1/6 1/6 Hot Toys: Ellen Ripley - Alien - Collectible Figure

[Khev]

Re: Hot Toys: Ellen Ripley - Alien (Updated with new prototype HS)

Don't worry about that. Khev's a noob.

And I love Prometheus so what do I know.

 

[DiFabio]

Re: Hot Toys: Ellen Ripley - Alien (Updated with new prototype HS)

And I love Prometheus so what do I know.

 

[VintijDroidGutzz]

Re: Hot Toys: Ellen Ripley - Alien (Updated with new prototype HS)

I love Prometheus too.

 

[a-dev]

Re: Hot Toys: Ellen Ripley - Alien (Updated with new prototype HS)

Must watch Prometheus again. It was an atmospheric film, I would give it that.

 

[karamazov80]

Re: Hot Toys: Ellen Ripley - Alien (Updated with new prototype HS)

All these people proclaiming their love of Prometheus. . .I really need to learn how to use this Ignore feature.

 

[VintijDroidGutzz]

Re: Hot Toys: Ellen Ripley - Alien (Updated with new prototype HS)

The moment HT release their Dr Shaw figure, I'll dance a jig.

 

[Wor-Gar]

Re: Hot Toys: Ellen Ripley - Alien (Updated with new prototype HS)

I did dismiss The Deer Hunter but thinking back I'd say that that film had the makings of the types of scenes we would later see in ALIENS and Platoon. I think that's more of a "gateway" movie though, because so much of the actual film is really about before and after war life and not so much the war itself. Obviously ALIENS and Platoon are straight up war movies. But still, the action in The Deer Hunter was indeed pretty gritty and realistic. Not In Harm's Way though, that's not even close to what I'm talking about.

When I say "documentary" I guess I don't mean that literally or even that the film is trying to make you think you're watching a documentary, just the feel of a camera crew really being in the middle of a chaotic, disorienting firefight. I really don't think those kinds of sequences "arrived" until 1986. Kind of like CGI. We got glimpses of what it could do with the morphing sorceress in Willow and the Abyss water tentacle and T1000 but I don't think it really came into its own until Jurassic Park. So ALIENS was the Jurassic Park of war films and The Deer Hunter was The Abyss.

It sounds like you disagree but I don't think those older films you list qualify to the level of ALIENS and Platoon and of those two ALIENS came first so I do give props to Cameron. Even if he was in "Viet Nam mode" after Rambo he still used the momentum from Stallone's film to segue into his own movie with truly chaotic and terrifying war footage.

I guess I'd call that more "hand-held" style -- a filmmaking technique rather than a movie style. Steadicams were all the craze by early 1980's and allowing DPs to get "into the action" in ways we hadn't felt before. I'm guessing that's what you mean.

 

[abake]

Re: Hot Toys: Ellen Ripley - Alien (Updated with new prototype HS)

"Kane's son" was Ash's spin on it. That alone is taking away from it a bit because the thing isn't meant to be male or female. Technically, the Aliens from Aliens are all the colony's "children". From what we see in the first film, it acts like nothing more than an animal, a predator. What "mysterious" qualities for it were left to explore? That it had a penchant for stand up comedy? That all it really wanted to do to Ripley was **** her brains out? What? You even admit to the first being a parasite, well, being a parasite basically sums up the idea that the creature is simply using humans as a host to further it's species. It's about survival. There goes the mystery!

It was an animal, the most sophisticated thing about it was it's appearance, that's it. I don't think adding what was added makes it less interesting or less frightening in the sequel. Fear of the unknown? The Marines look plenty scared to me. Only Ripley, Newt, and Bishop got a chance to experience the Queen first hand, unless we're talking about the audience. I promise you that any sequel involving the eggs, aliens or environment would have "taken away the mystery" of the first Alien, just by making a sequel and showing it again. Even if it was Ridley Scott. Look at friggin' Prometheus. Atleast Aliens left their actual origins up to the viewer, right?

I think you're missing the point...
What I'm alluding to is the mystery of the creature itself.
Watching Alien you don't know its motives, nor the extent of its intelligence. You're not even sure what it is. Is it Kane's "son", as in something that has a bit of Kane's DNA in it? So is it part human? Why does it do what it does? What exactly does it do? Brett gets his face chewed on and is probably killed, Dallas just vanishes "no blood, no nothing", Parker again gets his face chewed on and we don't know what happens to Lambert other than she ends up naked. Why does it seem to know its way around the ship? Why did it go to the Narcissus? What happens to it afterwards? How does it go from the creature in the Narcissus to the eggs in the derelict ship? So no, it doesn't just act like an animal. And it still is quite a mystery.

In Aliens, the entire creature gets de-mystified. I'm not saying that's good or bad. I'm just pointing out what happens in Cameron's film. And IMO, it did make the monster a lot less scary. Because you understand the creature. In Alien you didn't, and it is a lot scarier.

