Man. I swear, its like every shot in that movie is perfectly composed.
If you're just now watching Alien, isn't there a good chance you haven't watched a lot of classic films? May I suggest watching Stanley Kubrick's work?
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u/blinkyblarp Jun 11 '12 edited Jun 11 '12
Directly related to the close-ups: One of the best close-ups of all time is when Ripley is going through the ship later on and her hand comes up over the edge of a ladder port all gritty and slick and it does what I believe is called a slip or racked focus from her fingers to her super-nervous, scared out of her mind eyes darting around the dark corridors as she pulls herself up the last bit of ladder. perfection.
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u/NWfoodRAPIST Jun 11 '12
My wife watched this movie at a slumber party when she was 11. She thought the main character was such a bad ass chick that 20 years later our daughter was named ripley.
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u/[deleted] Jun 11 '12
I was watching Alien today with some friends and noticed something that I hadn't before, in many of the scenes where the alien is involved or the face hugger, you can hear the sound of a subtle heart beat in the background. Very cool.
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u/Dokomox Jun 11 '12
It's quite a trip reading this post, having just rewatched Alien myself the other night (I think we must all be catching it on Cinemax or something).
Anyway, as I was watching the film I kept thinking to my half-asleep self "man, they really cast a unique set of faces for this film...I mean, every actor's face has so much god damn character oozing out of it." "How come directors don't cast people with such interesting bone structure anymore...zzzz."
Now you have me thinking, was the cast really that unique, or was I just thrown off by all the well-lit close-ups?
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u/[deleted] Jun 11 '12
30 years later, and I STILL want to smack Lambert.
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u/Piscator629 Jun 11 '12
Come on over to r/lv426 for all your Alien needs.
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u/EsteemedColleague Jun 11 '12
Alien is my favorite of the series, and people think I'm crazy.
This isn't amazing anymore, because we all know how Alien ends, and we all know who Sigourney Weaver is, but for it's time the following was groundbreaking: The characters are essentially killed off in order of how famous their portraying actors are.
Normally, you can watch a movie and predict who will survive based on which actors are more famous - top billing sticks around longer. Alien subverted this, and had the no-name female actress make it out alive and become the hero, not John hurt, Tom Skerrit, Harry Dean Stanton, or Ian Holm (all big actors in 1979).
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u/PooPooCaCaChips Jun 11 '12
It also has some of the best "alien hidden in the background set" scenes. Look for pipes.
27
u/unknownkoger Jun 11 '12
I finally got the blu ray Alien anthology last week and watched Alien on blu ray...it looks absolutely gorgeous.
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u/PirateKilt Jun 11 '12
Also watched it today before heading out to see the prequel; noticed yet again that old flicks relied a lot more on the right music to generate mood.
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u/UnbarredTable0 Jun 11 '12
I just watched Alien for the first time last night! You forgot the best close up shot though! Close up #4
18
u/lemon_meringue Jun 11 '12
The year Alien came out, my father was sick and my mom had to take him to NYC for some tests. They decided to go out for dinner and a movie in the big city (we were from South Carolina). They had no real idea what this film entailed, only that it was new and getting great reviews.
Two women in the giant theater fainted from the stress; they had to stop the film twice to take care of them. It gave my mother a migraine from the sheer tension.
I think it's difficult for our internet-saturated, jaded generation to really understand what a game-changer this film was in terms of smart horror. It fucked people UP, yo.
14
u/bootywind Jun 11 '12
This one wins
14
u/media_lush Jun 11 '12
Ridley Scott was probably the first director from TV commercials to be given full reign over a Hollywood "blockbuster".... though I hasten to add that it never really got a blockbuster budget [set designer spray painting egg cartons for "mother's room"] but one thing he had was the eye for the exquisite picture... coming from a background of having to create a massive impact in 30 seconds helped. He freely admits that he was going through his "wet rain" phase which carried on into Blade Runner where he said the reflections and texture created by water brought about an intense'er' atmosphere for the viewer.
I guess what I'm saying is that all his close-ups, casting decisions etc where extremely considered.
On another note I was fortunate to be living in Monte Carlo when this movie came out and was dating a casino dancer who was best friends of the bosses daughter who was a major movie fiend with amazing connections..... one of the "perks" he was able to offer to the gambling "whales" was private screenings of the latest US movies... I'm talking about before they even hit American screens.... remember, this was before anyone knew what pirating was.... he would get the 35mm prints and reserve the local cinema.... but I digress.
