Anney Reese on Alien

Anney is back, y'all, to talk about the all-time sci-fi horror classic, ALIEN.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Welcome to Movie Crush, a production of I Heart Radio.

(00:28):
Hey everybody, and welcome to Movie Crush. I'm looking at
one of my favorite smiling faces, Miss Annie Reeves. I check,
it's been a minute. I'm so happy to be here.
I know, you know I was looking. I think I know.
The last time you were in was with Holly for Empire.
But I don't know when the last Annie solo show was.
It was a while ago. It was a while ago.

(00:50):
It couldn't have been Captain America. I think it was. Yeah,
I think it was. It might have been what we
Do in the Shadows, but I think it's Captain America. Yeah,
Oh it was thora n u h did we do? Yes? Did?
Of course? How could you forget my thoughts, my brilliant
thoughts on that They were so brilliant they blew my

(01:13):
mind and then I just didn't even think anymore about it. Yeah,
I think that was the last one. That was a
long time ago. Any I know, I know how you doing.
I'm good. I'm at the usual. I don't know why
every time we record these, I'm at a weird intersection
of very hyper and very tired, which I guess is great,
But I said today, I am fully vaccinated. So that's exciting.

(01:33):
Oh nice, So two weeks out or just got your
shot two weeks out? So today, when did you get?
I got Maderna? You're like, I got to Johnson and Johnson's.
I just wanted a double up. I got Maderna too. Mad. Yes,
I don't know. Most people I know got fights there,
so yeah, yeah, same, who knows. All I know is

(01:56):
it is. Brought me a lot of peace of mind.
Recorded yesterday with Josh and Jerry in person was really great.
We're all three in a room together and boy, it
was nice. I gotta tell you that is something else. Yeah,
I'm going to the office today and I actually have
something for you that I'm going to drop off at

(02:16):
your desk, all right, because I'm gonna be there tomorrow.
So that's exciting. Yes, yes, don't tell me, no, no way,
I don't. I don't know, like it's bed bugs. Yes,
that's definitely something I would do. Well, it's great to
see you, Great to have you back. Um, we were

(02:38):
talking about what movie to do. You threw out Alien
among a couple of others, and it's like, what am
I saving Alien for? If not? Annie let's just let's
do it. I did Aliens already. Oh okay, well you're
in for a wild ride. I'm going to tell you that.
All right. Well, I'll go ahead and just start real
quick by giving you my rundown of my history here. Uh,

(03:00):
this is a movie I remember from when I was
when it came out, believe it or not, when I
was eight years old. Uh, it seemed like the scariest
movie ever made for an eight year old kid. When
you're looking at that poster and that tagline one of
the all time greats. And I was not allowed to
watch it. I read the Mad Magazine spoof, and weirdly,

(03:21):
I remember all of that so vividly, but I don't
remember the first time I saw it really, which yeah,
which kind of speaks to a kid's imagination. I don't
remember the first time I saw it, but I just
know it's always been a movie I've gone back to
again and again, and then watching the anniversary four K
edition last night, it's it's saying it holds up is

(03:44):
is a cliche. It's it's just as great as ever.
I can't believe this movie was made ninety nine. Every
time I look at it and it's just it's one
of the great all time films. Absolutely, um on over
on stuff. I've never told you. You have a segment
called feminist Movie Friday, and the for the movie that
I was like, we have to do this segment was

(04:06):
this one. It just years I've been like, we have
to talk about alien and I when the four Anniversity,
which is twenty nineteen, happened, I got to go see
it in theaters and it was awesome. It was so fantastic.
And I actually have a really funny story about this

(04:26):
movie because I vividly remember the first time I saw it. Um,
my older brother and I had a really adversarial relationship
growing up. How much older. He's four years older than me,
So this was I was nine years old and around
the time it was the rosal alien autopsy thing happened

(04:48):
and he showed it to me and it freaks me out.
Check it really freaks me out. And being an older brother,
he played this very epic, well done but terrible prank
where he basically convinced me that our parents had been
objected by aliens, that they were coming from me and

(05:09):
like they were special effects. There were lights. I hid
in my closet all night. Um, while you're in your
closet again, it's a whole coupled circle. Um. But because
of the success of his prank, I was terrified Aliens
so scared. I couldn't watch e T I couldn't watch
Independence Day like I had a legitimate if. I remember

(05:33):
once in class in high school, one of their teachers
showed I think it was Independent Day. I had to leave.
I couldn't watch it. So was that your big that
was that your boogeyman? Yes and so, and you know
I love horror movies and it was like this thing
that was just bothering me that I was missing this
whole genre, this whole section of horror movies. And so

(05:57):
I told my best friend, I'm like, this is my
Mount Everest. I have got to get over it. And
I was in college and we watched Alien and I cried.
I cried and I was like hugging her, and but
I got over the I did get over the fear,

(06:17):
and now it's one of my favorite movies. Oh wow,
Well there's something to be said for um what's it
called exposure therapy? Yeah? Yeah, I watched that and Aliens
and Event Horizon all on the same day, so I
event Horizon was pretty good. I remember I haven't seen
it in a while, but that that was pretty creepy.
It's messed up, it's messed up. But yeah. My deal

(06:39):
with Aliens is I like it a lot, but I
really like seeing. I really like Alien a lot more
like a lot more. I like seeing. It's much more
rewarding to see the journey for Ripley in this movie.
I love seeing badass Ripley all ready to go and Aliens,
but seeing the transformation or in her character arc. Uh,

(07:02):
it's just it's everything, you know. Yeah, I think they're
just two very different. I feel like Aliens is much
more an action movie, which is still fun and great,
but this one is like, I mean, immediately with the
credit sequence of how the letters come in and the
kind of driving beat of the music, you're like, oh,
I'm unsettled. Yeah, I mean I know that it's there's

(07:28):
you know, it's a sci fi horror film. But even
having seen it so many times last night, it hit
me of how much of a horror film this is.
Like this, if this were a cabin in the woods
and literally you could just do everything you do and
then make it a monster in the woods with the
same people who maybe they're working in a coal mine
or something, and they're they're having dinner at their table

(07:51):
in the cabin, like, and they get picked off one
by one and there's cat. There's a cat that's sucking
things up. I mean, it's a straight up horror movie, absolutely,
and it's It's funny because I managed to miss that
big Twitter kerfuffle about that article that said there's no
horror movies in space and people were like alien who

(08:12):
said that. I don't remember, I missed it, but I
saw like all of the fallout of people saying, here's
multiple examples. Um, then Horizon was kind of a horror movie. Absolutely,
it's horrible. We don't need eyes to see. That's I
don't remember that, but I don't like that line. Sam Neil, Yeah,

(08:33):
he was great. Perfect. Um. It was zenomrph Alien Day
a couple of days ago, so this is sort of timely,
you know. I saw that somewhere today when I was
poking around the internet about this movie. What was no? No,
Maybe Nold told me, but what was um was there
a reference to this date, like in The Terminator or something? Oh,

(08:55):
I have no idea or did they just pick I mean, truly,
it wasn't out of thin air right now, I it
can't be out of thin air. I think it's the actually,
you know what it is. It's the ship. The ship
that they find is four to six. Okay, I'm pretty sure. Yeah, yeah,
I'm all about the nerds claiming a day for their own.

