tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28221839.post1356610462891486668..comments2024-02-12T17:59:33.534-06:00Comments on RAZORED ZEN: Alien Versus Predator Versus The ThingCharles Gramlichhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02052592247572253641noreply@blogger.comBlogger35125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28221839.post-44624479380401457642009-07-31T16:46:39.276-05:002009-07-31T16:46:39.276-05:00Barbara Martin, I think that was part of the reaso...Barbara Martin, I think that was part of the reason it and Jaws were so successful. The idea of something that feeds on us. The corrosive blood doesn't stop me from enjoying the alien movies a lot.<br /><br />Candy, In more recent years there have been some more "beautiful" aliens, especialy the Crystalline Entity of Star Trek TNG, which looked almost like a snow flake, and they had another space living alien as well that resembled a jellyfish and ws quite lovely. But I agree, most are certainly ugly.<br /><br />Angie, you're right that a "true" alien would probably evoke at least and OMG response since it wouldn't be based on any biologically derived attractiveness quotient for us. Good point. ALiens that appeared completely inorganic might manage it, like the Crystalline entity.Charles Gramlichhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02052592247572253641noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28221839.post-40350527724017857472009-07-31T14:52:28.875-05:002009-07-31T14:52:28.875-05:00CS Harris -- I think a lot of it is that, once you...CS Harris -- I think a lot of it is that, once you get past surface cosmetics and down to basic forms, what we find "beautiful" or "ugly" is to a great extent programmed in. We respond positively to people who look healthy and give of signals that they'd have or father healthy children, so it's in our DNA to be attracted to youth and strength, and to symmetrical features, clear skin and good looking hair (in distribution and texture, not style), because those are all signs of health.<br /><br />A really <i>beautiful</i> alien would pretty much have to be strongly humanoid, or perhaps strongly based on one of the handful of iconic companion animals -- dogs or horses or cats, that sort of thing -- that humans have attached themselves to over the millenia. So an ugly alien, or just an "OMG that's <i>weird!"</i> alien, is more likely to be really <i>alien,</i> and therefore to seem more realistic as an alien, than a beautiful one.<br /><br />AngieAngiehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11920578701763415331noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28221839.post-5747940902426446022009-07-31T12:28:42.642-05:002009-07-31T12:28:42.642-05:00I know aliens are supposed to be scary, and since ...I know aliens are supposed to be scary, and since most people find insects and reptiles scary, it makes sense for SF to go in that direction. But I find it all rather derivative. And why do aliens need to be ugly? Is it that humans find it easy to imagine ugly beasts but coming up with a beautiful but nonhuman alien is far more challenging?cs harrishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13708705800818667923noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28221839.post-30001808585291508012009-07-31T02:30:43.287-05:002009-07-31T02:30:43.287-05:00I found the Alien movie to be scarey when it first...I found the Alien movie to be scarey when it first came out, despite what you say about the corrosive fluid. It was the concept of a parasite inside a human that could grow to that size was creepy.Barbara Martinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00610140328527165017noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28221839.post-14143604079866107462009-07-30T23:46:28.929-05:002009-07-30T23:46:28.929-05:00jennifer, I thought the Independence Day aliens we...jennifer, I thought the Independence Day aliens were pretty cool too, although clearly derived from the War of the Worlds Martians. Cool though.<br /><br />Rick, that's true. I hadn't really thought about that. I don't think the femaleness of the Alien was important at all until the second movie. Then it became a bit stereotypical female. I do not know Kronos or Crawling eye. I've missed a lot of TV and movies in my day.<br /><br />JR,Gozer the destructor? I do admit to loving ET's spaceship.<br /><br />Greg Schwartz, thanks for the link. I'll check it out.<br />'Charles Gramlichhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02052592247572253641noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28221839.post-72042975503748679252009-07-30T21:14:34.837-05:002009-07-30T21:14:34.837-05:00yeah, i'll have to rent "the thing."...yeah, i'll have to rent "the thing." sounds good.