In Alien, it's pretty much all about what is the monster going to do. In Aliens, it's pretty much about what is Ripley going to do. Probably rightly so. As I said, it's a change of tone that has an effect on the entire film.

 

[karamazov80]

Re: Hot Toys: Ellen Ripley - Alien (Updated with new prototype HS)

Good post. To put it succinctly:

Alien:Aliens

as

Texas Chainsaw Massacre:Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2

 

[Rijie78]

Re: Hot Toys: Ellen Ripley - Alien (Updated with new prototype HS)

The moment HT release their Dr Shaw figure, I'll dance a jig.

You'll be too old, and the staff won't allow dancing in the day room.

 

[abake]

Re: Hot Toys: Ellen Ripley - Alien (Updated with new prototype HS)

Found this:

https://alienseries.wordpress.com/2014/04/03/james-cameron-responds-to-aliens-critics/

Very nice read and very much on topic for the present discussion!

 

[Khev]

Re: Hot Toys: Ellen Ripley - Alien (Updated with new prototype HS)

I guess I'd call that more "hand-held" style -- a filmmaking technique rather than a movie style. Steadicams were all the craze by early 1980's and allowing DPs to get "into the action" in ways we hadn't felt before. I'm guessing that's what you mean.

Eh, semantics. The hand-held technique contributes to a certain style. But I think you get my meaning.

And I think Prometheus is an amazing film. Yes it has a couple of parts where certain characters are really dumb. But the whole is so much greater. The music, the artistic visuals, the awesome 3D, and I really do like the main characters (Shaw, David, Vickers, and Yadek) and the whole notion of the derelict crafts housing death chambers of various monstrosities. I think that makes ALIEN and ALIENS even cooler. The critters in ALIENS now become even scarier to me if I allow for them to be an extension of the events from Prometheus. Not only can the creatures kill you with their teeth or burn you with their acid but now maybe they can just drip crap on you and turn you into something else. Ick.

 

[Wor-Gar]

Re: Hot Toys: Ellen Ripley - Alien (Updated with new prototype HS)

Found this:

https://alienseries.wordpress.com/2014/04/03/james-cameron-responds-to-aliens-critics/

Very nice read and very much on topic for the present discussion!

I remember those articles. The ego to actually be outraged enough to respond at length like he does. Also, he's fairly condescending to his audience (i.e. bear in mind the difficulty of communicating a lifecycle... to an audience... which may barely recall there was an alien in Alien". He was an ass when he was young.

He's wrong in his assumption about the derelict pilot (he's not alone apparently) even though he says "clearly...was alone" with such conviction.

Also, I wonder why he didn't address the comment about Horner's score? Sticks his neck out to cover his ass but not his crew?

 

[DiFabio]

Re: Hot Toys: Ellen Ripley - Alien (Updated with new prototype HS)

Those articles are great. He sounds like me.

All those nitpickers are nerdy men, da wimmin loved it, that surprised me. I remember reading criticisms against Ripley stating that making her a mom and a "butch" was a mistake.

 

[Wor-Gar]

Re: Hot Toys: Ellen Ripley - Alien (Updated with new prototype HS)

He sounds like me.

I have to admit, I laughed when he brought up "intentions" as a defense.

 

[DiFabio]

Re: Hot Toys: Ellen Ripley - Alien (Updated with new prototype HS)

I wish that was the same 80s Cameron we had now instead of the tree huggin', Pandora creation', 3D lovin' a-hole of the present.

 

[YankeesFanboy]

Re: Hot Toys: Ellen Ripley - Alien (Updated with new prototype HS)

Ms. Weaver? Do you have any opinion as to James Cameron's directorial vision, or creative decisions?



Ms. Weaver?

 

[a-dev]

Re: Hot Toys: Ellen Ripley - Alien (Updated with new prototype HS)

I remember those articles. The ego to actually be outraged enough to respond at length like he does. Also, he's fairly condescending to his audience (i.e. bear in mind the difficulty of communicating a lifecycle... to an audience... which may barely recall there was an alien in Alien". He was an ass when he was young.

He's wrong in his assumption about the derelict pilot (he's not alone apparently) even though he says "clearly...was alone" with such conviction.

Also, I wonder why he didn't address the comment about Horner's score? Sticks his neck out to cover his ass but not his crew?

If I had written those letters of complaint I'd be thrilled that the director himself actually personally responded. I didn't detect condescension either.

 

[Wor-Gar]

Re: Hot Toys: Ellen Ripley - Alien (Updated with new prototype HS)

I wish that was the same 80s Cameron we had now instead of the tree huggin', Pandora creation', 3D lovin' a-hole of the present.

True. He's spent too much time underwater I think. I wonder if his hand shakes like Coffey's?

 

[spindrift]

Re: Hot Toys: Ellen Ripley - Alien (Updated with new prototype HS)

True. He's spent too much time underwater I think. I wonder if his hand shakes like Coffey's?

Avatar..three sequels..really dude? Really????????????????????