Movies
‘Aliens’ Changed the Essence of the Sequel 28 Years Ago
28 years ago today James Cameron changed the course of history with Aliens, his 1986 sequel to Ridley Scott’s terrifying Alien that not only changed the standard of sequels in Hollywood, but got every writer in town thinking in a new direction.
As we all know today, Scott’s 1979 sci-fi masterpiece was a straight-up horror film, fitted with a brooding pace. Cameron, who also flipped the script with his Terminator sequel, turned the Alien franchise into an action film, better suited for summer blockbuster stardom in the mid-80’s. The success changed the sequel formula, which was simply “do it again, with different characters.” It’s influence on cinema is unparalleled.
In addition to starring Sigourney Weaver as Ellen Ripley once more, the sequel also introduced two more strong female characters: Jenette Goldstein as the ass-kickin Pvt. Vasquez, and of course the Queen Alien.
Michael Biehn also broke through as Cpl. Dwayne Hicks, with Bill Paxton as Pvt. Hudson, and Lance Henriksen as the android “Bishop”. The characters were influenced by the Vietnam War, which really helped gel their colorful and unique personalities.
Aliens is my favorite movie of all time being that it ups the ante and builds into such a massive finale that you can easily forget to breathe. And at times, I even prefer the director’s cut, which has an entire bit about Ripley losing her child that makes her plight to save Newt that much more relatable.
So, with the weekend approaching, why not relive 1986 by re-watching Ripley kick some Xenomoprh ass, once again and relish in one of the greatest action horror films ever made.
After pulling in $28 million at the worldwide box office this month, director (and star) Dev Patel’s critically acclaimed action-thriller Monkey Man is now available to watch at home.
You can rent Monkey Man for $19.99 or digitally purchase the film for $24.99!
Monkey Man is currently 88% Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes, with Bloody Disgusting’s head critic Meagan Navarro awarding the film 4.5/5 stars in her review out of SXSW back in March.
Meagan raves, “While the violence onscreen is palpable and painful, it’s not just the exquisite fight choreography and thrilling action set pieces that set Monkey Man apart but also its political consciousness, unique narrative structure, and myth-making scale.”
“While Monkey Man pays tribute to all of the action genre’s greats, from the Indonesian action classics to Korean revenge cinema and even a John Wick joke or two, Dev Patel’s cultural spin and unique narrative structure leave behind all influences in the dust for new terrain,” Meagan’s review continues.
She adds, “Monkey Man presents Dev Patel as a new action hero, a tenacious underdog with a penetrating stare who bites, bludgeons, and stabs his way through bodies to gloriously bloody excess. More excitingly, the film introduces Patel as a strong visionary right out of the gate.”
Inspired by the legend of Hanuman, Monkey Man stars Patel as Kid, an anonymous young man who ekes out a meager living in an underground fight club where, night after night, wearing a gorilla mask, he is beaten bloody by more popular fighters for cash. After years of suppressed rage, Kid discovers a way to infiltrate the enclave of the city’s sinister elite. As his childhood trauma boils over, his mysteriously scarred hands unleash an explosive campaign of retribution to settle the score with the men who took everything from him.
Monkey Man is produced by Jordan Peele’s Monkeypaw Productions.
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