Alien and the sexual undertones
ninXeno426
MemberPraetorianMar-24-2017 1:37 AMIt goes without saying,the Alien universe is snonymous with sex,so much to a point where i don't know where to start,so I'll start with the xenomorph it's self.Let's begin with the Facehugger,for starters it looks vaguely vaginal as you can see in the image above.Then of course there's it's method ofimpregnation,it inserts it's proboscis down the victims throat and lays the fetus,simulating oral rape.Dan O'Bannon even made sure it was a male victim just to make sure it made the male audience uncomfortable.This is where we enter H.R. Giger's art.If you know his art,then you'll know that there is quite a bit of sexuality on display.While there is a lot more graphic art of his to be seen,I've decided to use the legendary Necronom IV for my banner.You'll see various sexual implications on display,such as the phallic Head and tail.O'Bannon's story combined with Giger's art had brought a new level of sexual terror that hadn't been seen before.The Big Chap himself came with more sexual implications,it seem as if no matter what it did to kill,there was always an act of penetration,be it the tail,or the it's extending tongue.Another sexual aspect of Alien is Ash's assault on Ripley.The attack perhaps implied that while being an android,Ash may have had sexual feelings.The attack felt pretty sexual especially when Ash attempted to force a magazine down Ripley's throat perhaps implying oral rape.There is also the long debated death of Lambert.Due to the fact that the last thing we see is the tail going between her legs,it's often believed the Big Chap may have sexually assaulted her thanks to her long and painful sounding death.The Alien Isolation DLC Lone Survivor even toyed with the idea,when you find Lambert's body,she is half naked and theres blood between her legs.Then in Alien's finale,the Big Chap layed in waiting until Ripley was mostly undressed as if it had been watching her.Nothing really comes to mind for Aliens,if I'm missing something feel free to point it out.In Alien 3,some of the sexuality returned,if only in a more human form.Ripley deflects Clemens questions by sleeping with him.She's also nearly raped by a group of prisoners.Perhaps the most notably sexual aspect of Alien 3 is the fact that Ripley her self has become impregnated by the xenomorph,a bit of a mockery of her motherhood.Thanks to the xenomorph,she was deprived of her daughter Amanda,as well as Newt,only to become the potential future mother of the xenomorph.I can't forget in Vincent Ward's wooden planet she was Physically raped by the xenomorph in that script.Less so in Alien Resurrection.Aside from jokes about sleeping with robots,the most notable thing is the Newborn Alien.Originally it was supposed to possess an ambiguous genitalia,what you might call a hermaphrodite,and attempt to mate with Ripley.Prometheus is perhaps the most sexual film since Alien.In the film,an infected Charlie Holloway engages in sexual intercourse with Elizabeth Shaw.Shaw,though unable to bear children,becomes impregnated with the trilobite,and removes it through C-section.In the Alien Engineers script,Holloway was supposed to give birth to the "beluga-morph" during the intercourse.Now in Alien Covenant,we have a couple being killed in the shower while having sex by a xenomorph/protomorph.While I'm certain I've overlooked somethings,that is the basics.What exactly is the series trying to tell us about sex?Sex is often associated with death,and there's plenty of that on display in the franchise,and sex and death at times in the same scene.And with a rather dark future ahead of us,just how closely will sex and death emerge together?
Nothing the God of biomechanics wouldn't let you in heaven for
Something Real
MemberTrilobiteMar-24-2017 2:14 AMNINXENO426 - Humans, like any animal, are sexual creatures. We express ourselves in subtle tones of sexuality without even realizing it most of the time. As with all life, sex and reproducion are the utmost important facets of our lives - for without them, nothing else is possible or holds meaning. Now, with that as the case, it is no surprise the centermost aspect of life is inextricably linked with death. Mother Nature demands we step aside in order to make room for new life - especially new life within our owns species. Alien and the films that follow it take those beautiful and necessary concepts and twists them into a nightmare - one which grips us at our core due to its subtley intimate nature.
ninXeno426
MemberPraetorianMar-24-2017 2:20 AMThank you Something Real!Your right on the money i think.One thing i keep thinking of is H.P. LoveCraft,who of course was a major influence on the original Alien,was personally terrified of sex,so he kinda translated that into his stories.Like Alien,he made sex terrifying with subtle undertones
Nothing the God of biomechanics wouldn't let you in heaven for
Something Real
MemberTrilobiteMar-24-2017 2:32 AMNINXENO426 - Indeed. Mr. LoveCraft was a, hmm, interesting individual. :)
ninXeno426
MemberPraetorianMar-24-2017 2:36 AMNo doubt.The interesting thing was his wife claimed he was a good lover,just not a terribly active one
Nothing the God of biomechanics wouldn't let you in heaven for
Resurgence
MemberFacehuggerMar-24-2017 4:10 AMUmm... just one problem... in the banner... that's not a tail... it's protruding from the front...
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Movie fan
MemberFacehuggerMar-24-2017 4:34 AM@ Resurgence
Yeah, I noticed that too.
Obsession is a Power, not a Curse ;)
Ingeniero
MemberPraetorianMar-24-2017 5:49 AMRidley Scott said he knew immediately that Giger was perfect for the evil theme he wanted to portray. I agree.
Giger was able to take sexuality and pollute it with a biomechanical saturation. I think Giger's use of sexuality in that context is great because you begin uncomfortable with what you see and as it all comes into focus, then horror begins.
The concept of biological pollution (from a foreign agent) is also applicable to the Nephilim undertone in relation to changing a created (divine) organism into one designed and created otherwise.
ninXeno426
MemberPraetorianMar-24-2017 10:49 AMLol thanks for pointing that out Resurgence
Nothing the God of biomechanics wouldn't let you in heaven for
ninXeno426
MemberPraetorianMar-24-2017 11:56 AMWell said Ingeniero
Nothing the God of biomechanics wouldn't let you in heaven for
I Meme Everything
MemberPraetorianMar-26-2017 6:32 AMMakes these movies all the more terrifying
"Part of the journey is the end..."
Ingeniero
MemberPraetorianMar-26-2017 10:08 AMThank you for saying that ninXeno426.
I gave you my best movie art critique.
Foxxy_User
MemberOvomorphMar-28-2017 10:54 AMI would say every Alien movie has sexual undertones to it.
ninXeno426
MemberPraetorianMar-28-2017 11:09 AMJust about,I'm having hard time thinking of one for Aliens though.
Nothing the God of biomechanics wouldn't let you in heaven for
ninXeno426
MemberPraetorianMar-28-2017 11:10 AMExcept for perhaps the motherhood theme of the film
Nothing the God of biomechanics wouldn't let you in heaven for
Foxxy_User
MemberOvomorphMar-28-2017 5:40 PMYes motherhood and gender.
It was Cameron who introduced the idea that Lambert was a male-to-female transsexual. In fact, some of the marines even slept with trans colonists called "Arcturians".