The Official SKULL or NO SKULL Thread

Started by FiorinaFury161, Feb 18, 2017, 11:38:01 PM

Do you like the skull in the Alien head?

Love the SKULL
It's ok
It makes no difference on how I feel about the Alien
Dislike the SKULL
Hate The SKULL
Hate The SKULL and the people who love it
Author
The Official SKULL or NO SKULL Thread (Read 133,744 times)

NetworkATTH

Quote from: whiterabbit on Jan 29, 2018, 12:01:05 AM
Honestly with the direction Ridley Scott is going the Skull is probably a left over vestige from the xeno's days when it was a more human like creature. There is no escaping the fact that in Alien Ash's is clearly monitoring a very human-like embryo gestating inside of Kane.

The Skull stays.

Probably, but I'm half entertaining the possibility as interesting, and half plugging my ears and closing my eyes and just enjoying the mystery of "Why the f**k does this well thought out biological organism also have a human skull on it, that's real f**king weird innit, why would it do that? Does it have something to do with why it was onboard the ship? But why?"

Better to just leave it at that implication.

It also is just a good design choice. It's eyeless with teeth, which recalls an animal attacking you, you just see the teeth before you die. But underneath its head, you can almost see a skull, it's just death. It's pure death. If you see something with a cowl and a misty concealed skull under it, and a jaw filled with metal teeth it's basically game over for you at that point. Giger's decision to bolt a real human skull onto it was probably just because it represents the monster, it's death. I'm not being real clear here, but I think you get what I'm saying. It was probably a decision on Giger's part to make the beast the real biological animal the script demanded, but also have an air of mystery to it, an air of terrifying mystery that just has no answers, but on top of that, the biggest reason I think it has a skull, is well

Because since it comes out of a human, or is born. And Giger is real into birth imagery, it's just a bastardization of the human form and human anatomy. It's a bastard child that is warped of flesh, metal, and bone. Having a skull on it that's visible is just a vicious parody of humanity. Almost as if it simply exists to remind its victims that its a bastardized human, and there's only one terrifying way it can make more of itself. Getting lost in the conversation of "human dna  blah blah" misses the point that it is both a terrifying mystery, and a reminder of what it is, and what it wants. It wants sex, it wants rape, and it has endless wants to create more bastardized versions of humanity reduced to their base form and nature. A being that kills every threat and reduces them to material to create more of itself, and that misty impression of a skull is almost a ghostly reminder that there is a terrifying humanity in it.

If we were stripped of all humanity, we would act not so dissimilar from the alien. The skull is masked because it's supposed to be ghostly, an impression that this being has no need for a face to hide its skull. No need for soft flesh, it is purely offensive and destructive, it is every bit of humanity warped into such a thing that it is very alien and mysterious, but also very familiar, the implications being terrifying.

I'm positive that was the thought process going on in HR Giger's mind when he decided to bolt the skull down onto the suit, shielding it with a cowl that seems gelatinous or misty inside to conceal it enough; but not all the way. That it's a bastard child of humanity that becomes animal, like a science fiction vampire. Vampires are inherently sexual, and knowing Giger and his gothic nature, probably saw the cinematic nature of the movie he was making and thought, how do I out sexualize the vampire visibly with an implication that makes people squirm. But make the audience ponder enough about the nature of it, coming to their own conclusions, or maybe unconsciously knowing that it's just a reminder it has a dark humanity to it that we find alien in ourselves. Something we almost feel is insectoid and shameful, a bit of Kafka. The Alien is the prodigal Gregor Samsa almost. The fowl beast inside all of us that we hate and cannot control. We just want to slap it with a broom like Samsa's family did with Gregor, ultimately leaving him to die. Unlike Gregor, there is a ferocious need for more in the design of the alien, from the skull to the implication of stiletto like feet. The impression of both a vulva and a penis. It's Gregor Samsa without the shame.

Why does it have a gealitnous cowl? We don't know, it's an alien. Why does it have a skull? Good question, but we both know the answer.

D. Compton Ambrose

It's okay, but better for like a sub-species or a different species/strain of Xenomorph. The facelessness is one of the thing's that makes it really strange and... Alien... ?

Kel G 426

The sunken temples on the Aliens warrior have always given me the impression of eye holes. The warrior has a pretty good skull face of it's own.

