Alien: Why Sigourney Weaver is the Sh!t

I was recently challenged to watch a horror movie (from beginning to end) so I decided to watch Alien (1979). I chose Alien not because I’m the biggest fan of horror or SF, but I wanted to give it a chance and “expand my horizons” – it also looked less scary compared to other horror movies like The Exorcist, so that swayed my decision.

https://www.filmsite.org/alie.html

I have to say that I was pleasantly surprised with the movie because although it was rated R for being “scary,” I didn’t find it terrifying and I haven't had any nightmares so far, so that’s a plus.

The beginning was eerie, and I had no idea what I was about to watch (the trailer was confusing and vague), but I soon caught on and was hooked. I won't give too much away because I despise spoilers, but let me just say: Sigourney Weaver.

https://whatculture.com/film/10-things-you-learn-rewatching-alien

Since this was filmed during a period where sexism was common and part of everyday life, the character Ellen Ripley (played by Sigourney Weaver) went against almost every gender role and had the opposite personality you would have expected from a woman in film in the 70s.

For starters, her character was originally written for a man, so that itself shows how groundbreaking her role/character was. Ripley was direct; She knew what needed to happen and how to make it happen, and nothing got in her way. There was never a scene where she was portrayed as vulnerable or needy, and she never threw her hands up to call for prince charming to save her. She's the one who does most of the saving.

https://www.peoplesworld.org/article/netflix-feminists-film-on-1970s-womens-movement-shows-work-still-to-do/

With a female lead role during the 1970s, one would assume some sort of romance or love triangle would infiltrate the plot. However, there was no romance intertwined in the movie (thank god) as it would have taken away from the straightforwardness and gender-defiant nature of the film. Ripley is the definition of a badass in Alien, and Weaver’s performance of this strong female lead officer is close to (if not) perfect. Weaver was also very very different from the common woman you would see in film during the 70s. She was 6 feet tall and had big hands and feet. Once in an interview, she expressed how her height and the fact that she wasn’t a girly girl prevented her/held her back from starring in romance films. This is yet another apparent example of sexism in the Hollywood workplace (you can also see small yet realistic instances of sexism against Ripley in Alien).

https://www.salon.com/2018/10/04/ripley-burns-it-all-down-on-aliens-and-the-dangers-of-dismissing-womens-rage/

One thing that stood out to me in Alien was that the movie is in the Sci Fi genre (which is inherently unrealistic,) but the writing and directing make everything seem pretty accurate or close to a real-life scenario (aside from the alien, of course).

In the '70s, the SciFi/horror genre was almost always distorted reality, making it hard to draw a concrete connection between everyday life to make-believe – butttt although the film was shot in Space, the elements of conflict, crisis and strategic thinking were quite realistic to me as those are things we experience every day (but maybe not to that extent). However, scholar Jackie Byar explains how the cathartic element of Sci Fi/horror films allows us to believe that "we have been purified; they seduce us, but the seduction is safe. They allow us to risk, but the risk is secure and therefore no risk at all.” I think this description of horror films explains the feelings I have while watching almost any other horror movie, but in Alien, when I felt that I was at risk, the risk was somehow real because (especially during the virus) you never know what will happen, and the element of suspense was very pressing in my mind.

Thank you for reading! If you're interested, check out this video on Why Sigourney Weaver is the Sh!t!

Love Always,

Kate