(09:16):
You know. In the process of being on this show, took,
I've made a lot of lists. Here's my favorite horror movies,
here's my favorite whatever, whatever. And I did notice like
a lot of my favorite movies come from this time period,
which I think is really interesting. But my dad is
probably the reason I love movies, and this was like
his youth and heyday. And he told me the story

(09:37):
of taking my mom on a date to see Alien
and he said it just scared the hell out of them.
They couldn't even look at the poster and people, according
to him, people were like screaming and somebody threw up.
It's really well, I mean it's it's it's hard for
the youth today, Annie, which I will still include you,

(09:59):
uh to to understand that there was nothing like this
at the time, Like there was close encounters of the
third kind, and those were sort of lovable aliens in
a way. Um, there was the day the Earth did
still there were laser beams shooting. You know, we're the
world's type aliens. But there hadn't been like once hr

(10:20):
Geeger got on the scene and created this truly terrifying, remorseless,
empathy less beast. Uh, No one knew what the funk
was how to take this it was. It was truly horrifying,
and like just rewrote movies and this kind of movie
at least. Yeah, And I think it's really interesting because

(10:41):
there's a lot of things that were happening when this
came out and before it came out that really influenced it.
And you know, some of the creators, like Dan Obannon
in specific, said like I want this to be because
Star Wars had come out and it was really successful,
Like take that, make that scary, make it like Jaws
and Space, make it Texas Chainsaw massacre in Space. And

(11:04):
also at the time, which I'm going to get into this,
and I think some people are like, wow, I never
looked at this movie the same again, but there are
things like um Row v. Wade, and you have second
wave feminism and you had a lot of fears around
like environmental things and chemicals and pesticides and foods, and

(11:25):
then you had this fear around like capitalism and uh
not putting employer employees first and like just not valuing them.
So all of these things to talk about the bonus,
I love that. I love that. That's one of the
things that does feel very kind of Star Wars to me,
where they're the ship is kind of dirty. They're just

(11:47):
like people were doing their job and they just want
their bonus, and then these forces are conspiring against them
and not valuing them at all, and perfect organism. Almost
all of you are dead. Well. I mean it is
important to remember when you see this movie to remind
yourself that these aren't soldiers. These are blue collar workers

(12:08):
of the time. Uh, on these operations where they're going
to these far off places and they're they're mining for
I mean, I know the serious alienards are gonna be
mad because I don't know exactly what they were doing,
but they were reminding for valuable things to bring back.
And uh, that's why that bonusing is kind of funny,
because you're right, it's like they're there to do a

(12:30):
job and they just want to get home. They don't
want to go check out that beacon at all. Um
r I p offet Coto, by the way, who just
recently passed. It was it was kind of sad seeing
here he and Harry Dean Stanton some of those two
shots because they both left us now and I thought,
and I was like, oh, and Tom Scarrett and Tom
Scaretts alive. That's the great news. He's eighties, seven years old,

(12:53):
he's still going. I was like, oh, that's great. Because
Tom Scarett is so emblematic of that time period, is
like this sort of he wasn't a huge movie star,
and I don't think he really top lined movies, is
like the big leading man, but he was super handsome
and just this rugged sort of seventies guy. Yeah, my

(13:14):
dad kind of looks like him actually when he was
during that period. Yeah. Um that's the scariest part to
me because when Dallas is in the like vance and
he has a flamethrower and it's like coming, oh my god. Yeah, Well,
because you've got he employees. Really, Scott employed so many

(13:35):
great little tricks to ratchet up the tension, Like this
movie is a masterclass on tension building. In a film
and and slow burn kind of filmmaking, and he uses
little things like that that yes, and you just hear
that sound and like I just got a little chill
right now, and and and seeing that little you know,

(13:59):
nineteen seven these era spent winning a special effect just
look like a pong game, you know, just getting closer.
It doesn't need to be fancy and and look like
some you know, amazing c g I creation. That's just
it's a good lesson, I think, is you just need
a green dot getting closer to the other green dot
at a rapid rate, and and it starts going faster

(14:21):
and faster and you're you're terrified. Yeah, And I think
that was something really smart that they did, and in general,
I think is the best course of action in horror movies.
As they knew, like if we show this alien and
it's full form too long, people are gonna be like,
that's a man in a suit. So you really, I
think it's less than two minutes. You see the full

(14:43):
creature in the whole film, So it's just like the
Jaws effect. Yeah, exactly, exactly, And it works so well
like your imagination if you're if you've done the job
as creators, you're imagining the imagination of the audience is
going to do a lot of that work for you, Like, yeah,
and I think it's I mean, that kind of restraint
is so valuable to a filmmaker and I think that's Um.

(15:05):
I don't know about loss, but it doesn't get used
as much as it should these days. But um, it's
the very very end when it's blasted off from the
rear of the ship is kind of the final reveal
of what that whole body looks like. And I remember
seeing it and going it has arms and legs, Like,

(15:26):
I guess you knew I had arms because that great
shot where it reaches out for for Tom Scarrett, But
I don't. I don't think I even thought about it
having big, long, gangly legs until I saw it outside
the ship. Yeah, it feels much more because so many
of the shots are kind of unfurling, Yeah, and so

(15:46):
almost reptilian maybe or like you're not picturing that part
you're so horrified. Yeah, just this unfurling effect that it's
never even at least for me, it didn't really occur
to me. Guess legs, Yeah, Yeah. The great Veronica Cartwright
as Lambert Um, I do one impression of her, and

(16:08):
that is this oh god, oh god, yeah, that's my Lambert.
She was so good though, Uh, I just I mean,
the cast in this movie is unbelievable. John Hurt uh,
like I said, yeah at Koto of course, of Courney Weaver, uh,
the great Ian Home, who was just like, I mean,
I forget, I forgot about that end scene where he's

