Open Classroom screening: Aliens (1986)
@ Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts
915 E 60th St, Chicago, IL 60637
Opening Friday, April 7th, at 7PM
Before TITANIC made him the “king of the world,” or at least the global theatrical box-office, writer-director James Cameron was known as the “king of sequels.” For Clint Froehlich’s course “History of International Cinema Part III: 1960-Present,” it is only appropriate that we turn to Cameron to consider the contemporary landscape of sequels, prequels, re-quels, reboots, and remakes. As the now-Disney-owned Alien franchise enters its decadent period as a corporate commodity, we look back on the oddity of Alien as a rare auteur-driven franchise, and especially to Cameron’s example of a sequel upending its predecessor’s genre and tone while remaining commercially and aesthetically successful. Cameron morphs the claustrophobic horror of Ridley Scott’s original into a tense, terrifying, genre-mixing action extravaganza that builds slow and then blasts your hair back, ultimately raising the stakes for what was now a bona fide franchise, and casting a long shadow of influence over entire genres. Widely considered one of the best action movies ever made, ALIENS broke barriers beyond its unusual combination of genre elements: Sigourney Weaver’s Lead Actress Oscar nomination was virtually unheard-of for an action, sci-fi, or horror performance (this is still true today), and it is the only big-budget female-fronted action film of the 1980s. If the best sequels are rip-roaringly awesome movies that stand on their own, as opposed to puzzle pieces tossed into an empty mystery box, then Aliens is one for the ages. (James Cameron, USA, 1986, 137 min., 35mm)
Clint Froehlich is a Lecturer in Cinema and Media Studies at the University of Chicago.
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Tags: Chicago, Open Classroom screening: Aliens (1986), Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts, Washington Park
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