Much like Steven Speilberg's "Jaws," Ridley Scott's, "Alien" took a new outlook on special effects in film. Alien was truely first of its kind, and started the horror/action genre. The film was much more frighting when it came out in 1979, compared to watching it now. Kristin Thompson would probably agree with my assessment as she said, "The film was probably far more frighting to watch, than it is to a new viewer today." According to Stephen Mulhall, "We should not expect the exact nature of this film to be any less alien to us than its eponymous protagonist-any less unpredictable from what we think we know that a science fiction or horror movie must be." In 1979, that quote was a great way to summarize the effect Alien had on audiences.
Alien really relies on camera shots and angles to engage the audience.
The ship, space, and the alien are all ackknowledged and understood through wonderful cinematography. The close-ups, as well as the extended view shots of the ship, really help the viewer get a feel for how big the ship compares to all of space. Space is captured perfectly, and is shown as this endless darkness with minature planets off in the distance. Shots of alien really bring it to life, and help the audience gain a better understanding of this mysterious creature. Through the different camera angles we can notice how it develops from a thing attached to Kane's face, into this enormous tenticled monster. "We can see Scott's confidence in his sets and special effects." (Mulhall 12)
Another key element to the films success and excitement is the background noises and score. Throughout the entirety of the movie, noises in the background are prevelant. This helps the audience get a feeling about all that is going on in the large ship.
Noises help us gain knowledge of the surrondings, where as the silence helps us key on when the alien will strike. The score for the most part is a very subtle one, and helps fo
cus on the movie while giving the viewer a little more entertainment. Score is best used when it does not distract the viewer, but heightens his or her senses about what is taking place in the film.Alien was truely a huge first step for how movies were going to be made in future decades. Movies such as Predator, Independence Day, and Event Horizon just to name a few have really benefitted from Alien. Though I prefer the sequel Aliens to the original, there is no mistaking what a great movie the original is. Without Alien, we could never have had Aliens, Alien3, Alien Ressurection, and Alien v.s. Predator, which were all fine films in there own right. Much is owed to Mr. Scott and his filmimg making endeavor of Alien.
Muhall, Stephen. "Kane's Son, Cain's Daughter." Routledge (2002): 1-12. Blackboard. Web. 20 Apr. 2010.
Thompson, Kristin. "Alien." Storytelling in the New Hollywood (1999): 1-14. Blackboard. Web. 20 Apr. 2010.
I agree with what you said about Jaws and also how Alien is not as scary now as it was then. For that time the special effects were great, but now it would be a terrible movie that would flop. The only thing I would have to say is to check your grammar and spelling because I noticed a few spelling errors.
ReplyDeleteI liked how you incorporated the photo of the alien into your thoughts about it being a horror film, and how it was related to Jaws and other movies. I also thought your ideas about the camera angles were really good, it made me go back and think about what i saw in the movie. Also I liked how you concluded the post by saying it was a step for movies in the future. I think this conclusion was effective because of how you brought up how the movie would have been viewed in 1979 when it came out.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you about the camera angles. It really makes the movie and adds to the suspense of the scenes. I too noticed the vast amount of space that was shown in the beginning and ending scenes. Also, I like how you compared Alien to Jaws and how it gave way to future movies, but why didn't you give examples. I'm just saying as a reader of your blog you should have given us examples from the movies that you compare it to. Like what was in Jaws that was also in Alien? What did Alien provide in animation and whatnot that led to your other movies you listed?
ReplyDeleteI liked your statement about how the alien life process progressed from "a thing attached to Kane's face, into this enormous tenticled monster." What do you think this means as far as metaphors and symbolism regarding science and manipulation of life? To improve, your post could use more quotation to bring M and T into your conversation. Both articles discuss symbolism and metaphor extensively and I'd like to see more engagement with that. Finally, your in-text citations have some errors or aren't there at all.
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