# I just watched "Alien" for the first time **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 26, 2015, 2:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-watched-alien-for-the-first-time/710921 "2015-01-26T14:11:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 8
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2015, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-watched-alien-for-the-first-time/710921/141 "2015-01-29T17:29:37Z")
> [@Miller](#): > > How does that description not apply to action movies from the '90s? Or the turn of the century? Or the 2010s? Isn’t that just the basic descriptor for “action movie?” As I said, not going to go into niggling debate with you. ---
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2015, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-watched-alien-for-the-first-time/710921/142 "2015-01-29T17:32:15Z")
> [@Les\_Espaces\_Du\_Sommeil](#): > > And by the way, how come one of them gets to keep his pump-action rifle and even worse, Vasquez and Dietrich keep their huge machine guns? Too much of a hassle to take off? Well, that’s another good reason to try to come up with another plan, especially given the risks related to the processing plant. Wasn’t a pump action rifle. It was a pump action shotgun. He wasn’t ‘allowed’ to keep it, it was an ‘extra’. Anyway, since it was a shotgun, it was not shooting ‘10mm armor piercing rounds’ and would not be a danger to the reactor. Vasquez and Dietrich gave up some electric gizmo that allowed their guns to fire. Vasquez had extras and plugged them back in. ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2015, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-watched-alien-for-the-first-time/710921/143 "2015-01-29T17:39:14Z")
**Miller** , on the off chance that you genuinely don’t understand that “80s action movie” is a thing, [here](http://www.theverge.com/2014/11/8/7176961/what-if-captain-america-were-an-80s-action-movie-star). ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2015, 6:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-watched-alien-for-the-first-time/710921/144 "2015-01-29T18:10:25Z")
> [@Spoke](#): > > **Miller** , on the off chance that you genuinely don’t understand that “80s action movie” is a thing, [here](http://www.theverge.com/2014/11/8/7176961/what-if-captain-america-were-an-80s-action-movie-star). If I didn’t think “'80s action movie” was a thing, I wouldn’t have given a definition of them in post 76. I agree its a recognizable sub-genre. I don’t think it’s defined by “big guns, explosions, militarism, and a throbbing soundtrack,” because that definition seems too broad - most actions movies (that are set in the modern era, at least) feature big guns, explosions, and a throbbing soundtrack, regardless of what decade they were made in. The actual _Captain America_ movie - not the parody you linked to - fits that description. ---
**Author:** ![iamthewalrus\_3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/258eb7/32.png) [@iamthewalrus\_3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iamthewalrus_3)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2015, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-watched-alien-for-the-first-time/710921/145 "2015-01-29T18:20:55Z")
Since this thread has become an Alien-franchise compendium, I should mention that if you re-watch _Aliens_, do not watch the Director’s Cut. It’s an effective demonstration of the old adage: “No line is worth the scene, no scene is worth the movie”. All the additional footage is well-done, but it actively makes the movie less good. Particularly the extended sequence that shows Newt’s family going out to bring the original Alien back to the settlement and radio chatter about them being sent there, which lessens the impact of the rest of the movie. ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2015, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-watched-alien-for-the-first-time/710921/146 "2015-01-29T18:32:39Z")
And now, **Miller** , if you can spot the stylistic elements that separate the actual **Captain America** movie from the parody, you will begin to understand what comprises an “80s action movie,” and possibly even why **Aliens** is one. Or possibly you may not. I find that I really don’t care. ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2015, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-watched-alien-for-the-first-time/710921/147 "2015-01-29T18:38:23Z")
I half agree. The scene with Newt’s family drags (though it does explain how the aliens got into the compound and the W-Y link) but the scene with Ripley looking through her family files is worth the few moments and the sentry gun scenes are worth it for the “cool”. All in all, I’d say to watch the distribution version first since I think it’s better paced and then watch the Director’s Cut if you decide you want to see it again some day. As for the ammo-gathering, the Aliens script says that Vasquez and Drake hold back magazines (as opposed to ‘electric gizmos’) which makes sense. They had to give their magazines to Frost (“Thanks a lot, Sarge”) who later gets hit by a flamethrower and his satchel full of everyone’s ammo explodes. ---