<br /><br />here's a contest for writers living in the south... don't know if it's something you'd be interested in or not:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.tobereadaloud.org/submissions" rel="nofollow">http://www.tobereadaloud.org/submissions</a>Greghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15344808703550376121noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28221839.post-87520432389355425712009-07-30T19:35:19.036-05:002009-07-30T19:35:19.036-05:00I'm going to keep it simple, I'm going to ...I'm going to keep it simple, I'm going to keep it faith based: E.T. is the best alien ever. Next, is that marshmallow guy at the end of Ghostbusters. <br /><br />Phone home.<br /><br />Who you gonna call?JR's Thumbprintshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10479324326541901987noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28221839.post-80855499748441311462009-07-30T18:49:02.224-05:002009-07-30T18:49:02.224-05:00What was interesting to me about "The Thing&q...What was interesting to me about "The Thing" (both versions) was that it generated horror that was essentially gender neutral. In "Predator," we dealt at first with a male hunter, and in "Alien" (and the movie "Species") with a femme fatale alien. But "The Thing" played to neither stereotype.<br /><br />Do you remember "Kronos, the Magnetic Monster?" Or, "The Crawling Eye?" What did you think of them?Rickhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14546882686381428986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28221839.post-68150061663839661732009-07-30T17:41:47.719-05:002009-07-30T17:41:47.719-05:00I drank the Hollywood Kool-aid and I love the alie...I drank the Hollywood Kool-aid and I love the alien in Independence Day. I know the emphasis is on the craft that they travel in more so than the alien itself, but those are my aliens of choice :) <br /><br />(Funny, I never realized that I had an alien of choice. Look at you, always broadening horizons).jhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08547226679311827501noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28221839.post-52550398332970597142009-07-30T15:02:27.825-05:002009-07-30T15:02:27.825-05:00Ivan, it's hard to compare because I didn'...Ivan, it's hard to compare because I didn't see the original, "The Thing from Another World" until I was an adult and after I'd already seen the remake. The original movie was an awesome movie, until it showed the alien, and then I just laughed. It sucked all the tension out for me. I think the remake is a far, far superior movie, although the story from which they were based, "Who Goes there" by John W. Campbell is a masterpiece.<br /><br />Gabby, It took me a month to read the Potter series, althought that's not reading straight through without other stuff intervening. I've never tried teh Wheel of time and probably won't.<br /><br />Demon Hunter, I'm sure they may have intended that but a human writer has to draw their inspiration from something they know on earth pretty much, which is how I was looking at it.<br /><br />Patty, Alien was really a step up in movie making for me.Charles Gramlichhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02052592247572253641noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28221839.post-28632590464963865302009-07-30T13:52:38.589-05:002009-07-30T13:52:38.589-05:00I agree. Alien is the best by a long shot.I agree. Alien is the best by a long shot.pattinase (abbott)https://www.blogger.com/profile/02916037185235335846noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28221839.post-80068722727609608722009-07-30T12:51:50.952-05:002009-07-30T12:51:50.952-05:00I love all three films and own them all. :-)
But ...I love all three films and own them all. :-)<br /><br />But I guess that the purpose of the alien is to be just that---something that we don't understand, like the physiology of the creature in the Alien movies. I understand your comparisons, but maybe the writer didn't intend on their creation being compared to creatures on earth, so didn't feel the need to explain. **shrugs** Possbily.Tyhitia Greenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14070000168178880911noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28221839.post-38592175821554445062009-07-30T12:06:52.114-05:002009-07-30T12:06:52.114-05:00RYC: I'm going to RE-read the series, Charles!...RYC: I'm going to RE-read the series, Charles! ^_^ I read really quickly. I knocked out the first four Harry Potter books in a week. I am going to try and read the WoT series a little slower this time -- I always catch things the many times around I've read them. Probably about 1 every 1-2 weeks should be about right, maybe a little longer or shorter, give or take. ^_^Gabbyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02457045028498853970noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28221839.post-80786136893088666412009-07-30T10:49:21.948-05:002009-07-30T10:49:21.948-05:00It was l951, I had just seen The Thing From Anothe...It was l951, I had just seen The Thing From Another World and was afraid to walk home through the country lanes. I was scared stiff, immobilized.