Alien vs. Aliens: Which Iconic Sci-Fi Masterpiece Reigns Supreme? By We’re getting a this week, Fede Alvarez’s Alien: Romulus. Naturally, we’ll have a slew of Alien content to commemorate Romulus’ opening on Thursday, including rankings, a reevaluation of David Fincher’s controversial Alien 3, and more.
First up, though, is revisiting the Alien vs. Aliens debate. Now, this debate has long divided Alien fandom.
Some view Ridley Scott’s 1979 shocker Alien as a genre-defining piece of science fiction, while others rank James Cameron’s Aliens as the greatest action picture ever produced. Is there a correct answer to this? Alvarez took a more political approach during a recent Q&A at Comic-Con, citing Alien as the better film and Aliens as his favorite entry. What do you say? Before I reveal my choice, let’s compare and contrast specific details in each film.
Alien remains a seminal work of art, a film unlike any other that inspired a slew of imitators and continues to entertain to this day. Scott’s vision is awe-inspiring, presenting a dark future packed with fascinating, albeit grounded, technology, intricately detailed space crafts, frightening extraterrestrials, and strange landscapes bathed in shadow. I’ve seen Alien at least a thousand times and am always surprised at how striking it looks compared to some modern-day blockbusters.
It is truly one-of-a-kind. By contrast, James Cameron’s Aliens relies less on visuals, even though it still delivers in that.