So I watched the original Space Jockey Scene last night...

[SM]

And your point is still rubbish.  He wrote a movie to scare people.  You don't make a movie for kids that ends up with an R rating.

Thats how Love works my man its never about "I" its about "Us".  A family is defined by the equal worth of all of its members in relation to each other, with no one being more important to the other, if Cameron had denied this when writing it as you are saying he did, it wouldn't have resonated so well with the audience.

When did I say that?

Ripley is the central character no matter what sort of definition you want to apply to it.  Hicks and Newt are not developed characters.  If Cameron had any desire to do Alien3 he no doubt would've pursued what he set up in Aliens.  But he didn't.

[HenryEllis]

"He wrote a movie to scare people."

Cameron has never written a movie to scare people.  He writes movies about Love straight up with everything else being backdrop.

"When did I say that?"

You are implying it by declaring Ripley as the soul (mispelling intended) focus.

"Hicks and Newt are not developed characters."

Hicks is less developed than Newt, though you see Cameron wanting to develop him more in the special edition after he cuts the horribly sappy dialogue between Hicks and Ripley before she goes out to rescue Newt but this is unnecessary because Hicks is not the catalyst.  Newt is the most developed character second to Ripley because she is the catalyst for Ripley facing her fear which sets the stage for the message of the movie which is, the most powerful weapon against your ultimate nightmare is Love (not guns, bravado, etc).  And that's a message aimed at everyone kids included. 

[SM]

You are implying it by declaring Ripley as the soul (mispelling intended) focus.

She is.

Cameron has never written a movie to scare people.  He writes movies about Love straight up with everything else being backdrop.

You're just trolling now.

[HenryEllis]

"She is"

Yeah, that's why I said what I did.




"You're just trolling now."

What a cop out.

[Gash]

You really think an "R" rating stops kids from seeing movies, no, if accompanied by a parent-guardian a kid can see any R rated movie they want

R rating = US. Not the worldwide audience. Although admittedly I did manage to get in to see  A   L   I   E   N   aged 14, but it was an 18 cert in the UK ( X cert at the time ).

[RoaryUK]

What you don't seem to understand is that Aliens is about Ripley, Hicks, and Newt as 3-D explored and developed characters.

No, it's about Ripley.

Hicks and Newt are there to mold Ripley - to cure her of her nightmares - not develop in and of themselves.

Couldn't agree more....

A studio licencsing arm aiming merch at kids inappropriately does not automatically equate to a movie being aimed at kids.

Your operative word being "inappropriately".  People did not always take as much stock in ratings as they do now.  The rating system was a relatively new idea back when Aliens came out and defenitely did not affect the decision making process of the execs as much as it does now.  The scariness of something is irrelevant, if it can be sold to kids it shall.  And the merchandising may not automatically equate to the aim but its a pretty good indicator.

Just to clarify something here.... are you talking about the UK rating system?  Because if you are, the current system has been around since the 1950's, seeing only minor changes since it's inception in 1912 by the BBFC to bring our system up to date with other Europen countries. The only significant change was in 1951 when the H certificate, the strictest at that time for over 16's, changed to certificate X mainly through films like A Clockwork Orange and the original Texas Chainsaw Massacre, deemed as veiwable for over 18's only.  The ratings for films like Alien (1979) and Aliens (1986) hasn't really changed at all, it was just updated, X being changed to 18 in 1982 in line with other european countries, but it still meant the same thing.

[Gash]

The X certificate became quite a selling point in the UK, 1950s sci-fi horror films like 'The Quatermass Xperiment' (Hammer's earliest genre flick), and 'X - the Unknown' being titled to take full advantage of it's provocative implications.

[RoaryUK]

The X certificate became quite a selling point in the UK, 1950s sci-fi horror films like 'The Quatermass Xperiment' (Hammer's earliest genre flick), and 'X - the Unknown' being titled to take full advantage of it's provocative implications.

Yes indeed, I should have mentioned that. Obviously A Clockwork Orange and Texas Chainsaw Massacre came along a bit later, but certainly a few earlier Hammer Production's Films were largely responsibly for the change.

Also, do you remember the double X certificate?  It mainly applied to porn films shown regularly at the cinema in those days, but if I remember right Caligular (Malcolm McDowell) was the first more mainstream film to get that certificate. Still banned in the UK I think, but easy enough to get hold of now lol

[Kol]

i see no orrery in there.... 

[nostromo mechanic]

I can still clearly remember my father getting me into the theater back in 1979 when I was only 10 years old to see the original (and best!). It scared the shit outa me then and still does today but at the same time left me with so many questions. Regardless, I became a lifelong fan 33 years ago and absolutely cant wait for Prometheus. That said, I've always thought that the mark of a good movie is one that leaves you wondering long after you see the movie. Maybe some things shouldn't be answered!