<br />No remake, no comic book-cum-movie plot, this was the real deal.<br />This was an alien out to suck my blood and one in no mood for intergalactic dimplomacy.<br /> A massive, chlorophyll-based humanoid with a demon thirst for blood.<br />That scared- as -a kid feeling, and scared literally shitless. <br /><br />Years and years afterward, I was still haunted by The Thing . In college, I finally researched the movie.<br /><br />With its modest special effects, lean plot, and small cast of lesser stars, this 1951 thriller remains a sturdy blueprint for fusing horror and science fiction. The formula has been employed countless times since, fleshed out with more extensive and elaborate production values, and manned by higher profiled marquee names, but the results have yet to improve on The Thing from Another World, Howard Hawks's lone foray into sci-fi. <br />The story begins as military airmen are dispatched to a remote Arctic research station where scientists have detected the crash of a spacecraft. An effort to retrieve the saucer-shaped vehicle fails, but the team returns to the station with the frozen body of its sole occupant. When the extraterrestrial pilot is accidentally thawed, the crew, headed by a tough-talking pilot (Kenneth Tobey), grapples with a massive, chlorophyll-based humanoid (James Arness) thirsty for blood and not at all wanting to communicate.<br /><br />I haven't seen the new Thing and his recentlyh acquired pals, but everobody in Holywood says you can't match Howard Hawk's original, and even then he was only given a production credit for the pristine masterpiece. James Arness wore the Thing outfit.ivanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05662075375182633162noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28221839.post-16552272453927504522009-07-30T10:28:31.900-05:002009-07-30T10:28:31.900-05:00Cloudia, good point about the corporations in Alie...Cloudia, good point about the corporations in Alien II. The faceless enemy within. I like that point. May have to work it into a future essay.<br /><br />Erik, I liked the Devil in the Dark. Pretty cool. In a later Star Trek book I read the author had the Horta as members of starsihp crews. I thought that was a bit much. I haven't seen Liquid Sky. Sounds like I need to.<br /><br />Scott, yeah, both Alien and the Thing were horror films. But with cool SF elements. I haven't seen King Ghidorah. Have never watched many Godzilla films.Charles Gramlichhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02052592247572253641noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28221839.post-27974832789915283312009-07-30T09:31:11.405-05:002009-07-30T09:31:11.405-05:00Charles,
Good choices of cinematic aliens. The ...Charles,<br /><br /> Good choices of cinematic aliens. The Thing is one of my faves, as is the original Alien...though the setting is sci-fi, the story is horror. <br /><br /> In a totally different category(being unrealistic and unbeleiveable), one of my favorite aliens is King Ghidorah from the Godzilla films.Scotthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09726570487056061877noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28221839.post-56376846171445733352009-07-29T23:13:07.790-05:002009-07-29T23:13:07.790-05:00Uber comparisons. I guess even "Devil in the ...Uber comparisons. I guess even "Devil in the Dark" seems too human, the silicone chiles and all.<br /><br />How about the alien in <i>Liquid Sky</i>? That was a weird one. Maybe even weirder, the music.Erik Donald Francehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02332500850365598564noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28221839.post-54701934153481157062009-07-29T20:37:15.965-05:002009-07-29T20:37:15.965-05:00What a scholarly dissertation on a cool topic, Cha...What a scholarly dissertation on a cool topic, Charles!<br /><br />Agreed: Alien is the best of the lot. Stealing our senses (covering the face/head)raping the victim and implanting a horror within. And the prey exploding! I've had that fear, haven't you?<br /><br /> Terrifying! Then a killing machine that (again) invades the body's vulnerabilites with inexorable efficiency, speed, apparently invulnerable......*shiver* and to top it off, the greatest defense of all: that acid blood.<br /><br />Alien II topped it though by introducing a REAL living monster that threatens all humanity: corporations that would introduce and "use" such a creature on our planet for gain! Yikes! THAT call is coming from INSIDE our house!!!!