 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Guilty as charged, I love all the ALIEN scores. It seems the franchise brings out the best in a composer.
|
|
|
|
|
|
I don't love them all.
They peaked with the first one for me.
Goldsmith's effort is head and shoulders above the rest (on album and disregarding Scott and Rawlings efforts to butcher it).
The Horner score is solid, with some phenomenal stand out cues, but I don't rate it overall as highly as others (it's not a Horner score I play often and certainly never all the way through).
Goldenthal's score is a great slap in the face to film music and befitting a new kid on the block playing with a maverick director.
But like the Horner score, I only like and play it in patches.
I'm unfamiliar with the Frizzell score, apart from thinking it was decent enough in the film.
I find it bizarre that I've never owned it on CD in any shape or form (especially considering some of the shit I've bought down the years).
I'm afraid it stops there for me with the ALIEN films, as I've jettisoned all memories of the god awful Ridley Scott sequels that shit on the good work delivered in episodes 1-4 (although I do quite like the standalone theme HGW wrote for the first shit one).
I'm well up for a Roque Banos effort though (as well as hearing what Jeff Russo might deliver for the Noah Hawley series, considering how great their FARGO efforts are).
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
ALIEN is a bad movie - like really Bad - it only holds up becaurse of editing
i saw a version where all deleted scenes and outtakes and unfinished scenes where put back into the movie
the moster is slow moving - not dangerous - the editing is what saves the movie ultimately
the ALIEN as we know it comes from the sequeels that build upon it -
and therefor you'll accept ALIEN (1979) as better becaurse of you knowledge of the sequeels - strip all but the very first film and i doubt it would be as iconic as it is today
That said: I like ALIEN but even I can see where it fails and where it holds up - and it's all down to one thing: Editing - if one were to have an extended version of movie they would do best with a combination of theatrical edition and director's cut - I don't believe that the movie would hold up better for the rest of the scenes that ended on the floor
however some small scenes could also do it when explaining characters motivations like the "well here is your big chance"-scene could also do it but they would only add about 5 minutes more to the movie
But in the end - the movie would not survive it's original 3 hour pre-editing cut
But we still need a third prometheus movie - now thay they have started it they need to finish it
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Sorry Mark, but if you're talking about the original 1979 film above, I think it has a lot more than editing going for it.
Where to begin?
Production design, fine ensemble cast of characters, lighting and cinematography, SFX, creature design.
And last, but certainly not least, music score and sound design.
All top quality for me, masking its thin, derivative plot and story line completely.
Only the Cameron sequel comes close to matching it, but that film was a different beast completely, in a good way.
|
|
|
|
|
|
you could EDIT your message... as a joke it's way too long
So becaurse i do not like the movie like you and my spelling is a bit off it's all a Joke ?
why don't you just accept that I am not as big fan of the movie like you are - I don't even mock you becuase you like the movie
Keep it on your own half, and I keep it to mine 
|
|
|
|
|
|
Sorry Mark, but if you're talking about the original 1979 film above, the first film has a lot more than editing going for it.
Where to begin?
Production design, fine ensemble cast of characters, lighting and cinematography, SFX, creature design.
And last, but certainly not least, music score and sound design.
All top quality for me, masking its thin, derivative plot and story line completely.
Only the Cameron sequel comes close to matching it, but that film was a different beast, in a good way.