(16:31):
totally skitzing out, throwing himself against the wall in like
full android robot freak out mode, and I'm like, that's
Ian Home doing that. Yeah. Every time I watched this movie,
which is at least once a year, I'd say, yeah,
I get he makes me so angry, Like I I
still I'm like, oh, I don't like this guy. Like, yeah,

(16:54):
it was brilliant casting. And the reveal of him as
uh so late in the movie is and I mean,
is he an android or a rope? I trusting my robot,
but um Parker does. But it's so well played, uh
to just hang on to that for so long, And
of course once you've seen it a bunch of times,
you see a couple of little hints along the way,

(17:16):
like Dallas says early on, which I don't think I
ever even known he sees something about something this man
and uh Ian home kind of gives him a little look,
and I don't think I ever noticed that until last night.
I was like, oh, there's a nice little easter egg.
There are a bunch of little things if you're paying attention,
Like I think he never eats like you've never see
him eat like. He sits on the like milk thing.

(17:37):
But rather than that, you mean his his future sweat ross. Yeah,
it was really nasty because it wasn't even full milk.
It was watery milk. Yeah, it's like step below that
scene I posted the god that seems so brutal when
when Parker knocks his literally knocks his head off and

(18:00):
uh then then uh Ripley you know, sets him up
on the table with his head separated from his body.
And I just had to send that picture out on
my movie screen to the movie crushers. I was like,
look what I'm watching for Annie, and they everybody, everyone
was really excited that you were the one for this movie.
Wait till I get into my quotes. Let's hear one. Okay,

(18:23):
um so from Tom's shown at Slate. Okay, okay, Alien
has issues. It has mommy issues and sex issues. It
has a thing for strong women, who it also likes
to oggle in their undies. It's a hot mess, a
Freudian fever dream with its crabby and post coital atmosphere.
It's rebirthing imagery. It's queasily gynecological production design. It's a

(18:44):
night sweat of male anxiety. A particularly horrid fun confusion
of the sexual gynecologial within the gastro intestinal and the
famous John Hurt burst scene in which a razor tooth
phallic monster not its way through his stomach into the light,
a kind of science fiction foul stintadis Oh god, you
know and true, uh Lambert Veronica Cartwright. She didn't know,

(19:09):
like the actors didn't know during that scene. It's gonna
be like the explosion. I heard that that's brilliant to
do as a filmmaker. But yeah, that's really interesting. I mean,
it certainly did occur to me last night. Like Mother
is the computer, the alien itself obviously is is a
big mama who just only wants to you know, have
babies and kill people. Um, so yeah, they're definitely there's

(19:33):
a lot more going on below the surface. And it's
a movie that you can I love that this is
a movie you can pick apart like that. And and
who knows what Ridley Scott and the writers intended, but
who cares. Really, it's like it's a movie that you
can interpret in a variety of ways. Well, I do know, um,

(19:59):
Danna Vanna, who is putting the writers. There's a lot
of like conflicting kind of controversy around the writing of
this movie. Right, and he got credit, but Dana Bannon
is largely the one that gets the credit. Um. And
he said, he's quoted saying one thing that people are
all disturbed about his sex. I said, that's how I'm
going to attack the audience. I'm going to attack them sexually.

(20:20):
And I'm not going to go after the women in
the audience. I'm going to attack the men. I'm going
to put in every image I can think of to
make the men and the audience cross their legs. Homosexual, oral, rape, birth,
the thing lays its eggs down your throat, the whole number.
Oh wow, I've got so many quotes, Chuck. So he
that was very much intentional, then that's pretty Yes, absolutely

(20:42):
it was intentional. Although there is the one scene with
UM with the aliens tail kind of creeping up cartwrights legs, right, yes,
and that's a big It's never been confirmed what happened
in that. But she's not wearing when you see her again,
and her body is hanging, she's not wearing pants. And

(21:06):
I have played the game Alien Isolation, which is I
think it's Ripley's daughter goes back and investigates the ship UM,
and it's implied that she was raped in that. Really, Yeah,
I'm telling you so much to unpack. There's a lot
to unpack um non thematically speaking, just the look of

(21:30):
the film, obvious sandwich and hr Geeger who and I
don't know if it's still there. He had a bar
in in Europe somewhere that was styled out like this,
and a friend of mine went and I don't know
if it's still there. This is many, many years ago,
and I remember him telling me all about the Geeger
bar and how amazing it was. But you know, you
always sort of remember the dank darkness of the guts

(21:54):
of the ship, but uh, so much of the other
stuff is so cool looking, the striking eight of the
quarters in the in the control room and stuff like
that I think it's um. I didn't remember that stuff
looking so kind of sharp, and that maybe that four
K just it popped really really good. UM. But the
whole design of the movie is it's just legendary. It

(22:16):
still looks amazing absolutely UM. And there's some some things
I love about. When they were coming up with this
idea because he um Geeger was inspired by this German
artist who did something um. It was kind of based
on the Furies of the Greek Furies called Francis Bacon.

(22:38):
If you could, you can look it up and you
can see like, oh yeah, I see the inspiration. Um.
But then that from that, he did a collection of
pieces called Necromonica in and that's how he came on
the radar of Dan O'Bannon and Ridley Scott. But he
he was going for something sexual and creepy, and some
of his designs were so overtly sexual. The studio was

(23:00):
like nope, nope, which blows with mind because they're so sexual.
And US Customs held Geeger after seeing his artwork for
Alien and they were highly disturbed by it. And I
think Ridley Scott had to go help him out. And
then like the first version of the egg just had

(23:22):
one slit in it for the opening, and Redley Scott
laughed out he saw it because he's like, that looks
like too much, Like can we can we have it
open at four corners please? I mean, that's one of
the great shots of the movie, you know, is that
that slow peel away of that egg. And especially you know,
it's hard to kind of go back and remember when

(23:43):
you didn't know what was coming, even though it's still
I mean, I was like biting my nails last night.
I know everything that happens in this movie, and it's
still tends to me, but um, it is hard to
go back and sort of remember the beauty of the
first time you see this movie and not know what's
going to happen, and just how funked up the chest
burster in that thing on its face, on his face,

(24:07):
uh in the acid blood, Like there were so many
little brilliant moves just giving it acid blood. I was like,
all right, well, now, what are you gonna do? Going
to destroy your ship by like cutting this thing up?
It was genius And that's why they did it, is
they were like, well, what's a way we can make
it logical, make it makes sense? That you wouldn't just

