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"Cinematic Device" In The Alien Franchise"

Spartacus

MemberOvomorphMarch 16, 20121303 Views22 Replies
[img]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v234/LT.HIGHTIMES/a1aChalezea1.jpg[/img] In each of the Alien Franchise Films, for me at least, there seems to have been one particluar "Cinematic Device" that was prevelant throughout the film and/or used somewhere that was so significant in each film, that it, in my mind, MADE that film, or if you prefer, was the one thing that stood out that made a difference in any entertinment value I felt that film had at the time. ALIEN : This was the hardest one to come up with, all of the others including what I think it'll be for Prometheus were quite easy to see, but for the original film it was a little bit more tricky. In the end I settled on this...MODELING/ART DIRECTION. In this regard ALIEN was special. A Model...a frikking Model folks...approximately 60 feet tall was built by Giger and Scott for the Space Jockey set alone. The claustrophobic nature of the set built for the actors with real levels and working gadgets was and is to this day in my mind...LEGENDARY. ALIENS: No question here for this film. Cameron's use of "Reverse Photography" is astounding. The work done on the facehugger scene in which Newt and Ripley are trapped in their quarters was brilliant, and throughout the rest of that film Cameron employed that same technique whenever they ran into filming trouble for any proposed shots. ALIEN 3: ANIMATRONICS. Just saying that name is fun. And what a technique. Thank G-d for it in fact as far as making movies goes. The Animatronics in some of the scenes in ALIEN 3 are unforgettable, you could swear that thang was real, who cares if it was a Baby Boar or Doggie...lmao. ALIEN RESURRECTION: No doubt about it we have "arrived" in the age of Sound & Vision. The THX audio work done for REZ is remarkeable but what really pushed this film over the top was the CGI work done in it. The first scene in which we see her and hear the roar of the QUEEN "Beezlenut" is such a JOY if you have 5.1 surround or THX and a decent LCD Large screen to experience it all again with...and again... and again...the Underwater scenes neeeded special substances made of milk base to be poured into the water so the CGI camera effects would be picked up and work under it. PROMETHEUS: Ridley himself told us allalready what this one is. "3D". In fact he claims he will "never shoot again without it" !!! It's going to be realy interesting to see what we can see off to the sides of the screen in the thing too I think. Bonus: I realized why "Rick" has always had a hard tme hearing and understanding what I mean about Parker having gas in Alien while drinking his coffee on the Nostromo at the begginning of the film, the first time we see him. It's because unless you see the film again in 5.1 or DTS...it is far less noticeable. SOUND makes a big diff. IMO, maybe the biggest of all...in every film made today...the proper or improper use of it can have a deep influence on how any film is percieved. [img]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v234/LT.HIGHTIMES/a1aChalezea1.jpg[/img]
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Spartacus
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Good Morning everyone, my latest "Rant"...Enjoy.
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Spartacus
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Nobody wants to read my rant...that might make me write a whole new one...lol...
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Spartacus
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please semone tell me you agree or disagree lmfao
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Spartacus
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bunch of dead beats...lol...I suck...
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Gehirn
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I still think you're cool :)
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aintnozeno
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I agree Sparty. Sound makes a huge difference. Watch Jurassic Park with the surround system maxxed out. When the T-Rex breaks out of the fence, you'll swear he's in the kitchen! LOL Sound editing varies greatly. Even the Prometheus trailer is SO different from one version (English, Spanish, Russian, whatever) to another. like it's for different movies... One of the biggest reasons I like the theater experience is the sound. With 3D being part of the medium now, I hope to have my senses dazzled- even if the movie is lacking. How else could I have made it through Transformers 3????
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Xeno Origins
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I'll be there for ya! I totally agree with you. However you failed to mention the common thread of all of the movies. A creature so disturbing it created a franchise. And in 1978 caused this 9 year old (at the time) to have trouble going to sleep!!!
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RickK
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Hey man sorry I'm late. Parker breaking wind - the sound mix in the beginning of that scene has always seemed "off" to me, and I never heard a fart before. I've got a pretty good surround sound system, sad thing is my wife and kids aren't too hip on the alien series, Sci-fi, or anyting too violent so I'm pretty much relegated to sitting in my office watching what I like to watch with headphones on. As far as the Cinematic Devices in all the Alien films, heres what I take away from them in terms of feelings.. Alien: Claustrophobia Aliens: Panic Alien 3: Isolation Alien Resurrection: That's just gross man... My guess for Prometheus: Epic - big spaces and big ideas But the art direction in Alien can never be topped, it was as close to perfect as you could get at that time, and it still holds up today. Sane people just don't come up with stuff like that.