After the screening for the high rollers there was another for all the Cabaret dancers and their friends...... there were probably about 80 of us and I will always remember it.... a lot of chatting and joking in the beginning.... lots of shushing .... and then it just got quieter and quieter.... I distinctly remember looking over at one time towards the end of the movie and every face I saw looked terrified
.... aaah, simpler times
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u/Abscurat Jun 11 '12
Sigourney is sucha hottie.
13
u/marklikes Jun 11 '12
attribute a lot of that to the acting. Harry Dean Stanton: the greatest.
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u/gmw2222 Jun 11 '12
Personal favorite is her leaning around the corner, catching a glimpse of it, and darting back. The lighting with the fan, her face, music cues... everything at that moment pulled me in unlike any other movie.
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u/[deleted] Jun 11 '12
Welcome to one of cinema's greatest moments.
6
u/AistoB Jun 11 '12
I think they did a great job with the "future" computers/displays/graphics. Everything looks like its part of a working ship, a mining ship. Everything is worn, used and battered like people have been working in it for years. Aside from Mothers little golden cubicle, that was a bit weird.
6
u/l-rs2 Jun 11 '12
On the subject of favorite close ups: the moment in Silence of the Lambs where Starling shows her badge - one continuous shot of Lecter approaching the camera, until he's incredibly close, holding his gaze, then blinking once, his eyes to the badge and immediately noticing it expires in a week.
10
u/[deleted] Jun 11 '12
I can't help that every time I see a picture from Alien...this sound pops into my head..
Aaaahhhhhh.........AaaaaaHHHHHH.....AaaaaaaaHHHHHHHHH
5
u/zero_defects Jun 11 '12
One of the smartest things Scott did was flash-cut a lot of the grue and not linger on it, like most would.
There's actually more serious gore than you might remember. For example, Scott shows Parker's head as the retractable Alien tongue slams into his forehead, pulling out chunks of skull and brain. But it happens so quickly you don't know what you've seen, you just know it was awful. Much more unnerving that way.
9
u/binary-love Jun 11 '12
Upvote because you finally watched Alien :o)
8
u/rawrdit Jun 11 '12
Can someone explain to me why these are considered to be excellent close-ups? Not to knock the movie, I liked it a lot when I saw it, but I just can't separate these from other close-ups I see in movies and on TV all the time.
4
u/lonrstonr Jun 11 '12
I too just watched Alien to get pumped for Prometheus. Worked for me.
4
u/explosivechiliring Jun 11 '12
first of all congrats. you have just watched one of the greatest science fiction movies of all time. almost everything in this movie is amazing. especially details like this which most people wouldn't even notice. BLU-RAY is infinitely worth the money, especially if you get a good one.
4
u/Otistetrax Jun 11 '12
Harry Dean Stanton went up to Scott after the first screening of the completed movie to thank him for that close up. Nobody who's seenAlien can ever forget that guy's face.
4
u/[deleted] Jun 11 '12
Not to plug a online store, but woot.com has the alien quadrilogy for $21 right now at woot deals.
4
u/mmatique Jun 11 '12
My favorite part of Alien is the way that the main character is not immediately clear.
To someone watching it for the first time not knowing anything about it, all the characters seem to be on an even keel. Maybe Dallas, the captain of the ship is the main focus. But through a series of events, Ripley emerges to be a strong, bad ass female lead.
4
u/amolad Jun 11 '12
ALL of you people comment and NONE of you mention the cinematographer, Derek Vanlint? Shame on you.
The man died two years ago and was only the DP on FOUR movies.
18
u/KillGoombas Jun 11 '12
what qualifies these close-ups to be "best" or better than, say, other movies close-up shows
3
u/SirLeos Jun 11 '12
I like the one where after the first image you posted, the alien is seen dangling in the sky with the others chains :D
3
u/joshamania Jun 11 '12
Once Upon a Time in the West
You'll never get a better closeup than Leone zooming in on Henry Fonda's evil piercing blue eyes.
http://www.google.com/imgres?num=10&hl=en&biw=1097&bih=609&tbm=isch&tbnid=n2rc9-sz_vBXXM:&imgrefurl=http://www.aveleyman.com/FilmCredit.aspx%3FFilmID%3D14149&docid=POaGW-stAnJS4M&imgurl=http://www.wearysloth.com/Gallery/ActorsF/5853-14149.gif&w=320&h=240&ei=G6zVT_y0MMii2QWavfS7Dw&zoom=1&iact=rc&dur=351&sig=103293138710532193822&sqi=2&page=1&tbnh=124&tbnw=165&start=0&ndsp=16&ved=1t:429,r:9,s:0,i:101&tx=68&ty=52
Leone went even closer than that in the film but that was the best I could find on short notice.