Xenomorph60

 I love!...as long as it is not to apparent. It is cool to see glimpses of it but in the original some scenes it was too visible and it looked weird.

Gash

Gash

#79
Quote from: Xenomorph60 on Mar 04, 2018, 12:30:51 AM
I love!...as long as it is not to apparent. It is cool to see glimpses of it but in the original some scenes it was too visible and it looked weird.

In the original? Which scenes?

Huggs

Pro skull here. I've still yet to spot it in the movies. Perhaps I just haven't looked close enough. The inclusion of a skull doesn't seem uncalled for, seeing as the alien shares traits with the host. A humanoid skull isn't too far out there.

Vermillion

BluRay 4K upconvertion you can see it clearly.
You can also see that the ship is a set and other movie tricks. 

Darwinsgirl



To qoute ASH: "Kane's Son" so yes I like it. :)

SiL

SiL

#83
Quote from: Vermillion on Mar 13, 2018, 11:34:01 AM
BluRay 4K upconvertion you can see it clearly.
You can also see that the ship is a set and other movie tricks.
What do you mean, you can see the ship is a set? Was that not always obvious?

DerelictShip

 
Quote
What do you mean, you can see the ship is a set? Was that not always obvious?

This made me laugh lol

Corporal Hicks

Verm is trollish in his methods. Take his posts with plenty of salt.  :P

whiterabbit

I don't think he is trolling. In HD you can clearly see that all the stuff is made out of common stuff you can buy from a hardware store. Back in the old 360i days everything looked more real. If you know what I mean. :P

blackGoo|skin-lotion|

Hm, i have always seen the Xenomorph as a faceless creature, i mean, it is its special characteristic. With the human skull visible, it has a face and it looks like a guy in a space suit...  a space suit with a scorpion tail and clawed fingers, who loves to crawl in narrow shafts lol, that does not fit together.

Looks like Skeletor in a Hordak battle suit  ::)



Looks like David used pig-DNA on this specimen




Quote from: Alionic on Aug 26, 2017, 01:15:45 AM
Quote from: Local Trouble on May 12, 2017, 07:24:35 PM
There should be an option for hating both the skull and the people who love it.  >:(

This is what I voted. How anybody can even support the slightest notion of the xenomorph having eyes is beyond me.

AMEN comrade

I´m curious how Ridleys Xeno queen will look like. If you crack the head open, you will probably find a butt in there - Easter Egg alert ::)

OpenMaw

Quote from: whiterabbit on Mar 15, 2018, 08:37:56 AM
I don't think he is trolling. In HD you can clearly see that all the stuff is made out of common stuff you can buy from a hardware store. Back in the old 360i days everything looked more real. If you know what I mean. :P

Oh I don't think he was trolling either. I think he was making a pretty clever joke.

And FWIW "back in the day" the film was blown up onto a big theater screen using a film print, which is still a higher resolution than digital HD releases. So there's no way the set suddenly looks cheap.

The Nostromo interiors are still some of the most visually impressive science fiction sets I've ever seen in terms of their sense of reality. Predominately thanks to their use of air craft parts and industrial equipment.


Quote from: blackGoo|skin-lotion| on Mar 23, 2018, 11:52:27 AM
I´m curious how Ridleys Xeno queen will look like. If you crack the head open, you will probably find a butt in there - Easter Egg alert ::)

Well, he is a big fan of Beavis and Butthead, so yeah. Why not?  ;D

Necronom IV

Necronom IV

#89
Quote from: NetworkATTH on Jan 30, 2018, 12:03:22 AM
Quote from: whiterabbit on Jan 29, 2018, 12:01:05 AM
Honestly with the direction Ridley Scott is going the Skull is probably a left over vestige from the xeno's days when it was a more human like creature. There is no escaping the fact that in Alien Ash's is clearly monitoring a very human-like embryo gestating inside of Kane.

The Skull stays.

Probably, but I'm half entertaining the possibility as interesting, and half plugging my ears and closing my eyes and just enjoying the mystery of "Why the f**k does this well thought out biological organism also have a human skull on it, that's real f**king weird innit, why would it do that? Does it have something to do with why it was onboard the ship? But why?"