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Spartacus
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Tx you guys, I am feeing the love again...hahahahahaha.....I'm nuthin' but a stinking good for nothin' Prometheus Junkie !!! & I need my Fix !!!
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alien79fan
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i watched it and didnt hear a fart noise on it what u on mate
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Spartacus
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This always amazes me when people claim it isn't there because it 100% POSITIVELY WITHOUT ANY DOUBT IS CLEARLY WHAT HE DOES, HE SAYS THE COFFEE "IS THE ONLY THING GOOD ON THIS SHIP" AS HE LEANS OVER AND DOES A VERY PRONOUNCED "ONE CHEEK SNEAK' {you can visually see him leaning over to do it without any sound turned on also}AND UNTIL EVERYONE GETS THIS I AM GOING TO KEEP RAMING IT DOWN PEOPLES THROATS...IN A NICE WAY..PLEASE EXCUSE MY CAPS i AM NOT SWEARING...DAMN THING HAS A MIND OF IT'S OWN...ITS NOT A JOKE I DID NOT MAKE IT UP IT IS 100% CLEARLY WHAT HE DOES, AND LOL, RIDLEY DELIBERATLY LEFT IT IN THE FILM. YOU PEOPLE NEED TO GET IT BECAUSE IT IS FACT ! Seriously I think it is the ALL TIME SINGLE MOST MISUNDERSTOOD MOMENT IN THE ENTIRE ALIEN FRANCHISE!!!
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RickK
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I hope the space jockey race communicates in fart noises.
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Mr.J
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HAHAHAHA..fart noises...awesome! Their names are Bart and Tart from Auroa, ill....
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Spartacus
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har har har...you need a Big Red & Blue Suit & Cape With a Giant "D" on the front it for Superman of "DENIAL" lmfao !!!
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Xeno Origins
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How did this thread spin into the Fart debate? LOL Thought we were talking Cinematic Device?? Although if were are on the Fart subject, I didn't hear it. But then again I did not hear each crew member crap their pants as they encountered the Alien, but I am betting they did! HAHA
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Spartacus
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hehehehe its my fault and something i cannot for the life of me ever let go of or slide if you will because it is FACT and I want all those that havent relaized this for themselves the same way I did to marvel in the fact that Ridley Scott DELIBERATELY left this little gem in his film. EDIT: I also think the post I made is pretty good if you do not mind my sayng so myself and would welcome anybodys thoughts on it.
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takka_takka_takka
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Ah, the phantom Parker fart! A most elusive bit of flatulence.
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Spartacus
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very well put.
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flacnvinyl
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@Spartacus - I am a self-described audiophile who got his start in audio. I started bootlegging Rolling Stones concerts in the 90s, moved on to sound for band demos, then my own studio, so forth. I collect vinyl hence my screenname which I use all over the place. You are DEAD ON about surround sound. I have a 37" LED LCD tv and 5.1 that is properly calibrated to the room. It is a JOY to have friends over and watch a good movie. Usually we get remarks about it, but the funny thing is that some nice Polk or Yamahas, a Denon amp and a solid tv can deliver such a great cinematic experience that I hardly feel the need to go to the theater. Additionally, I love mixing in 5.1... It is very rare that a client actually needs it, but its a blast as long as they don't want some unrealistic 'in the middle of the band' type mix. It has to be direction. Another point, it is fantastic for gaming. Playing Skyrim or Mass Effect is just a plain joy in 5.1. Gorgeous scores, you hear enemies infront/behind/sides/way off in the distance, so forth.. Fully immersive. Alien, IMHO, does not have the best sound quality from a technical standpoint, but it still has a certain charm about it. I love the dynamic range. When Ripley and Parker are fighting the range from whisper to beligerent is massive. Most movies simply cripple the loudness (Michael Bay) to the point that it no longer matters whether anyone is shouting, firing a weapon or farting, every single sound is blazingly loud. Even worse with music these days. I dig your rant but I do have to disagree with you on something... Ressurection sucks. I re-watched the film about a month ago, and I hate it now more than ever. I remember seeing it in the theater and thinking 'this isn't furthering the film, and the hybrid should have been designed by Giger'. The smiling aliens in the swimming scene SUCK. Then again... the directing style is so terrible that it overshadows good FX. So I recant... the FX are overall solid, but the way they are used destroys anything inherently 'good' about them.
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Mr.J
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If an Alien farts in space, do the other Aliens laugh at him.

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