# What's your favourite "Alien" movie?
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favourite-alien-movie/554197
**Category:** Cafe Society
**Created:** [September 18, 2010, 5:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favourite-alien-movie/554197 "2010-09-18T17:20:45Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@Acorns.but\_not\_Bacon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acorns.but_not_Bacon)
#### Post date: [September 18, 2010, 5:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favourite-alien-movie/554197/1 "2010-09-18T17:20:45Z")
As inspired by my other Aliens thread [Aliens question. Spoily bits inside. - Cafe Society - Straight Dope Message Board](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=578504)
I’m talking all the Alien franchise, so you can choose right up to the last Alien vs Predator movie, I don’t know what it’s called, it doesn’t exist to me, will never watch. 😃
Er, my favourite is the first, it had the right amount of horror but also kept a nice sci fi atmosphere?
Aliens was more of an action film which definitely felt like a natural progression and it still had a dreamyness to it.
Alien 3 had nothing but gore and I don’t particuarly like how brash Ripley was, also it didn’t keep the original musical score of the previous two, it was just a completely different feel, not as flowing and a bit clunky. Alhough we did get to see more of the alien and how it moved, so I liked that. Plus we get to see human Bishop.
Really like Alien Resurrection because it goes back to same vein as Alien and Aliens I feel, also we got to see the consequences of the corporates getting hold of the alien…or maybe I like it because I’m a fan of Ripley and don’t really care too much how they work the aliens in.
---
### Author:  [@Troubles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Troubles)
#### Post date: [September 18, 2010, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favourite-alien-movie/554197/2 "2010-09-18T18:22:29Z")
_Alien_ is a great film, but I’m a bigger fan of action than horror, so _Aliens_ is my favorite.
Haven’t seen the remaining films.
---
### Author:  [@Busy\_Scissors](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Busy_Scissors)
#### Post date: [September 18, 2010, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favourite-alien-movie/554197/3 "2010-09-18T19:47:56Z")
Like them all but I and II are in a different street. I probably like Aliens the best - difficult to think of a better action film in the pre (serious) CGI era, and it’s not just an action film. Alien has the obvious cachet and originality that goes with the first in the series, though. Thought it held up really well when I saw it recently.
I really like the latter two but they’re more for fans of the series then superb films in their own right. III is cool for being full of British character actors - Brian Glover running the joint as warden. It’s years since I’ve seen IV but I recall it being very disappointing second half - it set stuff up really well but sort of lost its way IIRC. Not a real meaningful conclusion.
My enthusiasm for this series of films is such that I even enjoyed AvP - thought it was great tbh, just the right side of B-movie quality. The one after, though, was miserable. Like a slasher film from the late 70s.
---
### Author:  [@DigitalC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DigitalC)
#### Post date: [September 18, 2010, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favourite-alien-movie/554197/4 "2010-09-18T19:50:03Z")
Aliens by far. I didn’t even really like the original and the rest are best not discussed.
---
### Author:  [@Face\_Intentionally\_Left\_Blank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Face_Intentionally_Left_Blank)
#### Post date: [September 18, 2010, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favourite-alien-movie/554197/5 "2010-09-18T20:36:34Z")
\*Aliens \*was a great action flick chock-full of enjoyable characters, quotable lines and interesting gadgets: remote-controlled ships, sentry guns, the cool assault rifles, and the exo-skeleton loader. Really enjoyable.
I’ve seen a lot of hate for _Alien Resurrection_, but c’mon, Ron Perlman’s in it! Everything’s better with Ron Perlman! I thought it was the second-best one. \*Alien \*is traditionally #1 or #2 on everyone’s list, but I think it’s too slow-moving, and I find the characters to be boring. Even Harry Dean Stanton and Yaphet Kotto, capable actors though they are, don’t interest me.
So for me, it’s:
_Aliens
Alien Resurrection
Alien_
_Alien 3_ threw out the best that survived from 2 - Hicks and Bishop (Carrie Henn was too big, they would’ve had to recast Newt, and she would’ve limited Ripley to her mama bear role again)- and nothing new they brought in interested me at all.
They Alien vs Terminator movies were worth watching for a little mindless fun, but not worth talking about.
---
### Author:  [@DWMarch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DWMarch)
#### Post date: [September 18, 2010, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favourite-alien-movie/554197/6 "2010-09-18T20:53:25Z")
I’d love to see an Alien vs. Terminator movie. I think you meant Alien vs. Predator.
