Jean-Philippe Guillerault
Ms. Barbara Barklow
Monsters & Misfits
25 April 2019
What We Fear Statement
The movie Alien directed by Ridley Scott is about a monstrous alien called a Xenomorph who goes around killing crew members aboard a ship in space. This movie explores Xenophobia which is the fear of the unknown and anything that goes beyond one’s comfort zone. Throughout the movie the idea of this fear is always ubiquitous from when the chief science officer Ash breaks protocol and lets the newly infected crew member aboard the ship to when crew members are getting picked off one by one by the creature. The way the director filmed this movie made it so that the viewer doesn’t know what will happen next. This movie also shows how we as humans can easily be frightened or extremely worried by anything that is perceived as new or foreign. In my adaptation I will look deeper into the alien in the movie along with looking more into the concept of the unknown.
In my opinion the movie Alien is one of the best horror sci-fi movies of its time. It is filled with great action scenes as well as keeps the viewers on the edge of their seats. The director Ridley Scott uses camera angles to his advantage making the viewer feels like they are in the scene themselves. We see this camera work throughout the movie especially when the alien is in the scene. Ridley uses this to his advantage in the scenes that the xenomorph is in angling the camera upward to make the xenomorph look more menacing. It also makes the viewer feel a sense of helplessness against the alien as it attacks. Another thing I like about the movie is the story's plot which was written by Dan O'Bannon with some help from Ronald Shusett. It was an amazing and creative story. It keeps the viewer engaged throughout the entire movie leaving no boring parts of the story or any plot holes. The finally thing I like about the movie that I will talk about is the creation of the alien. Ridley wanted to make sure the viewers didn't just see the alien as a person in a black suit. He hired Bolaji Badejo who was graphic artist who was discovered by one of the casting directors in a pub. The alien turned out in the end to be seven feet tall, with very thin arms, and looked more insect like. The way the alien is design to have a sleek black skin tone makes it feel like the viewer or character is facing fear or death itself.
In my adaptation I will look at xenophobia and the fear of the unknown. In the movie the alien is described as the perfect survivor unclouded by conscience, remorse, or delusions of morality. It is seen as not having any soul or any reaction to what it is doing. This kind of distills in the viewer the fear of not really knowing who someone really is and not knowing what is going to happen next. I will also focus on how the xenophobia that is present throughout the movie. The movie shows how people are scared of anything that comes across as foreign or strange and differs from their way of life. One cultural theme that are seen in the movie that I will also talk about in my adaptation is on how corporations seem to have more power than anyone. In the movie we see references that corporations have a lot of power back on earth and how capitalism has been expanding into space. Another cultural theme that is seen in the beginning of the movie is racism and how there is still racism and discrimination on earth. We see this in a scene where Parker approaches Ripley in a hallway and ask her that if they find anything if he will get a share. Ripley then replies with a yes and that the law says he has to get his share, but Parker looks unconvinced and irritated.
Ms. Barbara Barklow
Monsters & Misfits
25 April 2019
What We Fear Statement
The movie Alien directed by Ridley Scott is about a monstrous alien called a Xenomorph who goes around killing crew members aboard a ship in space. This movie explores Xenophobia which is the fear of the unknown and anything that goes beyond one’s comfort zone. Throughout the movie the idea of this fear is always ubiquitous from when the chief science officer Ash breaks protocol and lets the newly infected crew member aboard the ship to when crew members are getting picked off one by one by the creature. The way the director filmed this movie made it so that the viewer doesn’t know what will happen next. This movie also shows how we as humans can easily be frightened or extremely worried by anything that is perceived as new or foreign. In my adaptation I will look deeper into the alien in the movie along with looking more into the concept of the unknown.
In my opinion the movie Alien is one of the best horror sci-fi movies of its time. It is filled with great action scenes as well as keeps the viewers on the edge of their seats. The director Ridley Scott uses camera angles to his advantage making the viewer feels like they are in the scene themselves. We see this camera work throughout the movie especially when the alien is in the scene. Ridley uses this to his advantage in the scenes that the xenomorph is in angling the camera upward to make the xenomorph look more menacing. It also makes the viewer feel a sense of helplessness against the alien as it attacks. Another thing I like about the movie is the story's plot which was written by Dan O'Bannon with some help from Ronald Shusett. It was an amazing and creative story. It keeps the viewer engaged throughout the entire movie leaving no boring parts of the story or any plot holes. The finally thing I like about the movie that I will talk about is the creation of the alien. Ridley wanted to make sure the viewers didn't just see the alien as a person in a black suit. He hired Bolaji Badejo who was graphic artist who was discovered by one of the casting directors in a pub. The alien turned out in the end to be seven feet tall, with very thin arms, and looked more insect like. The way the alien is design to have a sleek black skin tone makes it feel like the viewer or character is facing fear or death itself.
In my adaptation I will look at xenophobia and the fear of the unknown. In the movie the alien is described as the perfect survivor unclouded by conscience, remorse, or delusions of morality. It is seen as not having any soul or any reaction to what it is doing. This kind of distills in the viewer the fear of not really knowing who someone really is and not knowing what is going to happen next. I will also focus on how the xenophobia that is present throughout the movie. The movie shows how people are scared of anything that comes across as foreign or strange and differs from their way of life. One cultural theme that are seen in the movie that I will also talk about in my adaptation is on how corporations seem to have more power than anyone. In the movie we see references that corporations have a lot of power back on earth and how capitalism has been expanding into space. Another cultural theme that is seen in the beginning of the movie is racism and how there is still racism and discrimination on earth. We see this in a scene where Parker approaches Ripley in a hallway and ask her that if they find anything if he will get a share. Ripley then replies with a yes and that the law says he has to get his share, but Parker looks unconvinced and irritated.