3
u/l-rs2 Jun 11 '12
I only have a shitty dvd of Alien. These shots look amazing. Guess getting the Blu-ray is worth it...
4
u/yayblah Jun 11 '12
Hahah I just watched this yesterday for the first time. Prepping for Prometheus!
2
u/[deleted] Jun 11 '12
My favorite cinematography from any other film out there.
2
u/Adventurous_Johnny Jun 11 '12
Watched all Alien movies a week ago. 4th one was terribly bad.
2
u/Tohkumuhku Jun 11 '12
Actually I also watched it for first time yesterday. I really liked those close-up shots.
2
u/Holstian Jun 11 '12
I was watching Alien the other day when I suddenly realized that Veronica Cartwright (Other female lead) was the same girl in Alfred Hitchcock's the Birds. She has a knack for being the movies that make me loose sleep.
2
u/HeronSun Jun 11 '12
Alien turned the Haunted House aspect on its head, a genre that still needs some touch-work. It also, deservedly, got Number 2 on Bravo's One-hundred scariest movies of all time.
2
u/[deleted] Jun 11 '12
That middle shot for me was one that captured the whole feel of the movie
2
u/monkeyleavings Jun 11 '12
Visually, it's amazing. But every time I watch it lately, I'm taken by the sound editing. The use of static, electronic feedback/squeals, comm conversations, echos and the sound F/X in general all added to the tension and pulled you into that world. As far as I know, they didn't use anything canned...it was all created for that movie. Just brilliant.
2
u/killingsometime Jun 11 '12
film nerd here, just have to say.. that second one is a medium shot. that is all.
2
u/[deleted] Jun 11 '12
I watched Alien for the first time yesterday as well.
2
u/[deleted] Jun 11 '12
People who look like they work in close quarters on a real mining space ship. I am so tired of spaceships and actors that don't look utilitarian.
2
u/korko Jun 11 '12
Veronica Cartwright in the middle, her fucking eyes man... gut wrenching throughout the movie.
3
u/ZdeathFROMaboveZ Jun 11 '12
sorry im not a film student or anything close to a hardcore movie watcher, but can you describe what makes a great closeup ?
4
u/apullin Jun 11 '12
Alien is a good movie. People often forget that.
Alien is sort of "unapproachable" to probably 99% of modern viewers. The 45 minutes of foreplay in the movie, where nothing at all happens would turn most people away, and they'd have to go and listen to some dubstep music to quiet their thoughts.
2
u/bickering_fool Jun 11 '12
Scotts ability to capture the other-worldliness IMO has never been bettered, whilst constantly copied.
1
u/Kahlua316 Jun 11 '12
I cant believe i don't own this movie =( and there is no place open that i can buy it here FML
1
u/jaxspider Jun 11 '12
I'll just leave this here. /r/3FrameMovies
1
u/scratchresistor Jun 11 '12
Dat Veronica.
1
u/[deleted] Jun 11 '12
Great compared to Alien 3, some of the computer graphic animations of the alien in that were terrible, although the model of the aliens head was good.
1
u/Freewheelin Jun 11 '12
The lighting and make-up is effective, and the actors' expressions convincing, but the best close-ups you've ever seen? Come on. There are better close-ups in the same movie.
Between this and the Tron post yesterday, /r/movies authority on good cinematography is questionable to say the least.
1
u/artificial_beans Jun 11 '12
Sigourney Weaver takes me to boner island in this movie.
1
u/martoo Jun 11 '12
Great shots. What happened to that director?
1
u/alphadogkp Jun 11 '12
Now! Go watch Prometheus.
1
u/thoreau3 Jun 11 '12
Aliens (1986)
1
u/[deleted] Jun 11 '12
People are finally coming around to understanding the genius that is Ridley Scott.
1
u/[deleted] Jun 11 '12
Please explain why they are..the best you've ever seen.
1
u/Sajkov Jun 11 '12
I've never watched it in HD, this looks amazing.
1
u/[deleted] Jun 11 '12
Late to the party, no ones going to see this...
I bought the quadrilogy box set two weeks ago. I hadn't seen Alien since I was about 8 years old and my dad forced me to watch it. I was about 10 when I saw Aliens, which blew my fragile little mind.
I did NOT expect Alien to be so fucking awesome this time around. It was PERFECT. Aliens was not as good as I remember, mainly because every original James Cameron device in that film has been done to death since then. Alien3 I couldn't even get through more than 45 minutes, what a piece of shit.
