Alien vs. Aliens

[ThinkGreen]

I just watched both of these movies this weekend with the wifey, and they are both great flicks. Alien is more suspenseful (at times) but also super slow at the beginning. Some of the alien scenes are corny too - two that come to mind are him in the air shaft with his arms out, and him sleeping or whatever the fuck it’s doing at the very end of the movie. That part is still a head scratcher to me.

Aliens is a bit over the top with the cast and how cocky/dismissive they are towards Ripley, but I guess it’s necessary for the film. Ripley is also a bit too bad ass in Aliens, I liked her subtlety in the first one a lot better.

Overall.... I think I lean towards Aliens due to Michael Biehn being the fucking man.

 

[Idonotbelieveit]

Alien.
sequel was good. But was too many aliens

 

[bubbleboyjones]

I will never get why anyone would prefer Aliens over Alien...
Aliens is nothing but the cheesy action interpretation of a deep and mysterious SciFi-Horror masterpiece.
There is no relevance to the mystery what the alien is and where it came from, instead you get a generic crew of badass space marines incl. some jewish woman playing a hard latina...

I agree but any mass poll will go to Aliens based on the simple fact people want a popcorn shoot 'em up.

 

[Jack Handy jr]

 

[Tycho- Taylor's Version]

This is a stupid tough call but I had to go with Alien.

Aliens is fantastic watch and satisfying in all the right ways, but it doesn't quite capture the darkness and dread of its predecessor, which really brought that film to life for me so many years later.

 

[JBSchroeds]

Okay I finally finished Aliens. After watching both in succession I've decided that I like Alien by the slimmest of margins. Aliens was fantastic, had some really cool moments, fun characters, and a bad ass Ripley from beginning to end. But, I prefer the atmosphere created in Alien. It was shot beautifully, the creepiness of the Alien lurking around the ship while the crew struggled to find it, all while we were getting clues that it was growing rapidly. There was so much more going on in Aliens though, I can't imagine the difference in budgets between the 2 movies. But that just shows that sometimes less can be more.

Bill Paxton was a legend and he was gold in Aliens. Him flipping his shit every 5 minutes after being so cocky to begin with was hilarious. Can't believe it's been over a year since he passed. I think a discussion about Aliens and T2 would be fantastic, if that doesn't already exist here.

It's not as much as you might think. When adjusted for inflation they had almost identical budgets. In 2018 dollars:
Alien $40.5mil
Aliens $42.47mil

 

[Bob Gray]

I rewatch both on a fairly regular basis. As I get older, Alien somehow seems less dated than Aliens. Dont misunderstand me, theyre both 2 of the greatest films of all time. But it still amazes me to this day that Alien can literally hold up to scrutiny even now save fro a few shots of space, exploding ship, etc.

Aliens is a masterpiece as well, but I feel like it also has a very distinct 80's vibe and its been copycat-ed so much.

Id watch either one of them anytime, anywhere, anyplace. If a motherfucker starts playing one on his generation 1 iphone during an elevator ride, Im pressing the goddamn stop button.

 

[Bobby Boulders]

Alien > Aliens

Terminator > Terminator 2


ect

I love you.

 

[Judge]

Alien for the suspense and cinematography, Aliens for the bullet hell and splosions and fun.

Let's not forget about some of the best artwork ever done in a movie and pretty sweet special effects.

Apples and Oranges. One is a great horror film, the other is a great action film.

If I have to choose, then Alien.

I don't really compare films in different genres.

Oh shit with this shit. Yes, Alien is a horror movie. We all saw that really smart dude who told us all that.

Fact is that we are talking about a sequel here and they are always game for comparison.

Like TCM 1 and TCM 2. Yes, Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 is better.

 

[minute bull]

amazes me to this day that Alien can literally hold up to scrutiny even today save fro a few shots of space, exploding ship, etc.

That's about how I feel about 2001. It's almost weird.

 

[Islam Imamate]

Alien for sure. Aliens is a great film no doubt but I prefer the xenomorph in a horror context as in Alien over an action one like in Aliens.

 

[Islam Imamate]

Alien > Aliens

Terminator > Terminator 2


ect

Agree on both counts. In both cases the first film has more of a horror vibe which I like better than the mroe action vibe of the sequel.

 

[Within the Living Death]

Alien without a doubt for me. It's one of my favorite horror movies. Aliens is a really fun action movie though. Both are great for different reasons.

 

[bubbleboyjones]

I rewatch both on a fairly regular basis. As I get older, Alien somehow seems less dated than Aliens. Dont misunderstand me, theyre both 2 of the greatest films of all time. But it still amazes me to this day that Alien can literally hold up to scrutiny even today save fro a few shots of space, exploding ship, etc.

A lot of this is because the movie was carefully shot using composition and lighting to build suspense. Alien doesn't rely on special effects but the atmosphere to create a essentially a masterpiece of a movie being trapped on a ship. Add on the casting is top notch with crew members more relatable to the audience and fits with the tone of the movie. They aren't a bunch of goofy military caricatures like Aliens were you are just watching shit go down with lots of gun fighting.

 

[Headkicktoleg]

I'd vote Aliens if it weren't for the whole subplot of the little girl. Shit just annoys the fuck out of me.

 

[Bob Gray]

A lot of this is because the movie was carefully shot using composition and lighting to build suspense. Alien doesn't rely on special effects but the atmosphere to create a essentially a masterpiece of a movie being trapped on a ship. Add on the casting is top notch with crew members more relatable to the audience and fits with the tone of the movie. They aren't a bunch of goofy military caricatures like Aliens were you are just watching shit go down with lots of gun fighting.

yeah. The Directors Commentary is pretty fascinating as well. How every piece of the set is built from actual construction items like pallets, etc. And stuff like the organs of the face hugger are all real organs from uhhhh..... I forget. Something they bought at the supermarket. So much care went into the finest detail and it seems to show in every frame.

 

[LockardTheGOAT]

Aliens.

Probably the most intense movie I've ever watched.

 

[Andersons Foot]

It's not as much as you might think. When adjusted for inflation they had almost identical budgets. In 2018 dollars:
Alien $40.5mil
Aliens $42.47mil

That’s crazy to me.

 

[n...not crazy]

A lot of this is because the movie was carefully shot using composition and lighting to build suspense. Alien doesn't rely on special effects but the atmosphere to create a essentially a masterpiece of a movie being trapped on a ship. Add on the casting is top notch with crew members more relatable to the audience and fits with the tone of the movie. They aren't a bunch of goofy military caricatures like Aliens were you are just watching shit go down with lots of gun fighting.

Watch with director commentary. There are deeper undertones to all of that ineffective firepower. It didn't work, sound like any wars you know of?

And the caricatures were done-up by the actors themselves, not by some dudes at a round table. You could also argue that the characters in Alien were caricatures... the whiny woman (who was written intentionally as a screen representation of the scared audience member), the moaning and groaning mechanics, the heartless corporate guy (who is basically the same character as Burke).

Aliens isn't as campy as people make it out to be. It's not Commando or Cyborg or some shit.

 

[Brom Bones]

The critical side says Alien.

The bro side says Aliens.

Critical side usually wins out. Alien. For the most part, movies that introduce a story or universe are better than movies that build on it.

Also, Ridley Scott beats James Cameron.