Alien to Alien pt. III

[This entry is  part of an ongoing series concerning Franco and CoCo's Alien franchise marathon. For the opening entry click here, for the Alien entry click here, for the Aliens entry click here]

This Franco.

After crossing off the classic and better received (critically and commercially) first two Alien movies it was time to visit the infamous Alien3. I warned CoCo that this one is considered the worst and its concept is a bit silly. Ripley's pod crash lands in a desolate planet that harbors an abandoned prison colony full of born-again inmates (whom have committed violent crimes) that run the facility themselves. They haven't seen a woman in many years so her presence is a point of contention. The crash landing brings something a little more sinister along in the form of a facehugger who shortly after its arrival impregnates a dog (or if you watch the inferior "Studio's Extended Cut" it's a yak). 

Okay, so this sounds ludicrous but it kind of works. It strips down the franchise to its humble beginnings while continuing Ripley's character arch. The inmates have no weapons to defend themselves from the alien thus giving the film a tone similar to the first one. The similarities with Alien don't end there. They both were directed by relative newcomers (Alien - Ridley Scott and Alien3 - David Fincher) whose strengths lie with visual presentation. After the mega success of Aliens the masses were hungry for more. 20th Century Fox wanted to take their money. So after a few false starts they hired music video genius David Fincher (Fight Club, Seven, The Social Network) to direct. Having no clout in Hollywood he got pushed around by the bean counters and the result is a good movie wearing bad movie clothes. Fincher himself disowns the picture stating it's not his baby. Despite all this it's my second favorite of the franchise after the original Alien. It's one alien against a group of defenseless humans who have to outwit the beast in order to survive. The film is shot with an eye for visual storytelling. There isn't much dialogue in it and what there is isn't there to hold your hand. If you blink you could get lost. The opening credits alone are worth the price of admission. 

CoCo enjoyed it stating it to be ballsy in how utterly bleak the situation is for all those involved. There's a reveal halfway through the second act that envelops the film with a sense of nihilism that most would consider poison to box office prospects. I don't thinks she "enjoyed" the film but she thought it was good and a fitting conclusion to to Ripley and the alien franchise. I couldn't concur more. Ripley is one of the most iconic characters in American cinema history but few people give her character arch through the first three films the artistic props it deserves. Maybe that's because the studio inexplicably made a third sequel that tainted the character and the series as a whole. 

Up next: The unnecessary Alien Resurrection

I leave you with a bad trailer for Alien3 that speaks a little to the environment and expectations the film was saddled with.