But even that won't save the movie - it sure gives it a trusty look and an different-world look - But some things are best left unsaid and that is the very alien and scenes
as extended the chestburster scene is and it's always fun to see more scenes - the edited film version works better - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=705lvN33ev8
the brett death scene - again the film version works better - the slow monster is obvious here but some material could work i admit (with quick cuts)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q1eF_W_NSWk&t=2s
even the cocoon scene where edited in the DC version - here is the extended scene
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y6dSIMFo7iU
If those scenes where to be extended into the movie they would need som quick cuts
Why is the monster scary - it's becaurse we do not see it that much - i saw alien on telly as a child and i remember those feelings it woked in me
The outer-worldly different atmosphere of the derelic - the fact that the monster is not seen that much
and looking back that is what works - and that is why the movie cannot survive an extended version
Even big budget movie today with a solid production design can still fail
Coming to my mind is TRANSFORMERS: AGE OF EXTINCTION - a movie that failed if you belive the reviewers - i saw the movie in 3D and the 3D helped the movie a lot 
That is why i ultimately would classify ALIEN as a BAD MOVIE But done correct - the Editing helos the movie a lot
Sure the production design and Giger all do the job, but not so much after having seen the movie countless times - but they sure make a great first impact
As for the Cameron version - would it still be good if we never saw the Extended version (was that what he called the DC or just an alternate version)
When watching ALIENS i always watch the long version - but if we only had the TE - how would the movie have been remembered
do also take into account that many of us grew up with the alien movies where they were already on VHS and could be watched - that was before "behind the scenes" also existed in a video-collection unless they were included on the tape (the days before the DVD - Almost remind be of the days before Our Labels where I had the feeling that only John Williams scored films were on 2cd-sets)
but I see what you try to state here - the many things that has to be taken into account but in the end: it will always be the end result
Just like ALIENS film score
much different than what was written - but the mess of it IS better in the film than what was scored to be heard for the scenes (the music as it should have appeared - not the actual music cues which i like)
So to repeat myself - it all comes down to one thing - editing
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
I'm only talking about the original 1979 cinema cut here (edit... and the Cameron original cinema version. I don't remember ever being so tense throughout an entire film as I was while watching ALIENS in the cinema in 1986).
I don't actually know what's been added or taken away over the years.
But I agree the 'less is more' approach certainly works for it.
I'm going to assume you are a fan of the recent Prometheus series?
I find them intolerable. A stain on the whole ALIEN lore.
We will have to agree to disagree on this.
|
|
|
|
|
|
I'm only talking about the original 1979 cinema cut here.
I don't actually know what's been added or taken away over the years.
But I agree the 'less is more' approach certainly works for it.
I'm going to assume you are a fan of the recent Prometheus series?
I find them intolerable. A stain on the whole ALIEN lore.
We will have to agree to disagree on this.
I do like the first - but it could do with some extra scene with character explantions to enhance their motivations
the second is so so
but they should still finish it
Iif you take the Rocky series - it ended with the Rocky V and it was like a downer in many years while i grew up - Then ROCKY BALBOA came and it kind of saved the series from ending like that
so yes, i believe the prometheus series should be finished (actually an examble of production design where you can see money was spend but still not quite a solid A+ movie - BTW I do not think we have seen Ridley Scotts preferred verison for it as he use the F-word a lot in the commentary)
The less is more approach always work - that we certainly can agree on
and just to clarify - i do still believe the backbone of ALIEN to be a bad movie but saved by good editing and that is probbably the case for most films out there today - a very good story could also help a movie
So I can watch ALIEN for what we have but I also know that there original was a version of it that would rate this movie as a B-movie
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
But in the end - the movie would not survive it's original 3 hour pre-editing cut
This is kind of a ludicrous comment. NO movie would surve its original pre-edited cut. That's why movies are edited!
and that is why some movie NOT should be hoped for getting released as an extended version - and that include Alien - let's keep what we have
But the movie behind the known-version is still not as scary as the final cut
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
Posted: |
Mar 4, 2023 - 5:05 AM
|
|
|
|
By: |
Thor
(Member)
|
I suppose you have a right to your opinion, Mark Malstrom, but we're so far apart, we could basically be on different planets (although hopefully not LV-426).
Not only do I think the first two ALIEN films are some of the best things created in all of popular culture history, they also continually battle with JURASSIC PARK as my alltime favourite movie. Seen both of them 60+ times each.
By the way, Alvarez' new film has a working title, ALIEN: ROMULUS, which you can put into the headline if you want to (I do seem to remember a previous thread on the topic, though). Although Banos hasn't really been that interesting to me in years, I'd be curious to hear what he could come up with, should he be chosen as composer. Maybe this is the kind of project needed to put him back on my radar.
As for the film series scores, I -- too -- like all of them. Obviously to varying degrees. ALIEN 3 is on my top 10 list of favourite scores of all time; I'm also a huge fan of Goldsmith's and Horner's (top 3 scores from each composer). Frizzell doesn't match that, but is still a bloody good score in all its dark, burlesque excursions.
I also dig the PROMETHEUS and ALIEN: COVENANT scores (AND the films, screw the naysayers!).
Not been too enamoured with the various videogame scores, though, and I find the two AvP scores a tough listen (but both are decent scores).
The ALIEN franchise/universe is really the only film universe I obsess over, as they are a crucial part of forming my whole identity as a film and film music buff.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
(I'm not sure if they worked with first genrations masters mix on the INTRADA album - don't remember)