Better to just leave it at that implication.

It also is just a good design choice. It's eyeless with teeth, which recalls an animal attacking you, you just see the teeth before you die. But underneath its head, you can almost see a skull, it's just death. It's pure death. If you see something with a cowl and a misty concealed skull under it, and a jaw filled with metal teeth it's basically game over for you at that point. Giger's decision to bolt a real human skull onto it was probably just because it represents the monster, it's death. I'm not being real clear here, but I think you get what I'm saying. It was probably a decision on Giger's part to make the beast the real biological animal the script demanded, but also have an air of mystery to it, an air of terrifying mystery that just has no answers, but on top of that, the biggest reason I think it has a skull, is well

Because since it comes out of a human, or is born. And Giger is real into birth imagery, it's just a bastardization of the human form and human anatomy. It's a bastard child that is warped of flesh, metal, and bone. Having a skull on it that's visible is just a vicious parody of humanity. Almost as if it simply exists to remind its victims that its a bastardized human, and there's only one terrifying way it can make more of itself. Getting lost in the conversation of "human dna  blah blah" misses the point that it is both a terrifying mystery, and a reminder of what it is, and what it wants. It wants sex, it wants rape, and it has endless wants to create more bastardized versions of humanity reduced to their base form and nature. A being that kills every threat and reduces them to material to create more of itself, and that misty impression of a skull is almost a ghostly reminder that there is a terrifying humanity in it.

If we were stripped of all humanity, we would act not so dissimilar from the alien. The skull is masked because it's supposed to be ghostly, an impression that this being has no need for a face to hide its skull. No need for soft flesh, it is purely offensive and destructive, it is every bit of humanity warped into such a thing that it is very alien and mysterious, but also very familiar, the implications being terrifying.

I'm positive that was the thought process going on in HR Giger's mind when he decided to bolt the skull down onto the suit, shielding it with a cowl that seems gelatinous or misty inside to conceal it enough; but not all the way. That it's a bastard child of humanity that becomes animal, like a science fiction vampire. Vampires are inherently sexual, and knowing Giger and his gothic nature, probably saw the cinematic nature of the movie he was making and thought, how do I out sexualize the vampire visibly with an implication that makes people squirm. But make the audience ponder enough about the nature of it, coming to their own conclusions, or maybe unconsciously knowing that it's just a reminder it has a dark humanity to it that we find alien in ourselves. Something we almost feel is insectoid and shameful, a bit of Kafka. The Alien is the prodigal Gregor Samsa almost. The fowl beast inside all of us that we hate and cannot control. We just want to slap it with a broom like Samsa's family did with Gregor, ultimately leaving him to die. Unlike Gregor, there is a ferocious need for more in the design of the alien, from the skull to the implication of stiletto like feet. The impression of both a vulva and a penis. It's Gregor Samsa without the shame.

Why does it have a gealitnous cowl? We don't know, it's an alien. Why does it have a skull? Good question, but we both know the answer.

There ought to be a way to deem posts ''favourite''. This is splendid stuff.

I occupy the third position set out above: the Alien is not an alien creature. ''bug-eyed'', or for that matter eyeless monster, a different species, it is an erotic-mechanical Freudian nightmare. It should not be ''a well thought out biological creature'', that's just what Cameron did brilliantly and to my mind by so doing ruined the Alien, he made it a coherent creature from an alien ecosystem and so commonplace, no more frightening than a shark or a tiger.

It must dwell in mystery, ambiguously sexual, human, obscure, alien, unknown and unknowable by the mind, but calling up dim half-remembered complexes from the unconsciousness. Expository theories about its origin (dog-aliens, human-aliens and so on) rob it of its primal allure and primal terror. The skull (a real human skull, not a resin replica or worse the ''evil-looking skull'' of death metal posters and Joseph Tsang sculpts) should be hidden beneath the cowl, but it must be present, for a skull even guessed at is an ancient archetypal image of death and terror, another evolutionary complex.

If one believed in the spiritual or paranormal, one might say it gave the Alien an air of death, horror, liminality and worse an unsettling relationship (best never explained) to Man that none of the later designs possess. I think it can be sensed, not seen, triggering ancient warning-mechanisms, anticipations and senses we have half forgotten.

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