(24:29):
shoot it or have these other things. Um, yeah, imagine
that's what the everyone said it first is well why
don't they just kill it? It's like, well it has
acid blood. That does feel kind of like when you
say it that way, it feels kind of childish, like
like a kid said. Uh, like a kid just literally
made it up. That's something Ruby would say, because I

(24:51):
have acid blood. Dad just got me. Another thing I
thought was really cool was how and I never really
noticed was how. I mean, the whole movie is a
slow burn, but how slowly he brings Ripley along, and
how that whole first act really I think she has
less screen time than anyone and barely any dialogue. Yeah,

(25:14):
you would not know she is the main character for
I think the first third. Yeah, and then even after that,
there's like a transition period where you're not sure. Um,
which that is another thing again hard to like recapture,
especially for me because I saw it so late, but
I didn't know, like Sigourney Weaver, Ripley the main character,

(25:37):
so it's hard for me to kind of imagine that.
But the first time I saw it, I was like, wait, wait,
I thought she was the one that does all the stuff,
but I was kind of confused. Yeah, I mean, let's
talk about her arc. You know, she it is a
slow transformation, I think. I think it happens in stages,
almost like losing Dallas was was the one of the

(26:00):
real big transitions for her. I think. Yeah. And I
know I've talked about Final Girls I want to hear before,
but she's one of the original Final Girls. So I
think it's interesting, um that she starts and she's she's
just like everybody else, is this blue collar sort of
worker in the background, but she is kind of the

(26:22):
one voicing concerns or confronting Ash the android. UM, and
she's the one that's like, no, we need to quarantine,
this is how we do this is these are the rules.
I'm in charge. And she's ignored. UM. And she never
I couldn't you know, it's weird. I couldn't remember last
night when she was saying, even to Dallas, her boss,

(26:44):
like no, this isn't I'm not gonna do it. I'm
not gonna do it. I was like, wait a minute,
does she give in? And I forgot she she never does.
It's Ash. Yeah, yeah, that guy gets me. I know.
Never trusted in android, never trust well you know what
makes me really sad about aliens? And then you're like, oh,
trusted trusted android. And then in the third one it's like,

(27:06):
actually he was a trader, Like okay, right, yeah, I
guess the old lesson has tossed out the airlock. But yeah,
but by the end, of course, Ripley is I mean,
when it's down to the final three, I mean, she's
fully in charge. I don't know how if there was
rank because they weren't army or anything like that, or

(27:28):
if she just just stepped up, but she has that
plan together. Yeah, there's definitely rank involved. But I also
feel like she even if there hadn't been at that point,
she was the one that had the plan. Here's how
we're gonna do it, um And I love this. Really

(27:49):
could have gone the other way and not worked, but
I love the whole sequence where she sees the alien,
goes back and tries to cancel the self distrust. Yeah,
like she's thinking on her feet, she's trying to find
a way to survive and kind of reversing these plans,
and then mother of course foils mother. And it's just

(28:13):
Ripley more than any she's almost terminator like, and that
she never ever ever gives up. Yeah, like I keep
even after I've seen this movie a hundred times, I
kept waiting for her to just be like fuck it,
like I'm gonna off myself or just succumb to this thing.
And she just won't do it, and and and without

(28:35):
any like, it doesn't even you know that, it doesn't
set up some schmaltzy reason why like this husband I
have to get back to, or any dumb trope that
you might usually see. It's just this will and strength.
It's pretty amazing and certainly was not a thing in movies.
In n right and famously, um that role Ripley was

(29:00):
originally meant for a man, but then they decided let's
make it that. Yeah, it was meant for a man,
and then they decided let's make it gender new like
anybody can audition. Um, and they were really impressed with
the Corney Weaver. But I think and the dialogue was
written for a man, which I think is really interesting
because they didn't change any I mean, they probably changed

(29:20):
some things, but not really so. Um So, when she
says fuck you to uh Harry Dean Stanton and Parker yeah,
I mean that that totally makes sense now mm hmm. Yeah. So,
and I think that totally it worked, and I I
personally believe that that is a good way to write
a character where pretty much, you know, any gender could

(29:43):
play them. Um, especially in this sense for something like this.
I because there's no part of me through it, through
it that was like, h this doesn't work, or like
a woman can't do this. I just doesn't like it.
Just so Yeah, Yeah, there's nothing unconvincing about anything Ripley does.

(30:06):
It's so grounded for such a you know, crazy sci
fi horror movie, it's still so grounded. Nothing that happens
in this movie doesn't feel unrealistic or something she couldn't
have really done because you know, it's not like a
bunch of hand to hand combat or any weird like
fight scenes. It's all just super grounded. Yeah. Um, And

(30:31):
I think this character had a lasting legacy. And I
read essays about how she um like toughened up future
heroins and that whole scene where very disturbing scene where
Ash tries to kill her and it's very like oral
rape evocative. He's trying to shove the magazine down with

(30:53):
her if you look behind her, there's all this like
pornographic imagery. Yeah. Um, and I feel like, was this
toxic masculinity Like he's pretty much spewing sperm at the end. Yeah,
it's just like this frustration of women. I even read
essays that said, like women are turning down giving birth

(31:14):
and people men were mad about it. And so like
having that scene of like this toxic basically toxic masculinity
walking trying to do that to her and then definitely
a weird way to kill someone. Uh you know, let
me roll up a magazine and jam it in her mouth.
I don't even know what that would do with that

(31:35):
just keep her from breathing. Was that was he choking her? Yeah?
I think so. And I imagine he's got like android strength,
so throwing her around. Ye. Yeah, and you're bringing the
goods I didn't. Oh, I got so much, so many thoughts.
It's also obvious so now that you pointed out, yeah,
yeah yeah. And also a lot of people, a lot

(31:57):
of critics have written about how this is again end
with grow Vywaid and second way feminism. It was like
a fear that men were having around like this male pregnancy.
What if I had to take care of children, but
what would I do? And just what if I basically
the pregnancy being like, oh my gosh, I might have

(32:18):
to actually take care of a child. And then like
the whole idea of the face hugger where it's inserting
it's embryo gives your will and you can't take it
off unless you'll die, And it's that whole idea of
like you have to carry the child unless there's you know,

(32:39):
even if he'll kill you. Um at the health of
the mother, all of these things chuck. Uh yeah, I
mean I'm never going to look at this movie the
same way again. So last night I almost texted you,
but I was like, I don't think this is a
work appropriate text. But I was like, please look for
the sexual image. Please look for the sexual imagery in