Aliens is my favorite for the obvious reasons.
Second favorite is actually AvP. I liked the fights, the creature design and the massive Queen that actually gets into the action for a change. Also I’m not a big fan of splatter movies so I liked that the gore was toned down.
I thought AvP:R was going to be awesome (dudes with assault rifles versus hordes of aliens! Douchebags getting their faces melted off! A Predator version of Winston Wolf! Reiko Aylesworth!) but unfortunately it was a suckfest.
---
### Author:  [@Face\_Intentionally\_Left\_Blank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Face_Intentionally_Left_Blank)
#### Post date: [September 18, 2010, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favourite-alien-movie/554197/7 "2010-09-18T21:19:28Z")
> [@DWMarch](#):
>
> I’d love to see an Alien vs. Terminator movie. I think you meant Alien vs. Predator.
Me too, and yes.
/no amount of proofreading is ever enough. . . .:smack:
---
### Author:  [@RikWriter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RikWriter)
#### Post date: [September 18, 2010, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favourite-alien-movie/554197/8 "2010-09-18T21:21:56Z")
Definitely Aliens. Alien is a close second.
There were no other films in the franchise.
---
### Author:  [@Baron\_Greenback](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baron_Greenback)
#### Post date: [September 18, 2010, 9:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favourite-alien-movie/554197/9 "2010-09-18T21:27:19Z")
Aliens. James Cameron is really good at his job.
---
### Author:  [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)
#### Post date: [September 18, 2010, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favourite-alien-movie/554197/10 "2010-09-18T23:50:41Z")
Aliens like everyone else
Alien is a great film but it’s plot doesn’t have the same “Can tune in at any moment in the film and start watching” feel to it that Aliens has.
---
### Author:  [@gladtobeblazed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gladtobeblazed)
#### Post date: [September 19, 2010, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favourite-alien-movie/554197/11 "2010-09-19T00:57:51Z")
I feel that _Alien_ is the superior film, but _Aliens_ is more entertaining.
---
### Author:  [@blue\_infinity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blue_infinity)
#### Post date: [September 19, 2010, 1:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favourite-alien-movie/554197/12 "2010-09-19T01:16:15Z")
Aliens.
Alien was very good, but Aliens stepped it up a notch.
Three was almost a remake of the first, but without interesting/likeable characters to root for (and killing off Hicks and Newt was a slap in the face, with all the effort to save them in the second).
Resurrection was ok, but the formula was getting a little bit tired by then. Didn’t seen AvP with all the poor reviews.
---
### Author:  [@El\_Kabong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/El_Kabong)
#### Post date: [September 19, 2010, 1:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favourite-alien-movie/554197/13 "2010-09-19T01:24:36Z")
“Game over, man!”
_Alien_ is brilliant both conceptually and visually, and on an intellectual basis should be first, but my heart belongs to _Aliens_. Still Cameron’s best film, IMO, and one of the greatest action films ever made.
For no good reason, I’ve never gotten round to seeing _Alien3_. Despite a Joss Whedon script and the aforementioned presence of Ron Perlman, _Alien Resurrection_ sets my teeth on edge; hated the direction (the characters are mostly way too cartoonish for my taste) and the ugly production design.
---
### Author:  [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)
#### Post date: [September 19, 2010, 1:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favourite-alien-movie/554197/14 "2010-09-19T13:57:57Z")
My Wife and I both love Alien and Aliens. We watch ‘em a few times a year. “Oh, what movie is this hon?” :rolleyes: A very bad inside joke for us.
For myself, I have to go with Alien. I saw it in the theater when it first came out and really did not know what to expect. I love that they presented the Nostromo for what it was. A space going tug. It wasn’t all shinny chrome and Formica. Also, I had no idea who Sigourney Weaver was.
Ash: “Well, it’s an interesting combination of elements making him a… tough little son-of-a-bitch.”
Ripley: “And you let him in.”
Pulp Fiction was similar for me. I had not heard any hype about it at all. Ended up in the front row. That was a wild experience.
---
### Author:  [@Death\_of\_Rats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Death_of_Rats)
#### Post date: [September 19, 2010, 2:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favourite-alien-movie/554197/15 "2010-09-19T14:28:07Z")
> [@gladtobeblazed](#):
>
> I feel that _Alien_ is the superior film, but _Aliens_ is more entertaining.