**Author:** ![Intergalactic\_Gladiator](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/intergalactic_gladiator/32/112_2.png) [@Intergalactic\_Gladiator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Intergalactic_Gladiator)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2015, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-watched-alien-for-the-first-time/710921/148 "2015-01-29T18:40:13Z")
> [@iamthewalrus\_3](#): > > Since this thread has become an Alien-franchise compendium, I should mention that if you re-watch _Aliens_, do not watch the Director’s Cut. It’s an effective demonstration of the old adage: “No line is worth the scene, no scene is worth the movie”. All the additional footage is well-done, but it actively makes the movie less good. Particularly the extended sequence that shows Newt’s family going out to bring the original Alien back to the settlement and radio chatter about them being sent there, which lessens the impact of the rest of the movie. Agreed and the same for the bit with Hudson before the drop. Everyone loves Hudson and Bill Paxton is great, of course, but the whole bit is kind of clunky and ultimately unnecessary. It looks decent on paper but not so much on film: > [@](#): > > Hudson: I’m ready, man, check it out. I am the ultimate badass! State of the badass art! You do NOT wanna fuck with me. Check it out! Hey Ripley, don’t worry. Me and my squad of ultimate badasses will protect you! Check it out! Independently targeting particle beam phalanx. Vwap! Fry half a city with this puppy. We got tactical smart missiles, phase-plasma pulse rifles, RPGs, we got sonic electronic ball breakers! We got nukes, we got knives, sharp sticks… > > Apone: Knock it off, Hudson. All right, gear up. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2015, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-watched-alien-for-the-first-time/710921/149 "2015-01-29T18:53:37Z")
> [@Spoke](#): > > And now, **Miller** , if you can spot the stylistic elements that separate the actual **Captain America** movie from the parody, you will begin to understand what comprises an “80s action movie,” and possibly even why **Aliens** is one. Or possibly you may not. I find that I really don’t care. I still don’t get why you’re coming at me with this much attitude. I haven’t insulted or belittled you in this thread, or, as far as I’m aware, any other thread. I’m just trying to talk about an old movie. If you don’t want to talk about it, that’s cool, but then, why do you keep posting in this thread? At any rate, I can’t watch the movie right now, but I’ll try to get to it when I get home. ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2015, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-watched-alien-for-the-first-time/710921/150 "2015-01-29T19:04:51Z")
Look within. It would be nice to have a _discussion_ about a movie without it devolving into niggling debates over minor points. (_See, e.g._: Is Alien an “80s action movie” or just an “action movie?”) While I enjoy discussions about old movies, the quibbling is tiresome and makes discussion less enjoyable. ---
**Author:** ![msmith537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2015, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-watched-alien-for-the-first-time/710921/151 "2015-01-29T19:08:18Z")
> [@Scumpup](#): > > Smoking on a space ship? Why not? The _Nostromo_ wasn’t the _Enterprise_ and the crew certainly weren’t fresh faced Star Fleet Academy cadets. _Nostromo_ was a flying industrial site (oil refinery, iirc?) and the crew were blue collar factory drones. > Given the size of the ship and the fact that the crew was held in stasis most of the time, the smoke off a few ciggies doesn’t have enough impact on the life support systems to matter. Keep in mind the film came out during a time when people still smoked on commercial airlines. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2015, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-watched-alien-for-the-first-time/710921/152 "2015-01-29T19:20:03Z")
> [@Spoke](#): > > Look within. It would be nice to have a _discussion_ about a movie without it devolving into niggling debates over minor points. (_See, e.g._: Is Alien an “80s action movie” or just an “action movie?”) While I enjoy discussions about old movies, the quibbling is tiresome and makes discussion less enjoyable. I genuinely don’t understand what you think that discussion would look like, or what constitutes a “niggling” point or a substantial issue for debate. Your position in this thread is predicated on the idea that _Aliens_ is a “typical '80s action movie.” That’s almost literally the only criticism you’ve made about the film. If I can’t address the topic of whether or not the film meets that criteria, what topic _can_ I address? What else have you offered up for discussion in this thread? ---
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2015, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-watched-alien-for-the-first-time/710921/153 "2015-01-29T19:27:14Z")
> [@Jophiel](#): > > As for the ammo-gathering, the Aliens script says that Vasquez and Drake hold back magazines (as opposed to ‘electric gizmos’) which makes sense. They had to give their magazines to Frost (“Thanks a lot, Sarge”) who later gets hit by a flamethrower and his satchel full of everyone’s ammo explodes. :shrug: what ever Vasquez and Drake had in the actual movie (you can see it) wasn’t a conventional magazine. Not by a long shot. It plugged into the weapon, and appeared to be some sort of connection. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2015, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-watched-alien-for-the-first-time/710921/154 "2015-01-29T19:43:38Z")
I think their grenades were also in that satchel. ---
