(Manufacturer # 2271121 )
PlotBig-budget special effects, swiftly paced action, and a distinct feminist subtext from writer/director James Cameron turned what should have been a by-the-numbers sci-fi sequel into both a blockbuster and a seven-time Oscar nominee. Sigourney Weaver returns as Ellen Ripley, the last surviving crew member of a corporate spaceship destroyed after an attack by a vicious, virtually unbeatable alien life form. Adrift in space for half a century, Ripley grapples with depression until she's informed by her company's representative, Carter Burke (Paul Reiser) that the planet where her crew discovered the alien has since been settled by colonists. Contact with the colony has suddenly been lost, and a detachment of colonial marines is being sent to investigate. Invited along as an advisor, Ripley predicts disaster, and sure enough, the aliens have infested the colony, leaving a sole survivor, the young girl Newt (Carrie Henn). With the soldiers picked off one by one, a final all-female showdown brews between the alien queen and Ripley, who's become a surrogate mother to Newt. Several future stars made early career appearances in Aliens (1986), including Lance Henriksen, Bill Paxton, and Reiser. ~ Karl Williams, Rovi Movie TypeMovie Level ThemesSpace Travel, Robots and Androids, Evil Aliens, Heroic Mission, Time Sleepers Movie Level TonesTense, Visceral, Forceful, Gruesome, Menacing DVD Features - Audio Commentary by Director James Cameron, Cast and Crew
- Introduction by James Cameron (Special Edition Only)
- Final Theatrical Isolated Score by James Horner
- Composer's Original Isolated Score by James Horner
- Deleted and Extended Scenes
AwardsAMG RatingReview For big-budget, high-octane showmanship, Aliens (the sequel to Alien, directed by Ridley Scott) is hard to beat. While not as deliberate or interesting as the first in the series, Aliens is a wide-open visual-effects bonanza, with enough intensity and thrill for three standard action movies. Director James Cameron again proves himself more than capable when it comes to making the genre pay off. Sigourney Weaver reprises her role as Ripley, but this time she's no mere survivor, she's ready to lay waste to those ultra-nasty creatures from the first movie. She's like Wonder Woman without the skimpy clothes. The female heroine in this series has always been fascinating because of her complete ignorance of her sexuality. This is given an interesting spin at the end of this film when Ripley's goal becomes to destroy the alien eggs in their nest. A slap in the face to traditional motherhood? Anyway, too much shouldn't be read into the proceedings here. The dialogue is often horrendous, and the characters other than Ripley are little more than fodder for some impressive scenes of carnage, but this remains one of the most enjoyable action movies of the mid-'80s. ~ Brendon Hanley, Rovi
Requirements
Blu-Ray Drive or Blu-Ray Player
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