(32:59):
this movie. You cannot and see it. Uh yeah, that's
work appropriate. I mean, this is what we do on
this show. You know. Maybe I'll just wait. Well, it
was very funny you talk about ten minutes after I started,
just for the listeners, Anti texted me and said, well,
I guess I have to watch Alien again for research
for the conzillion time. I was happy to see it again, um,

(33:21):
and it is a movie. I do come back to
one of the striking visual images for me is and
it was such a smart way to light the scene.
But um, where those space suits with the with the
light on top kind of cast the flashlight on top
of the bubble helmet, kind of casting down on their faces.
And it's not a great like if if you think

(33:43):
about it realistically, it's probably not a great system to
have all that light in your face, but it sure
looks good on a movie screen, especially those long shots
where you just see these sort of three orbs kind
of moving around in that dank darkness headed towards the
space jockey. The space jockey. Yeah, um, that whole that

(34:08):
whole sequence looks amazing, Like the fog, the dark, like
sharp corners of everything. It looks so good. Yeah, And
not to keep hammering this home, but Veronica, she said
it was basically that scene was like we were walking
around penises and vaginas and it's meant to resemble like
a womb like spaces the womb, and then that is

(34:29):
a womb and they're like the colonists entering like it
looks like a vulva, so they enter there like the
sperm and then you know, poor John hurt falls down
into this guy like yeah, yeah that you can almost
feel like the atmosphere of it of being warm and sticky,

(34:52):
and then the egg comes for him. I know, I
mean it's I mean, it's all certainly there. I don't
think I don't think any of this is reading anything
into it. That wasn't you know, the sandbox that they
were playing in. And I think that's the stuff that
does make it sort of subconsciously more unsettling, you know
than just your sort of standard or sci fi film. Right. Uh.

(35:15):
In my line of work sometimes I think maybe you're
reading too much into this, um, But for this movie,
I definitely have the quotes to back up that I
am not. Well, I mean, I think that's kind of
a bunch of bullshit anyway. Like I think reading too
much into something is it just another way of saying,
thinking really deeply about another perspective about something, and you know,

(35:39):
maybe it goes nowhere sometimes, but that doesn't mean that's
not doesn't have value. Yeah, especially if it's resonating for
you and there's got to be some reason that you
were because I mean, that's one of the beauties of
entertainment in general, as you're bringing yourself to it and
interacting with it in that way. Yeah, and you can
also hear some asshole just saying, oh, you're reading too

(36:00):
much into it. Just look at the surface. It's just
a very Fallculey shaped alien with a Falliculey shaved tongue.
I don't know what your problem is. It's all over
the place. Also, they are used k y jelly for
that like effect. And the skin was made of condoms.

(36:20):
Oh was it really? When he picked up the skin, yeah, yeah,
it did look very condom like. Actually, man, it's all
over the place. It is. Uh, here's the quote. I
just love this and and it's such a great sort
of minimalist script. But when they finally get to the
space jockey and Dallas is reporting back, and I's just like,
I see this. It's so simple but so effective writing.

(36:44):
He says, alien life form looks like it's been dead
a long time, fossilized, looks like it's growing out of
it out of the chair. Bones are bent outward like
he exploded from inside. Yeah. I mean there's not much
their word count wise, but boy, is that like sort
of hair raising stuff, you know, absolutely absolutely. I mean

(37:06):
immediately right there, the back of the hairs in the
back of your neck prickly because like it looks like
something burst from inside his chest. And then it kind
of cuts sort of quickly, like Dallas is still a
little worried, and they're like, no, let's keep going, and
you're like, maybe maybe you don't keep going. Yeah, And
the space jockey is also uh and and that's what

(37:28):
some people call them. If you're listening and you've seen
the movie and you're like, who the fund is the
space jockey also known as the pilot. I think it's
it's the huge uh, former pilot of this ship that's
still you know, part of this chair now, and it's
it's one of those things where like I had to
actually look up online and I never thought to do
it because you can never really tell what's going on there,

(37:50):
and people have broken it down online and said like, well,
this is chair, this is the thing, this part is chair,
this part is his pilot, and kind of helped a
little bit because I was like, what is this some
kind of weird elephant. And then they've also I'm sure
you've seen this, but they rendered what it may have
looked like as well, because I was googling last night.

(38:12):
Was the space jockey human? Uh? And the space jockey
was not human? Ah, so you haven't seen Prometheus? Oh shit,
you know what. I saw Prometheus and I was probably
super high in the movie and like I got a
bunch of great eye candy. But that movie, I must admit,

(38:32):
did fly over my head. And the and the whole
alien um cannon. I don't know it inside it out,
So school me, what what is Did they reveal who
the space jockey is? Yeah? Well was it? Is it
the big white thing? Yeah? The bald white guy? Pretty sure?
I mean to be fair, this is coming from a nerd. Uh,

(38:56):
like super nerd. It's confusing, like the whole Yeah, And
like I love how people have even broken down like
the life cycle of a zeno morph because it's kind
of weird, right, Like you have the queen that gives
birth to the egg, and then that gives the face
hugger on the face, and then that and plants an
egg and you and then zeno morph comes out and

(39:17):
it grows within like a day fast. Um, and then
I don't know if you saw this, but there was
there were deleted scenes in this movie that were determined
to be too disturbing, where Ripley finds Dallas and he's
still alive and he's like cocoons, which is what they do. Yeah,
so there's been that part of the life cycle to

(39:41):
It's confusing, is what I'm saying it is. And and
I honestly I'd have to go back and watch Prometheus
again because I don't remember how that all worked together.
Oh it's weird. I mean, it's like I'm unless I'm
remembering it incorrectly because it's been a long time since
I've seen that one. But like the Big White New
at the beginning, we're we're the space Jockey race and

(40:05):
then they were used to create the Zeno more from
that's sort of okay. Their bodies were used for that purpose,
and they have that whole movie is like a search
for God, so they were doing it for God, their God.
That's where you lose me. I'm sorry. This movie also

(40:32):
has one of the great again in classic horror film
um fashion, the faithful mistake, like the one thing and
their faithful mistake Annie, as you know, is having that
goddamn last meal. What would have happened if they would
have gone into cryo freeze. I mean that's as Aliens

(40:55):
in there. Would it have burst through or would it
have killed it? Like I kind of went down the
alternate timeline of what would have happened. Then they kind
of explored that in Aliens an Alien three and that
was sort of their goal was to get it like
it's safely back within the body of someone else so
they could three. Uh yeah, that's how it starts, I believe. Um. Anyway, Yeah,

