June 9: Alien

"A mining ship, investigating a suspected SOS, lands on a distant planet. The crew discovers some strange creatures and investigates."

So the buildup of "Alien Week" has lead to this. Well, the first part of it at least. I still need to see Prometheus. But to set myself up for the film, I revisited the original Alien movie itself. The 1979 sci-fi classic that paved way for every other movie I reviewed this week as well as creating a new standard for the horror genre. It's surprisingly how effective Alien still is after 33 years and shows that it is much more about the story, the characters, and the fear of being trapped in a spaceship with a deadly beast, than it is about fancy special effects and big explosions (although the effects in the film still look pretty damn good). Alien is a lot like Halloween, or other slasher films, but in space, with a giant creature instead of the creepy Michael Myers and none of the unnecessary (but necessary) sex scenes. 

I can only imagine how terrifying Halloween would have been if Myers had little creatures rape the faces of his victims before he brutally murders them. 

Alien follows the story of the Nostromo, a commercial mining ship that discovers an SOS signal coming from an unidentified planet. Upon landing, the crew sends out a team to investigate the signal and they come across eggs of some kind of creature. Events unfold and an alien creature boards the Nostromo, causing destruction and killing off members of the crew. Once the alien is on board, and after a memorable dinner scene, the terror really begins. With the alien's arrival, a heightened sense of paranoia and fear arrives with it for not only Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) and her crew, but for the audience as well. Alien is a claustrophobic film and Ridley Scott does an amazing job capturing the close quarters fight to the death. The narrow passageways  of the Nostromo are used wonderfully and Scott uses the setting and the sets masterfully. The use of a good score and terrific sound effects, including an almost constant heartbeat throughout the film, just adds to the scary atmosphere. And, with so many twists and turns in the ship, you never can expect what's around the next corner. 

Oh my f**king God.

Alien succeeds on so many levels. It's truly terrifying and has moments that will make you jump and cringe even if you have already seen the film. It's ingenious with its special effects, using props and real, live effects. The creature design for the alien has now become iconic and it still stands the test of time on its looks and scare factor. Sigourney Weaver is good as Ripley but I have to give it to Ian Holm, who plays the Nostromo's science officer, Ash. His role is very vital to the film's plot and how his story plays out is surprising as well as looking incredible. Alien is a classic. What Jaws does for the ocean, what Psycho does for showers, and what Halloween does for your own neighborhood, Alien does for space. Sure, very few of us will ever venture out into the final frontier, but I can't help wonder how many, if given the opportunity, would turn down an offer after watching Alien. Also, as we all have come to know, in space, no one can hear you scream.

The Good:

a horror movie disguised as a science fiction movie that scares the crap out of you

The Better:

great creature effects that still look good after 33 years and also scares the crap out of you

The Best:

even knowing what's going to happen and still having the crap scared out of you... the damn thing is that intense (and awesome)

Overall: 9.0/10

Trailer:

June 4: The Fifth Element

"In the colorful future, a cab driver unwittingly becomes the central figure in the search for a legendary cosmic weapon to keep Evil and Mr Zorg at bay."

The Fifth Element is a fun, over-the-top, colorful trip through a twisted and vibrant future with an equally entertaining cast of characters. The Fifth Element, written and directed by Luc Besson (The Professional), is a passion project for the man and his creative talent oozes throughout it. The movie is clearly meant to be something special, and while it may not be the most profound or meaningful film, it is extremely unique and original. If you can just sit back and enjoy the film, without taking it seriously, you will love it. If, however, you're looking for another Star Wars, you're out of luck. While there is a lot of what you'd expect in this space action/comedy (creatures, a pretty evil villain, good vs. evil) there is also quite a bit of sex and a lot absolutely ridiculous situations. It's all in fun and I don't believe it to be any attempt to establish a truly developed universe on its own. 

Although it has quite the potential as ugly creatures are always a good place to start

Every five thousand years, a being called The Fifth Element comes to Earth, protecting mankind from evil. This supreme being harnesses the powers of the other four elements (fire, wind, earth, water) and saves the world. When The Evil, an evil entity planet/space thing enlists the help of Jean-Baptiste Emanuel Zorg (Gary Oldman), a greedy inventor who only seeks wealth, to find the stones and prevent the Fifth Element from retrieving them and saving Earth. When the Element is destroyed in transit, scientists on earth revive it from its remains, creating Leeloo (Mila Jovovich), the perfect specimen. She escapes the facility and runs into Korben Dallas (Bruce Willis), a retired ex-military commando (pretty much Space John McClane). Dallas falls in love with Leeloo and after she becomes aware of her mission, he vows to help her retrieve the stones and protect her along the way. This was the best I could do explaining the story, as I found it rather confusing at first. There are other parties involved in the "race of the elements" and even an extremely flamboyant Ruby Rhod (Chris Tucker) getting caught up in the action and narrating it for his radio talk show. 

Shocking fact- in Chris Tucker's 12 year career, he has starred in only 10 films. Three of which are with Jackie Chan. Where the f**k are you, Chris!?

The Fifth Element is definitely worth watching. The film is a ride, simply put. It's fun, entertaining, easy to swallow, and insanely imaginative. Bruce Willis plays himself, in space, and whenever he does that (always), you know it's going to be good. Mila Jovovich is incredibly lovable as Leeloo, dancing the lines between cute, sexy, and badass all at once. Something she has now come to be known for. However, it's Chris Tucker who steals the show in a role he was born to play. He's hilarious, over-the-top (as is the entire movie), and his narrating of what's going on helps keep the comedic tone throughout. The Fifth Element is one of a kind. There is really no other movie like it and that's what makes it special. Colorful, extremely ludicrous, but oh, so creative, The Fifth Element is one of the best sci-fi movies ever made. 

The Good:

great special effects that help create a colorful, busy, crazy future

The Better:

an equally colorful cast of diverse characters that are all cast perfectly with noteworthy performances by Jovovich and Tucker

The Best:

the fact that the film was released 15 years ago and there has yet to be something as bizarre and lovable in the sci-fi genre...minus some dated technology, the film has really stood the test of time

Overall: 8.4/10

Trailer:

Discussion:

Is The Fifth Element a genuine classic or simply a cult-classic that will fade away to the realms of obscure movie references and trivia?