Alien: Resurrection (1997) Horror Movie Review
Written By: CM
Film Information
Director: Jean-Pierre Jeunet
Producers: Gordon Carroll, David Giler, Walter Hill, Bill Badalato
Writer: Joss Whedon
Date Released: November 26, 1997
Cast:
Sigourney Weaver as Ripley 8
Nicole Fellows as Young Ripley
Winona Ryder as Annalee Call
Dominique Pinon as Dom Vriess
Ron Perlman as Ron Johner
Gary Dourdan as Gary Christie
Michael Wincott as Frank Elgyn
Kim Flowers as Sabra Hillard
Dan Hedaya as General Martin Perez
J. E. Freeman as Dr. Mason Wren
Rating = 3/5 Graves
*** May contain spoilers***
Synopsis
Two hundred years after Ripley killed herself to save humanity, military scientists made a desperate attempt at cloning her and the queen bee nesting in her body. After a successful attempt, she wakes up as a human-alien hybrid called Ripley 8. The scientists, on the other hand, started breeding xenomorphs through the extracted queen bee. As the xenomorphs manage to escape, a group of mercenaries take every chance to survive and return back to Earth, enlisting the help of Ripley herself.
Gore Factor
Developing a more modern approach to the special effects, Alien Resurrection looks a lot more hyper-realistic than the previous films in the franchise. However, Jeunet takes a more minimalist approach with the gore in this film, lessening the goo and the blood and focusing on cleaner, but somehow more disturbing images. From Ripley-alien hybrid experiments floating in big tubes to alien bits exploding slowly into space, this film loves tearing the flesh a lot more than bloodbaths.
The Grave Review
How many times can a person escape death? The Alien franchise thrives on unrealistic survival plots and with Alien Resurrection, they might have pushed it over to the edge. At this point, this plot has been reused and reangled quite a few times. Ripley wakes up years after she almost dies, gets rescued, and somehow she still gets followed by these aliens. This time, she even escapes a hot lava bath.The surprising thing about Alien Resurrection is that in the end, it still managed to be an effective sci-fi horror film.
One factor is that there is a different director in each film. While Alien 3 is proof that this is not always a good thing as the story can end up disjointed, Alien Resurrection reassures its viewers that it can be a good thing. There is something about how the formula of the first two films that made it so effective, and Jeunet’s new perspective made it possible to use the same formula but in a new, unique light.
Adding a touch of sci-phi (a term used for philosophical sci-fi works) into the mix definitely helped widen the story arc of Ripley. Now half of her worst enemy, Ripley 8 grapples with her identity. The scene where she sees multiple failed versions of herself was one of the scariest parts of the film (second to the new-generation alien bursting into space, of course), and it showed a new kind of fear she never showed in the previous three movies.
Even towards the end, when she sees the newborn alien dying bit by bit, you could see her feeling bad and she even apologizes. The xenomorph, a monster that almost killed her over and over, had become a part of her. And despite all the recycled tricks this film used, this character development added a whole new layer in this universe Ridley Scott started.
One thing missing in this film is the gasping-for-air feeling of the first two films. It wasn’t as exhilarating and action-packed. It definitely focused on character building, slowly introducing the perspective of androids through Winona Ryder’s character Call. This helped build up the prequels Prometheus and Alien: Covenant.
If you have a lot more patience for a slower-paced film in the franchise, Alien Resurrection is definitely not the worst movie in the franchise. However, the story is on the verge of getting old. So it was a great choice to end it there and start with a prequel and a spin-off series. If you want to end this series on a high note, you should probably stop at Aliens. If you’re looking for more character and world building within the franchise, this film is perfect for a little lesson on existentialism through acid-blooded aliens.
For the foregoing reasons, Grave Reviews gives Alien: Resurrection (1997) three graves out of five graves.
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