(41:22):
they were going to use the body of I mean
it was an Aliens too, because that that do she
eighties avail in like every eighties deal and is that
guy was gonna get the implant Ripley Ripley and um
Newt with the embryo and then freeze them and then
get them back so they could get past the weapons
quarantine thing. I'm glad you're here to say this because

(41:45):
people yelling at me like choke you just you saw Aliens.
Have you seen this franchise. It's just it's a franchise
that have seen all of the stuff, except I didn't
see any of the Alien Predator movies. Are they good? No,
but they're fun. But I never dived into trying to

(42:05):
get the full understanding, like aside, I mean I saw
aliens quite a few times, but aside from Alien, um,
I didn't see most of them a lot. Yeah. Well,
the thing I really, I'm in the same boat. I've
seen alien and aliens a lot. Um. I will say
that even ones that I don't necessarily like, I think

(42:28):
most of them have some really interesting things that they
tried and messaging. Um, but that I've never really considered
that idea chuck of like what would have happened if
they had gone to cryo? Um? Well, your movies over.
I know your movie is over unless you want to
get into like a really boring right. But I mean

(42:53):
that that is one thing that I think horror movies
for me at least, is that thought experiment aspect of Well, honestly,
they if they had listened to Ripley, maybe this whole
thing could have been avoided. But they didn't. So now
as an audience, you have to decide of like, well,

(43:17):
is it worth all of them dying just so this
creature doesn't get back to Earth? Um? Yeah, I mean
that's the first faithful mistake actually before the meal is
they didn't listen to Ripley. Yep, that's the first one.
There were a couple of them. They have a lot
of mistakes, and a lot of mistakes were made, a
lot of errors in judgment. Yes, yes, uh, let's talk

(43:40):
about the the Brett Harry Dean Stanton goes for Jones scene,
and again a masterclass intention building and and faults, not
red herrings, but whatever you call it. Where you and
there's like two or three shots where you're like, this
is where he's going to get it and it's not.

(44:02):
I for me um because again I saw this pretty late. Uh,
and I of course was aware of the chest Burster scene.
I've seen Spaceballs, Like I knew what was going to happen.
It's still really messed up and disturbing, but I was like, okay,
I'm okay with this. That was the first scene where

(44:22):
I was like clutching onto my friend and feeling that
like legitimate because the whole thing has been danced. But
this was the part where I was like, oh no,
because you've got those chains moving slowly. Oh yeah, there
is so great. Yeah. When he's looking up in the
that's such a beautiful shot. I mean it's very Blade
Runner esque with that light in the water. Just you know,

(44:46):
it's such a welcome thing on his face. And Harry
Dean Stanton is such a great actor. It's got such
a great mug. It was just, I mean, the casting
this movie is ridiculous. But yeah, I kept thinking even
last night because it had been a minute since I've
seen it. I was like, wait, when does he get it?
It's still pretty because I've seen it a lot, and

(45:08):
I think they do really a really good job with
because there's a couple of scenes where the alien is there,
like you can see it, but it's not until it
starts moving the very end ship. Yeah, that's that's the
big one. An spills out napping in there. I know.

(45:29):
It's like, I'm just gonna have had a lot. It's
my first day. But that is the scene with Harry
Dean Stanton is the first reveal of what it looks
like since it's after it grown. Yeah, man, just dripping
and amazing, mouth is twitching well, and just the design

(45:53):
of the U the mouth opening and then the other
little mouth in there. I mean, come on, that's movie history.
How brilliant is that. It's like, let's take something scary.
That's all you needed is that alien? Like to put
that that punch mouth in there. Is it does that
have a name? It probably does, It probably does. I'm

(46:16):
sure Alien ually just called it something the penis mouth, penis,
the penis dune. Yeah, I mean that it is certainly
phallic um and terrifying and it and it's because it
happened so fast, and I think you live after it happens,
even I don't think it immediately kills. When that happens,

(46:37):
it's pretty terrifying. Yeah, and then it kind of like
drags him up and um m m. I was thinking
about this last night too. Of you're never really quite sure,
especially since they deleted that scene with Dallas. Is the
alien eating them? Is it just killing them? Because then

(46:57):
you see the bodies of like Lambert and Parker and
it doesn't look like they were eaten. Just kill Yeah,
I mean that offers the question, then why is it
killing the perfect organism? As asked says perfect killer? Right,
But that I mean that is terrifying. Both their terror

(47:17):
both options are terrifying. But if it's just killing you,
and honestly, I mean maybe some it's just so much
more powerful and threatening than like the humans on that ship. Yeah,
that it feels like overkill. Perhaps, Well, they don't even

(47:38):
have weapons really, yeah, I mean they fashion these incinerators
as flamethrowers. But you know, aliens is when they bring
in military and weaponry and stuff like that. But I
think that was one of the brilliant things about this
is to make it some blue collar workers who aren't
skilled fighters. I guess you know, y'all. Put photo is

(48:01):
he's kind of the only tough guy in the movie.
Mm hmm, but not your typical trophy. It avoids so
many tropes it does, and the I mean, every phase
of that creature is terrifying. At the face Hugger is terrifying.
And I have written on my list here Annie and

(48:23):
the eggs the first seen face Hugger jumps from egg
Jesus fucking Christ. That was such a terrifying moment. Yeah,
and that like it happened again. It happened so fast.
And then there's that like screeching like sound that you're
assuming it may like when it jumps and breaks the glass.
Oh yeah, poor cane. Yeah. The one kind of funny

(48:47):
part that I laughed at every time is after the
chest burst, when the alien comes out and you know,
oh god, our God, that's still going on, and then
it like then it rides away on a segue. It
looks like she goes. It's like, all right, that's that's
the only thing that kind of looks like a hand puppet.