<br />Aloha, professor-<br /><br /><a href="http://comfortspiral.blogspot.com/" rel="nofollow">Comfort Spiral</a>Cloudiahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05853753108637831069noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28221839.post-60621185336414410672009-07-29T19:44:20.895-05:002009-07-29T19:44:20.895-05:00laughingwolf, yeah, giger's images were really...laughingwolf, yeah, giger's images were really magnificient and the alien was certainly built from those. The later Star Trek series did some pretty good stuff with aliens, like the Crystal Entity.<br /><br />Greg Schwartz, dude you should definitely see "the Thing." I thought it was very good and had some of the best dialogue ever in an SF movie.<br /><br />jodi, Lana and I were talking the other day about how the key to the Thing is the paranoia, not knowing who it's taken over.<br /><br />Paul R. McNamee, I'll check it out. Thanks for the link.<br /><br />Mark, it's a good theory. One that begs for further study. I can attest the alieness of my teen at least. Thank goodness his human DNA has reasserted itself.<br /><br />Steve Malley, true. James may have started as human but had pretty much replaced all those characteristics by adulthood.Charles Gramlichhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02052592247572253641noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28221839.post-53542382677807483012009-07-29T18:55:33.215-05:002009-07-29T18:55:33.215-05:00I think the Predator isn't all that human-- he...I think the Predator isn't all that human-- he's Rick James!Steve Malleyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17561234111786788616noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28221839.post-34368085801963069882009-07-29T16:39:34.926-05:002009-07-29T16:39:34.926-05:00I think Ripley's alien was modeled on my theor...I think Ripley's alien was modeled on my theory of teenagers.<br /><br />Somewhere way back in time aliens mated with humans and the alien portion of the DNA becomes prevalent at about age 13. Their alien DNA comes out which makes them be almost as cantankerous as the movie creature and forces them to eat everything in sight, especially parents.<br /><br />I wonder if the aliens in their teenage phase transmogrify and their human DNA takes over for a bit? that would be a shared frustration between both alien and human adults under which they could peacefully bond and figure out who the real enemy is. Of course Hollywood would never be able to make this movie...the teenagers would eat the screen.the walking manhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10058913927297370740noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28221839.post-46815022625095065692009-07-29T15:38:00.395-05:002009-07-29T15:38:00.395-05:00Charles - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daleks
Fol...Charles - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daleks<br /><br />Following their history, (within the show though) is near impossible, as the show has been on for so long, and sometimes contradicted its own history - plus various audio and novel non-canon stories.<br /><br />Then again, the Doctor is a time traveler so timelines/histories could easily get messed up. ;)<br /><br />I can't find pure YouTube clips that aren't fan "mash ups" though...Paul R. McNameehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13498380385001618758noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28221839.post-77622632172953519972009-07-29T15:21:20.082-05:002009-07-29T15:21:20.082-05:00Charles, that thing is hideous and I do not want t...Charles, that thing is hideous and I do not want to know ANYTHING about it! I will most def have horrid dreams!jodihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01798858210138821711noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28221839.post-68807253921278667152009-07-29T14:54:24.412-05:002009-07-29T14:54:24.412-05:00wow, you've put quite a lot of thought into th...wow, you've put quite a lot of thought into this. i never saw john carpenter's "thing," but i agree that predator and the alien are pretty damn cool. another breed of cinematic alien i've always liked is the species of little guys from "spaced invaders," but they weren't terribly believable either. just funny.Greghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15344808703550376121noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28221839.post-18059539280219590562009-07-29T14:15:37.814-05:002009-07-29T14:15:37.814-05:00no argument from me, charles
i like the critters ...no argument from me, charles<br /><br />i like the critters h r giger and brian froud create... giger made that alien, as i recall<br /><br />howard phillips lovecraft's were cool, too, but hardly 'alien', per se<br /><br />i also like the symbiant, dax, in the star trek serieslaughingwolfhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08873675614347328116noreply@blogger.com