Aliens is a very different movie from the first one. Whereas the first was a sci-fi horror movie, Aliens is a military action/horror movie. This time they're prepared, or so they thought. This sequel again starts as a classic sci-fi story: Ripley is found 50 years later, so all her friends/family are long dead. The planet where she encountered the Aliens has been inhabited for years, until suddenly they lose contact with the colonists. Which does not make much sense. She is then sent to that same planet with a marine team to find out what happened. Once they get there "it's war", as the tagline says. This time out the Aliens are less invincible, but there are many more of them. The marines do kill some of them, but they keep coming. We're taken on a roller coster ride, which doesn't let go until the end. We see the Alien Queen, which completes the Aliens life cycle in a way that is respectful of the previous designs. It just fits nicely. And how can I not mention the final battle between the Queen and the Power Loader, that is just the definition of cool; Ripley: "Get away from her, you bitch!". A worthy sequel that takes the franchise in a different direction. Movie Score: 8/10 The DVD Extras paint a very clear picture of shooting process of this movie. The shoot was in London, but the crew was a mix of American and British people. The director is James Cameron (Terminator, True Lies, Titanic), who had clashes with the british crew and their way of working. I found this cultural different very interesting, and in line with what I've seen in my experience. Americans tend to work overtime if needed, regardless of their life outside work. Europeans tend to get off work in time, and get back to their family/personal lives. So the British crew would stop for a tea break every afternoon, and get off work regularly on time. Cameron was under a lot of pressure time-wise, so he needed his crew to work longer hours. It seems Cameron can be very tough, which is something that came up in the Abyss DVD as well. But the result is that his movies are some of the most successful. He hasn't done a lot of feature films, but every single one of them has been very successful, and I enjoyed all of them. Although Aliens is a very good film, I don't think it's his best (no, it's not Titanic either!!), I think Abyss or Terminator are his best. DVD Extras Score: 8/10

This entry was posted on Thursday, November 24, 2005 at 11/24/2005 01:03:00 PM.