45: Aliens – Show Notes
First Segment
- Alien
- Directed by Ridley Scott
- A somewhat straight forward “Haunted House” style film
- Group of people stuck inside a structure
- Murderous something picking them off one by one
- One of the most written about movies ever
- Art direction dominated by H.R. Giger
- Swiss surrealist painter
- Painted his nightmares
- Designed the “Xenomorph”, alien ship, and “Space Jockey.”
- Military Sci-fi and Vietnam
- Sub genre of science fiction legitimized largely through Robert A. Heinlein
- Author of “Starship Troopers” 1959
- Heavily lauded and criticized
- “The Forever War”
- Written by Joe Haldeman
- Concerns the horror and futility of war
- “Future shock”
- PTSD
- About his experience in Vietnam and returning home
- Sub genre of science fiction legitimized largely through Robert A. Heinlein
- Women in Space
- NASA in the 60s and 70s
- Valentina Tereshkova
- Sally Ride
Second Segment
- Cameron’s Third Film
- Cameron’s Pre-Aliens Career
- Xenogenesis
- New World Pictures and Roger Corman
- Piranha 2: The Spawning
- Terminator
- Xenogenesis
- Cameron’s Reaction to Alien
- Impressed by the world Ridley Scott created
- Wrote Alien’s While Waiting for Arnold Schwarzenegger to Film Conan the Barbarian
- Listened to Holst’s The Planets
- Inspired by Robert A. Heinlein, Isaac Asimov and Southern Comfort
- Cameron Wanted to do a Sequel Not a Remake
- Wanted to explore military science fiction
- Bringing Sigourney Weaver on Board
- Filming with James Cameron
- Pinewood Studios
- Notoriously demanding
- Technically capable
- Canadian Director v British Crew
- Crew loved Ridley Scott
- Tea breaks
- The Release of Aliens
- Audience and Critics Reaction
- Oscar Nominations
- Aliens‘ Legacy
- Tropes started by Aliens
- First female action hero
Third Segment
- Seeing This in 1986
- Cameron’s Female Superheros
- Surprised By Critics’ Reaction to Alien
- My Feelings on Sequels
- The Franchise in General
- Nerd Excitement