James Cameron on Ridley Scott's Alien 1979's ending.

[PsyKore]

This just used to be the trend in horror films to have the girl in her undies at some point. But I think it's not tastelessly done. I always just viewed it as her getting ready for hypersleep. Cameron is right about the sexual objectification, but I think it odd he singles out Alien when there are far worse examples.

[Huggs]

Cameron? Objectification? Arnold's "Dingle" in terminator 1 doesn't count? And don't get me started on Titanic. So Ridley got alittle cheeky. Ripley's character was just getting ready for hypersleep. I wouldn't say it slapped my leather, if you know what I mean. 

[The Old One]

Yes, I'd believe James Cameron is just as guilty if not more so. What makes it worse is that he basically annihilates any sexual subtext in Aliens and replaces it with just, text as a result comes off more crude than Ridley ever did.

[SiL]

Arnie's dick in T1 absolutely doesn't count. It's a vague shadow, barely visible, and is in no way erotic.

That being said, Cameron has absolutely done a poor job with his own female characters; exactly none of them are capable of achieving anything without the help of men. While he doesn't turn them into sexual objects (True Lies notwithstanding, maybe), he never gives women enough credit to be, y'know, self-sufficient.

T1 -- Sarah needs Reese.
T2 -- Sarah needs John and the Terminator
Aliens -- Ripley needs Hicks
The Abyss -- Can't remember character names, but Ed Harris is needed to save the day
True Lies -- Jaime Lee Curtis needs not only the men around her, but the self confidence to present herself as a sexual object to them to grow and develop
Titanic -- Rose needs Jack
Avatar -- Neytiri needs Jake

So, cool, he never superfluously put a woman in her underwear, I guess. But at least Alien gives Ripley independence and agency.

[whiterabbit]

Wait, why does Ripley need Hicks? She held her own in the rescue and hive raid.

[Corporal Hicks]

He teaches her how to use the Pulse Rifle, I suppose. But I think she largely steps up of her own accord in Aliens.

[SiL]

Hicks gets her to calm down after they escape the hive, teaches her how to use weapons, tells her to rest and recuperate, and rescues her from Medical along with Hudson.

She needs Hicks to make her self sufficient, whereas in the original she succeeds entirely in spite of the men around her. (EDIT: sorry, Parker does smack Ash's head off).

There are obvious plot explanations for these things, but the point is Cameron builds his plots around women needing men to be capable of functioning in their surroundings. That's arguably a lot worse than a few seconds of a woman stripping into her underwear.

[D88M]

I always thought it was smart: Ripley, a woman, gets undressed, we the male audience get "excited" and while we are watching her move almost naked, the Alien (who is literally a dickhead) comes out of the shadows where it was camouflaged to attack her, as if we were watching our own instincts and thoughts take shape and try to get her. Also Cameron should stop talking and make good movies because Avatar was crap, pretty crap, but crap nevertheless.

[Corporal Hicks]

That sounds a lot like saying that males inherently have some sort of rape desires...

[The Old One]

That sounds a lot like saying that males inherently have some sort of rape desires...

Not rape, but sexual desires- I think that's what he was implying. It's a valid interpretation but not my own.

Particularly because I never viewed Sigourney Weaver as sexually attractive, so that never came to mind when she undressed. I saw it as simply both practical and a way to play with the themes of sexuality in terms of what the Alien actually wants.

[OpenMaw]

I forget if it was Weaver or someone else, but I remember someone remarking that it's all about that distinction between the warm light toned soft flesh and the cold hard predatory nature of the beast. In a sense, they are both at their most vulnerable in that scene. 

[whiterabbit]

Hicks gets her to calm down after they escape the hive, teaches her how to use weapons, tells her to rest and recuperate, and rescues her from Medical along with Hudson.

She needs Hicks to make her self sufficient, whereas in the original she succeeds entirely in spite of the men around her. (EDIT: sorry, Parker does smack Ash's head off).

There are obvious plot explanations for these things, but the point is Cameron builds his plots around women needing men to be capable of functioning in their surroundings. That's arguably a lot worse than a few seconds of a woman stripping into her underwear.

Ripley is a person and not a fictional marvel superhero. Almost any civilian, previous traumatic xenomorph experience or whatever, would be in the same scenario regardless of being male or female. From the start when Gorman froze she had been in charge. I mean I see your draconian perspective of it all but it's rather harsh to be honest.

I forget if it was Weaver or someone else, but I remember someone remarking that it's all about that distinction between the warm light toned soft flesh and the cold hard predatory nature of the beast. In a sense, they are both at their most vulnerable in that scene. 

That makes a lot more sense.

[SM]

Ripley is a fictional person.  And a broken one.  She can't achieve her full potential - that of the warrior/ mother - on her own.  She can't become the warrior without Hicks, and can't become the mother without Newt.

See also every James Cameron female lead as SiL pointed out.  They all need a man in order to become a complete person.  Lindsey in The Abyss has, by necessity of the industry she's in, has lost her femininity.  She can't regain it without Bud.

Though I would argue Neytiri didn't really need Jake.

[whiterabbit]

That's the nuclear family Cameron's always talking about. I didn't think that was frowned upon.

[SM]

It's much more than simply a nuclear family.  It's a Cameron trope to have strong females who aren't quite strong enough to sort out their own shit without a man.

Neytiri not really needing Jake in order to develop was possibly the only novel thing about Avatar.

I don't see anyone frowning on anything.