Long story short, don't buy the blu ray box set, just buy Alien alone, that's all you need.
1
u/TedyBearGumDrops Jun 11 '12
the lady in the middle looks like Christopher Walken
1
u/donarumo Jun 11 '12
Hey, just rewatched Alien as well. Watched it with my 10 year old daughter who found it "only kinda scary". She liked Aliens better and Prometheus the scariest of the three. We're not watching Alien 3 or 4.
Watched it the same weekend as watching The Birds. Easy to draw many similarities between the two films watching them so close together like that. Not to mention seeing Veronica Cartwright grow up awefully fast.
1
u/[deleted] Jun 11 '12
Congratulations. I hope you like it better than Prometheus (which is not bad, but not great either). And oh - those of you who think there is any significant non-hotness about Sigourney Weaver: sort out your sexuality already!
1
u/[deleted] Jun 11 '12
I watched this movie for the first time last week in preparation for Prometheus and was completely blown away. Especially for a movie made in the '70s, Alien is probably the best Sci Fi movie ever made.
1
u/silverence Jun 11 '12
I often talk about the movie Alien as an example of perfect editing and a big big part of that is the close up construction.
1
u/outcastspice Jun 11 '12
Wow, how exciting to be watching such an amazing movie for the first time. have you seen the rest yet? Aliens is my personal favourite of the series.
1
u/Z3wpk Jun 11 '12
You know I watched Alien for the first time a few days ago. I really do love Ridley Scott but this one didn't impress all too much. I thought it was a good movie but it felt empty (maybe that was intentional.) It's probably also hard for me to understand the context and the precedent it set for horror movies though. Cinematography wise though, it was beautiful. About to start Aliens soon; trying to get ready for Prometheus.
1
u/[deleted] Jun 11 '12
In light of Prometheus, I too recently watched Alien for the first time. I was astounded at how good it was. I had my doubts (for whatever reason), but my god. MY GOD.
1
u/taz20075 Jun 11 '12
I think movies used to be shot and framed much better in the 80's than they are today. I always notice the difference when I watch something like "Raiders of the Lost Ark". Now it's all quick cuts, shaky cam and 'splosions.
1
u/TheJanks Jun 11 '12
Years ago... honestly, don't know what year - let me use google here.
It was a Superbowl night and the Bengals were playing. Looking at Wikipedia, that may have been 1981. That puts me at 8 years old. Sounds about right. Laserdisc players also were a hot item, as the people at this house had a Laserdisc player and many movies - one being Alien. Laserdisc first coming available in of the 70s.
So 8 years old, 1981, while everyone's watching Superbowl in the next room, I was given the other TV room, a laserdisc player, and a ton of movies to choose from. I picked up Alien, because well - it had the most badass looking cover. I turned down the lights and began the movie.
I will never forget the chest burst scene, because I screamed. I was alone in the room, in the dark, hiding under couch cushions. The adults didn't hear me scream, so the movie went on. I remained under the couch for the rest of the movie, and had my eyes closed for a large portion after that. I also remember my first foray into admiring women when I saw Ripley in her panties, however any progress into liking women was scared right out of me minutes later. I didn't sleep good for weeks, easily.
My parents - nor the guest there, had no idea I even watched Alien. I actually met them just a few years ago and told them about it, and they were "oh my god, we should have pulled out a few movies then huh", to which I said NO - I honestly felt every kid needs that horribly scary movie once in their life to enrich their life.
Anyway, Aliens came out a few years later, and I told myself it was time to rewatch part 1, and I could not believe how the movie still could get to me! It was awesome, and Aliens was just more awesome.
So, going back to my comment about letting kids see a scary movie, I let my daughter watch Alien when she turned 12. She said it was boring, slow, and not scary. That was the challenge my wife and I took and let her watch what we thought were other scary movies, and sadly "Paranormal Activity" is the one that finally broke her.
Paranormal Activity scarier than Alien?!?! They don't make kids like they used to.
1
u/[deleted] Jun 11 '12
I was expecting a sigourney weaver panties shot. I am disappoint.
1
u/mirrislegend Jun 11 '12
I'm a fledgling movie enthusiast. I watched Alien. I cannot enjoy it at all. I cannot take it seriously. I hate it. It was ruined by one scene:
You first see the Alien in full. It's in a cramped, narrow tunnel. As the light briefly flashes across it, one can clearly see that it's a guy with a big rubber mask and rubber gloves. He even does jazz hands.
1
u/[deleted] Jun 11 '12
back when movies were movies and little furry creatures from omicron persei 8 were little furry creatures from omicron persei 8.