(49:08):
I'm pretty sure they struggled a lot with that. That.
I'm sure because that's why I didn't think it had
legs later on, was because it's kind of gliding around.
Maybe it didn't have legs at that point. It definitely
looks like the tail is really long when you first
see it, and it kind of unfurls, and the way
it moves feels much more Yeah, reptilian, So that that

(49:31):
makes sense. That makes sense to me. Uh. Speaking of tropes,
I also think that if this movie had been made
ten years later, this movie, in one thousand percent has
a love story attached to it. Yes, Ripley and Dallas
or whatever. It didn't need it, Thank god it didn't

(49:56):
have it, but I could totally see. I don't know
if Ridley scot would have done it. But let's say
this thing goes into turnaround and gets in the hands
of you know, some lesser filmmaker in the eighties. It's
got a love story in there. Absolutely, you can't have
a main female did not have the romance. It would

(50:16):
have looked very different if it had been made in
the eighties. Yeah, well when was Aliens? What year was that?
It was quite a few years later, Yeah, I think
it was like nineteen eight like late eighties. I think
I could be right, but yeah, it was. It was.
It has to have been the eighties because this movie

(50:37):
came out nineteen seventy nine. But yeah, but I think
it was the eighties. Six so seven years later. I mean,
I'm not sure about the development of that movie, but
you know, I did love it. James Cameron, he took
it in the direction it was going to go. I
remember being really glad when Ridley Scott came back, and

(50:57):
I remember having super high hopes for primthe US and
just leaving kind of going, well, that looked awesome. And
I'm kind of confused. Uh yeah, I think I left
with the similar My friends are like Annie stopped talking
about how that movie was about abortion, and I'm like,
but it was, uh yeah, yeah, I did. I did

(51:23):
really enjoy Aliens. But you will notice it does have
a love story, does have an arc, and it does um,
who's Who's the villain in this movie. I think it's Ash,
but it's also what is it waylon eytany Corps. I
think it's the company that it's like, yeah, you know
Priority one, capture Organism, Priority too, crew is expendable, right,

(51:49):
That's that's the big reveal. Yeah, the evil, the evil
corporate overlords. I think so because Ash was, as much
as I dislike him, he was an Android doing what
he was programmed to do. Android's gonna Android and Alien's
gonna Alien. That's true, that's true. But there were a

(52:10):
bet a bunch of rich white guys behind that corporation
making making choices. Yes, uh, I never really thought about that. Pierce,
was it Pierce Brosdon played anyway? That was in the
Newest One Coming It? I think was that guy being like, yes,
I don't know if I even saw that, to be honest.
That's fine, Alien Covenant. I'm getting this in the Terminator franchise.

(52:35):
Confused because I think they have a similar path, including
James Cameron, but um, they both sort of went really
far in one direction and the back store or the
interweaving of the cannon got too confusing for me. In
both cases. Yeah, I would agree. I haven't seen all

(52:57):
the Terminators. I believe I've seen all of the Alien franchise,
which I did want to put in here. Uh. I
think it's impressive that for a rated R movie, this
movie did so well that it had like toys and comics,
which was kind of mind blowing when you think about it,
it really is un rated our horror movie. I mean,

(53:18):
I guess they had Freddy Krueger dolls, maybe your action figures,
but yeah, it's not normal, no, especially ninety nine. Uh yeah,
get his Zeno morphed toy into that kid's hands on Facebook, Danny,
I'm gonna see I'm gonna buy you an ash action
figure and just so you can melt it like in

(53:40):
the movie, melt its face. Yeah, it's Ian Holme did
a great job. Is freaky, it's I know, and he's
one of those guys that after you see that movie,
regardless of what he's done, you're kind of like it's
sort of like the Hannibal lecture effect a little bit.
It's hard to go back right right, And that that

(54:00):
reveal is so freaky too, where um Ripley is having
this realization like, oh, the company's wants us dead, like
they don't care if we die. And then the camera
kind of moves and he's like, there's a logical explanation
for this, you know, Yeah, that's a total horror movie shot. Yes,
now she she knew that he was an android though,

(54:21):
right she? And oh she didn't. Nobody knew. Nobody knew,
nobody knew. See, I thought Dallas and Ripley knew. Maybe no,
because she confronts Dallas and it's like, since when does
the science officer get to do this? And now it
is kind of like I'm tired. I just wanted like
he's a little over it. Yeah, like that's not my job.

(54:43):
I don't care. And um, she's like, I don't trust
Ash And have you worked with him before? And he
said no, like I had previous. This is the my
first time I had a previous science officer, he was
this is my first time with him. Huh, all right,
I forgot about that part. Maybe I thought Dallas was

(55:04):
in on it. No, No, I guess he would have
been though if he would have been keeping that secret.
Right he wasn't in on it? No, of course not.
I'm reading too much into it. Yeah, check it out
of your old head. That's the conspiracy theory that Dallas
is behind the whole thing. Ash really did. Is the
villain for a moment though, in that sort of series

(55:25):
of sequences, Um, you forget about an alien for a minute, Yeah,
which I think is really impressive. I think that, um,
you know, there's nothing about him really physically that is
terrifying or scary. There's plenty of scenes throughout where you,

(55:46):
at least for me, I was like, Okay, he needs
the way he's defending this creature over and over and
he's talking about how it's a perfect organism. Um. And
when he says he calls the chess Burster Caine's son,
which was a biblical reference to Abel and Caine and
the fact that they were born outside of God's rules,

(56:07):
so they're quite monstrous. Um. So there's like instances where
he's creepy and you think he has a really intense
look about him. But in that scene, yeah, you forget
that there's this impending alien threat and you're just so
focused on, oh my gosh, this is a new problem. Well,

(56:29):
and it's very much the first thing's first situation. That
alien doesn't matter right then, because he's he's a genuine
threat and is trying to kill her dead. Yeah, yeah,
and then just to see him have that moment where
he is like coming apart of the seating and spinning
around and there's that sound. Oh my god, it's so great.

(56:52):
And like the inside they used like caviar and mill
the lights and noodles. Yeah, a lot of food products
going on. I definitely thought there were some oysters involved
on the underbelly of the face ugger. Yeah, I think so.
I think it's like it's got to be an oyster,
some sweetbreads, yes, so gross licking. I guess what my

(57:16):
point was. I think that it is a testament to
the acting and writing and shooting of that whole thing.
That's someone who isn't on paper that physically threatening. It's
suddenly terrifying. Yeah, little little ian home. I mean you
you get the sense even before aliens Ripley that this

(57:39):
Ripley could kind of kick his ass, and he's just
he's tossing her around in that seventy nine way that
it's not there's no wire work, there's no you know,
Sigourney Weaver. I mean, that's a good piece of physical acting. Actually,
if you kind of you know, just look at her
throwing herself around obviously because he and Holmes not doing it. Um.