**Author:** ![Scumpup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce73a5/32.png) [@Scumpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scumpup)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2015, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-watched-alien-for-the-first-time/710921/155 "2015-01-29T19:58:42Z")
> [@enipla](#): > > :shrug: what ever Vasquez and Drake had in the actual movie (you can see it) wasn’t a conventional magazine. Not by a long shot. It plugged into the weapon, and appeared to be some sort of connection. There is a lot of disconnect between how the weapons are described by characters and what we actually see. Been years since I saw the flick, but while the rifles were described as using caseless ammo, I’m almost positive I remember seeing cases ejected when the pieces were fired ( the props were built around Thompson smg’s). The things the sarge collected up were, IIRC, described as magazines but showed an electrical connector rather than thr top of a stack of rounds. ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2015, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-watched-alien-for-the-first-time/710921/156 "2015-01-29T20:17:40Z")
> [@Scumpup](#): > > The things the sarge collected up were, IIRC, described as magazines but showed an electrical connector rather than thr top of a stack of rounds. I noticed that as well and understood where “electrical gizmo” came from but, when watching the film, wrote it off to futuristic weaponry. Maybe the magazine had an electronic connector component for the rifle’s LED ammo display or some other reason. Still, I think the film makes clear that they’re _supposed_ to be the magazines (since that’s what Frost is told to collect). ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2015, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-watched-alien-for-the-first-time/710921/157 "2015-01-29T20:20:24Z")
> [@Miller](#): > > I genuinely don’t understand what you think that discussion would look like, or what constitutes a “niggling” point or a substantial issue for debate. Your position in this thread is predicated on the idea that _Aliens_ is a “typical '80s action movie.” That’s almost literally the only criticism you’ve made about the film. If I can’t address the topic of whether or not the film meets that criteria, what topic _can_ I address? What else have you offered up for discussion in this thread? Try to understand the subtle difference between “stating my opinion” and “taking a position.” We don’t have to debate everything, even when we disagree. We can just state our opinions. Not every discussion has to be a debate, and not every nit has to be picked. Also notice that with your last post you are trying to generate yet _another_ niggling debate, this time about, I guess, the definition of niggling. Just stop it. Control yourself. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2015, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-watched-alien-for-the-first-time/710921/158 "2015-01-29T20:38:59Z")
> [@Spoke](#): > > Try to understand the subtle difference between “stating my opinion” and “taking a position.” > > We don’t have to debate everything, even when we disagree. We can just state our opinions. Not every discussion has to be a debate, and not every nit has to be picked. > > Also notice that with your last post you are trying to generate yet _another_ niggling debate, this time about, I guess, the definition of niggling. Just stop it. Control yourself. All I’m trying to do is figure out how to talk to you without you acting like I’ve just punched your mother in the stomach. You say _Aliens_ is a sterotypical '80s action movie. I try to discuss that idea with you, and you sneer at me. You say that the first movie was Lovecraftian. I try to discuss that idea with you, and you sneer at me. You say you want a discussion, and I try to figure out what you mean by a discussion, because every time I try and discuss something with you, you sneer at me, and once again, you sneer at me. Now, apparently, instead of a discussion, you want to be able to state your opinion without having to actually talk to anyone. If you want to do that, go get a blog. Or stand outside and shout at the sky. If you’re going to post your opinion to a _debate board_, stop acting so fucking surprised when people try to debate what you’re saying. ---
**Author:** ![AncientHumanoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ancienthumanoid/32/278_2.png) [@AncientHumanoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AncientHumanoid)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2015, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-watched-alien-for-the-first-time/710921/159 "2015-01-29T20:48:27Z")
This USED to be a fun thread. Not now… GAME OVER, MAN! ---
**Author:** ![mlees](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba8739/32.png) [@mlees](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mlees)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2015, 8:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-watched-alien-for-the-first-time/710921/160 "2015-01-29T20:55:17Z")
> [@AncientHumanoid](#): > > This USED to be a fun thread. > > Not now… GAME OVER, MAN! Dammit! Two more weeks and I was out, man. Two more weeks! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-watched-alien-for-the-first-time/710921.md?page=7) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-just-watched-alien-for-the-first-time/710921.md?page=9)