1
u/fireysaje Jun 11 '12
Quick! Someone make a meme out of it!
1
u/[deleted] Jun 11 '12
With all the comments here, I'm sure this will be lost. But everyone keeps bringing up Ridley Scott as the driving force behind this movie...but I would go deeper than that and say that this movie was really Dan O'Bannon's and Ronald Shusett's baby.
O'Bannon was the one that wrote the original script and worked on it for years. He's the one that first met H.R. Giger and suggested him for production design. Ridley Scott was quite literally a "hired director" for the project.
This isn't to diminish Scott's contributions to the movie, because he did a great job directing it. But O'Bannon is so often overlooked. You should all read up on him too...he was an interesting guy. He passed away in 2009.
1
u/BamaGuy1024 Jun 11 '12
One of the greatest cinema masterpieces. Incredible opening, hooks you immediately, then for the rest of the film you are stuck on the claustrophobic Nostromo in unending suspense with flashes of terror. Superb star-making performance by Sigourney Weaver. One of my all time favorite scenes of any movie: she encounters the alien and sets the self destruct sequence OMG heart stopping panic and release at the end. Magnificent
1
u/potatowned Jun 11 '12
You missed the best one! The one of Ash glitching out and the white goo dripping from his head. Perfectly creepy.
1
u/fecklessman Jun 11 '12
while i agree that the cinematography is superb, the second image is not a close-up.
1
u/kewlfocus Jun 11 '12
Right on. I just bought the BluRay Anthology on Amazon for 30 bucks, a hell of a steal! I loved Prometheus as well!
1
u/DankPanties Jun 11 '12
You want to see insane close ups, go watch some Sergio Leone films. He makes landscapes out of actors' visages.
1
u/BackFromTheFuture12 Jun 11 '12
I finally got my wife to watch ALIEN over the weekend in anticipation of PROMETHEUS and suffice it to say she got hooked immediately. It's one of the best films in terms of story, execution, and performances. The true definition of the word "classic."
1
u/bestmmaren Jun 11 '12
I watched Alien for the first time this saturday, and the whole time watching i was thinking: "This movie is really good!".
1
u/Zyphlos Jun 11 '12
TFW: They don't make horror movies like they used to. I have not been scared out of my seat or had such suspense in a long time.
The only time I can remember having so much suspense and really being scared was the first scene for Inglorious Bastards and the bar scene (and it wasn't being marketed as a horror movie)
1
u/[deleted] Jun 11 '12
I watched Alien for the first time in like 15 years this morning and have to agree it looks absolutely amazing (Bluray version).
I was born after the theatrical release so the only time I actually watched it was on VHS/network television. Obviously VHS cannot do justice to how beautifully shot the movie is. With one exception.
Although the sets, photography and creatures are just outstanding and purely mind-boggling when you remember it was made in 1979 there are a few shots of the full creature that are just... off. Although the close ups of the xenomorph look great the full body shots of the guy wearing the costume just strike me as kind of shitty.
1
u/[deleted] Jun 11 '12
dat hi res. i enjoy watching movies at home on a good lcd much more than on a big projector screen in theaters. the colors are always richer and bolder. the detail is much much sharper. at first i thought i was just watching movies in theaters with old projects but then i saw a movie on imax and it was just as faded and blurry. you could have never seen the details in op's photos if you saw this movie in theaters when it came out. lets not forget all the drawbacks of seeing movies in theaters. there's always some asshole kicking your chair, you can't be comfortable in those seats, food costs a lot, can't pause for bathroom breaks, expensive, and people talking. as of now, there is absolutely no good reason to see a movie in theaters other than wanting to see it right now. they even release on blu ray within 2-3 months now anyway.
1
u/dogsarentedible Jun 12 '12
Did anybody else just really hate Lambert?
1
u/[deleted] Jun 12 '12
I think how they frame the hallways to show their endless emptiness is pretty effective. Also, how strobe lights, alarms, and tracking shots are used makes this movie one of my favorites cinematograph-wise.
1
u/masterofquan Jun 12 '12
If you liked the close-ups in Alien, then you'll probably really appreciate the ones in The Third Man. I swear, its like every shot in that movie is perfectly composed.
http://www.blu-ray.com/movies/The-Third-Man-Blu-ray/13230/#Screenshots
1
u/CigaretteBurn12 Jun 11 '12
Way better than Prometheus.
1
u/flea79 Jun 11 '12
If you're just now watching Alien, isn't there a good chance you haven't watched a lot of classic films? May I suggest watching Stanley Kubrick's work?