Wednesday, June 06, 2012
The exclamation marks in the title may signify how excited I am. And of this year's releases it was not a film I would have imagined to be one of my most anticipated. But I've geared myself up and immersed myself in Ellen Ripley's world over the last five days.
Okay, so Ripley's not in this one, I know that. But I wanted to know the full history behind the return of the franchise.
I'd only seen Alien before and thought it was quite good. Aliens was a high priority for some time on the have-to-borrow list but never got around to it before now. I just want to say that I think Sigourney Weaver is just amazing as Ripley, I could never imagine anyone replicating her in that role. And she was 48 by the time Alien: Resurrection was made. I was shocked to realise today that she's 63. 63! She looks incredible.
Anyway, to compliment my review of Prometheus, which will be up on Saturday night as per usual, I watched these to provide mini-reviews. In short, I loved Alien and Aliens, didn't mind Alien 3 and hated Alien: Resurrection. Science fiction has never been so creepy. I'm so excited that Ridley Scott's back for the prequel. And I'll have a similarly excited crew accompanying me for a change which is always nice. We can all be crazy excited together.
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Alien (1979)
The quadrilogy begins with Ellen Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) and the crew of Nostromo landing on planet LV-426 to investigate an SOS signal. They find a pretty nasty little alien that makes itself at home on board but is nothing compared to what comes next. Ridley Scott’s vision is terrifying and fascinating, and Weaver’s comfort with Ripley from the start carries the film to a strong finish. 4.5/5
Aliens (1986)
Regarded as one of cinema’s best sequels, Ripley returns to find LV-426 has been colonised and returns to face her demons when there are reports of disappearances from the administration. There’s a lot more action, plenty of twists and a Ripley who is a force to be reckoned with. What should be a typical blockbuster cuts above its weight. James Cameron takes credit for that one. 4.5/5
Regarded as one of cinema’s best sequels, Ripley returns to find LV-426 has been colonised and returns to face her demons when there are reports of disappearances from the administration. There’s a lot more action, plenty of twists and a Ripley who is a force to be reckoned with. What should be a typical blockbuster cuts above its weight. James Cameron takes credit for that one. 4.5/5
Alien 3 (1992)
David Fincher’s stamp on the franchise has Ripley fall into a dark place as she finds the aliens have a particular liking for her. Landing on a penal colony with maximum security-jailed prisoners as her team, she struggles mentally and physically with finishing the bastards off once and for all. An edgier soundtrack and darker characters make for an interesting arc but it just doesn’t manage to reach the heights of the first two, even with a great ending. 3/5
David Fincher’s stamp on the franchise has Ripley fall into a dark place as she finds the aliens have a particular liking for her. Landing on a penal colony with maximum security-jailed prisoners as her team, she struggles mentally and physically with finishing the bastards off once and for all. An edgier soundtrack and darker characters make for an interesting arc but it just doesn’t manage to reach the heights of the first two, even with a great ending. 3/5
Alien: Resurrection (1997)
The franchise ends like the Twilight Saga – number four should never have been created. Ripley is brought back to civilisation 200 years after her death as a clone and is used by The Company to breed a queen alien. The aliens escape the research labs as a rogue crew come on the ship. With an extremely 90s feel to it, Joss Whedon’s script is poor. Ripley’s turn as an alien sympathiser doesn’t suit her (although Weaver is still very effective) and Jean-Pierre Jeunet’s direction fails to make an impact. 1.5/5
The franchise ends like the Twilight Saga – number four should never have been created. Ripley is brought back to civilisation 200 years after her death as a clone and is used by The Company to breed a queen alien. The aliens escape the research labs as a rogue crew come on the ship. With an extremely 90s feel to it, Joss Whedon’s script is poor. Ripley’s turn as an alien sympathiser doesn’t suit her (although Weaver is still very effective) and Jean-Pierre Jeunet’s direction fails to make an impact. 1.5/5
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Tuesday, June 05, 2012
A year ago today I was at Madrid, Spain, attending a bullfight held at a packed Las Ventas.
The performance on horseback isn't done as much but it was the only one I could attend and it was part of their yearly festival when the best in the country are all around. Saw a few of the very best. It was a very interesting experience and with a bit of research under my belt I'd managed (with assistance from my newfound friends) to order good tickets purely in Spanish with a bit of pointing. It turned sour when I had a worker verbally attack me in the native tongue after I incorrectly thought it was tradition to throw the cushions towards the arena at the end. The guy mocked and berated me, I've never felt so angry/offended ever. That could've even beaten the Sevilla moment to be honest.
But until then Madrid had been pretty good. And Cordoba before that where I spent two days (largely uneventful). But deciding to skip a trip to Malaga from there as I'd planned and head to Madrid a day early was fate because I met two lovely young ladies about half an hour after getting to my hostel - on a city walking tour. We would spend the next three days together, one in nearby Toledo with an extra companion.
***
It wasn't all rosy though. How could it be when Spain had kept up its ability to challenge any foreigner it could? I found out two of the ladies had stuff stolen in Madrid, while the third did right under both of our noses in a shoe shop a few hours before she had to head to the airport to fly out. Ended worse for her than my start did for me. So it wasn't just me huh?
***
But still, Spain continued to amaze me with its houses of God, which I almost felt were getting better and better with each one I saw, and I began to lose count of my ice cream consumption. My time in Madrid was made better with the company I found so I was ultimately grateful that my time in Spain ended on an oh-so-nearly perfect note.
Cordoba
Toledo
Madrid
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