+1
I like that Alien does not have nearly as many plot holes a Aliens does. Like why does the Sulaco have no crew? and Why did they bring the wieght of an extra dropship but no second flight crew? In Alien most issues like that are explained by the fact that these are contract miners being asked to do job way out of thier paygrade for which they have zero experience, so any stupid mistakes and missing information are things they would not have been expected to know. An experienced Marine expedition should have know better.
---
### Author:  [@MTCicero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MTCicero)
#### Post date: [September 19, 2010, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favourite-alien-movie/554197/16 "2010-09-19T14:59:19Z")
Definitely **Alien** , followed very closely by **Aliens**. And I think **Alien³** is a flawed but ultimately interesting movie. And none of the rest of the movies are worth a shit.
---
### Author:  [@jackdavinci](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jackdavinci)
#### Post date: [September 19, 2010, 4:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favourite-alien-movie/554197/17 "2010-09-19T16:09:32Z")
> [@Face\_Intentionally\_Left\_Blank](#):
>
> So for me, it’s:
> _Aliens
> Alien Resurrection
> Alien_
Same here. Alien^3 pissed me off by negating the hard won victories of the previous movie. It wasn’t without it’s merits as a standalone film. But it always felt to me like someone had written a really interesting sci-fi indie script about a prison planet, and some Hollywood exec decided to try and shoehorn it into the Alien franchise for some reason.
---
### Author:  [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)
#### Post date: [September 19, 2010, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favourite-alien-movie/554197/18 "2010-09-19T16:19:36Z")
My vote goes to Alien. I also saw it when it first came out…that was the first AND last time I ever did 'shrooms before going to a horror movie. :eek:
---
### Author:  [@Face\_Intentionally\_Left\_Blank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Face_Intentionally_Left_Blank)
#### Post date: [September 20, 2010, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favourite-alien-movie/554197/19 "2010-09-20T00:19:25Z")
> [@jackdavinci](#):
>
> > [@Face\_Intentionally\_Left\_Blank](#):
> >
> > So for me, it’s:
> > _Aliens
> > Alien Resurrection
> > Alien_
>
> Same here. Alien^3 pissed me off by negating the hard won victories of the previous movie. It wasn’t without it’s merits as a standalone film. But it always felt to me like someone had written a really interesting sci-fi indie script about a prison planet, and some Hollywood exec decided to try and shoehorn it into the Alien franchise for some reason.
(underlining mine)
I think that nearly everyone felt that way. You take the roller-coaster ride that is _Aliens_, cheer the survivors, and then you have the victory taken away. It not only hurt the third movie, but retroactively tainted the second movie. It’s a lesson in how not to do a sequel, and how to piss off the fans of a franchise. Interesting thought on the prison planet/_Alien_ mashup, and it does feel that way, now that you mention it.
They should’ve had Hicks survive, had Bishop continue to be as broken as he was, and had Newt be the alien carrier. Would it have changed the movie substantially to have had Hicks in it? By the same token, it probably wouldn’t have made it much better, but it would have been a step in the right direction.
---
### Author:  [@GreedySmurf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreedySmurf)
#### Post date: [September 20, 2010, 12:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favourite-alien-movie/554197/20 "2010-09-20T00:23:20Z")
Without a doubt _Aliens_. It’s probably my favourite movie ever. Its certianly the movie I’ve watched most (triple figure viewings easily).
_Alien_ I like, but of course its a totla different style of movie.
_Alien 4_ I hate. Can’t stand it.
_Alien 3_ is a strange one for me. On first release, I absolutely hated it with a passion. I think that was for two reasons:
1. because Hicks was my favourite character out of _Aliens_ and having him killed ‘off-screen’ as it where annoyed the hell out of me.
2. I simply couldn’t get past the plot hole of there being at least two alien eggs on the Sulaco, and them hatching for no reason.
I’ve gotten over point 1 long ago, but I still think Point 2\* is terrible and lazy storytelling, but if I let myself ignore that, the movie in and of itself is enjoyable.
The less said about the two _AvP_ movies the better. They were both woeful. How do you screw up twice, a very simple premises of two iconic sci-fi alien creatures duking it out?
- I don’t want to derail this thread, but Point 2 is a massive plothole and no one can convince me otherwise. There is simply no way it could have happened. You just have to accept that the script writers for _Alien 3_ were too lazy too think up a way to set up the movie they wanted to tell, without completely ignoring the previous movie.
[Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favourite-alien-movie/554197.md?page=2)