(58:02):
Such a terrifying sequence though, and one of the great
villains I think, and one of the great reveals. I
do love how when she does have the head separated
and she rewires them to try and get information or whatever.
How she's she's getting piste off and then she has
the power then to just say fuck you, you're you're
you're unplugged again, dude, and how quickly, and you can

(58:24):
tell the satisfaction she gets out of shutting him back down. Yo, Yeah,
it's pretty great. Well, and he has that like really
creeple final final smile or he's like good luck. Yeah,
I know, and that's what sends her over the top.
And you know, to look at it from the feminist perspective,
you know, she's she's in charge then, and she you know,

(58:47):
she can tell that she can put a sock in
that guyaphorically, you know. Yeah, And I mean just that
whole like when Dallas I forgot he asked mother and
he's like, what are what are my chances and she's
kind of like, we're not good, bron, that was a

(59:07):
great mother. That's good. Yeah, thank you, thank you, but
for that to through line, to continue with ash and
to have because you would, I sort of think he's
just a malfunctioning android. But that smile makes you think,
oh he's happy that of what's going to become of you,
of what he thinks you have no chance to defend.

(59:29):
And then Ripley's like, fuck you, yeah, I mean what
is that because he's showing emotion there, Yeah, and delight
in their demise, to light in their demise. You know.
That's it's addressed briefly in Aliens, where Bishop is like,
oh that model had weird They always do that, right,

(59:52):
Oh well we forgot the Model T. Whatever the teachers
are at Old Model T had a lot of issues.
Um Jones, Yes, Annie, I love cats, Okay, I love dogs.
I'm an animal lover and I will go out of
my way to save an insect. Uh. And last night

(01:00:13):
I was going, fuck that cat, get out of there, man,
get out of there. Who cares about Jones? And I
felt myself betrayed. I looked over my cat was like
staring at me on the couch, and I felt terrible
for betraying my love of animals. But it's like, just
get out of there, Jones was the problem at the end.

(01:00:34):
That's the that's the conspiracy theory that Jones was behind it,
because Jonesy was also behind Henry Dena Stanton his demise, right,
that's right. He was going to look after or look
for Jones. The interesting thing about jones E because a
lot of people do feel that way, especially when it's like, yeah,
down to the wire, the lights are going wild, You've

(01:00:56):
got the ringing, the blaring of the alarm, aliens there
and refective sound design. Yeah, so good. Actually, um, a
couple of years ago, actually way longer than that, but
I was in London and they had this exhibit called
movie Um and they had that set piece and you
could walk through it with like the fog going, the
alarm going, and the alien would come out at the end.

(01:01:19):
It was awesome. Check. It was awesome, but terrifying, very terrifying.
But yeah, she's like kind of keeps going back for
this cat and you're what is going on? Um? Some people,
I think that that is a key element to a
non threatening final girl, is that there has to be

(01:01:40):
something feminine and mothering about her. UM. So some people
think that that was their effort to be like, yes,
she's been pretty like gender neutral throughout, but she still
has this really strong protective mothering instinct and she's going
to save this cat um, which is a good thing, right, Yeah, well,

(01:02:06):
or should she be cold blooded and leaves. You can't win.
That's the thing about being a lady is you can't
win because either you're cold blooded. That's yeah, Like the
whole quarantine thing where they're acting like, oh, being ridiculous,
I guarantee you of Dallas had been like nope, they
would have been like okay, yeah, absolutely, no one would
have questioned Dallas. Yeah, but that whole like the in sequences,

(01:02:27):
there's several markers of that of like she has to
go save the cat. That final shot of her, she's
like in this virginal white of you know, this mother,
the mother being presented, and then when she stripped down
to the T shirt. You mean now when she's in
the like the final when she's in the pod. Yeah,

(01:02:49):
but yeah, yeah, they're just these like little things that
they were putting in, like yeah, she's still don't worry,
she's still a gender conforming lady. Yeah, and you know
the end when she does stripped down to the frankly
the strangest underwear I've ever seen, and the uh and

(01:03:09):
the and the little tank top or whatever, um it
it some helps to me. Still didn't feel like this gratuitous, uh,
let me sexualize this person thing. It felt very real
to me that she would do that and and sort
of and get in her cry o sleep attire, which

(01:03:32):
is not much, but it didn't feel I feel like
later on if it again, if it would have been
made later by a different filmmaker, they would have highly
sexualized that stuff. Yes you read, yes, I think, Um,
I totally agree with you. I think like if I
had had a real rough day and I was about
to go and cry, oh, that is what I would do. Um.
But I think the complication is women have been sexualized

(01:03:55):
so long that it's hard to take that away. Um.
So even if I agree like I do, there's no
I don't feel like it's super sexual or anything like that.
But because there is this history, especially when we're talking
about film of that, it's hard to remove it. And yeah,
that kind of Some people are like, did that have

(01:04:16):
to be in there? And I see that criticism, but
I also agree, like, yes you would in theory. That's
what you would do, right, but well, and especially when
you factor in how that's received by probably a lot
of men. I'm sure there are, and we're plenty of
dudes they were like, oh man, at the end when
she gets down to her underwear, best part of the movie. Bro.

(01:04:40):
Uh And I just didn't take it away. But yeah,
that's that's totally fair take. I think. Yeah, it's complicated,
um for sure, but to me it does feel pretty
natural of like, yeah, it's been a long day. You'd
see me in a pair of me undy and my
big beer gut and that'd be it again, not sexual,

(01:05:03):
something sexual about that. Um, well, let's talk about that end.
I mean you mentioned that. We talked just for a
second about that sound design, but that's another great example,
along with the earlier sound design of creating this tension
and that siren going off and you know the ship
will self destruct and four and a half minutes and
it's just like relentless and it's it's one of the

(01:05:27):
best movie endings in history, I think, because there are
a couple of times when you're like, she did it,
you know, and it's but it ain't over yet, and
when she sees that hand flop out. It's there's so
many emotions going on as a viewer. Part of it
is like, fuck, here we go again. Part of it

(01:05:47):
is worry for her. Part of it is terror again
because you see how scared she is. But she's clearly
caught the Xeno morph at a resting like because it
doesn't come right out and go after and uh slipping
into that space suit, and like she she immediately kind
of comes up with a plan. Yeah, a good quiet Yeah,

(01:06:11):
she's always one step add I think, yeah, I as
you know, I love horror movies, and I think this
is a really good example, an early example of kind
of what I call the fake out horror movie. Ending
of release of tension. It's over, We've done it, and
then it's not, and you do have a pretty long

(01:06:33):
moment of thinking, like you're calming down, but like, why
is the movie still going if fifteen minutes left? Yeah exactly.
Wait wait wait, wait, wait, what's happening here? But there's
a pretty long beat before they reveal that yes, the
alien is on here, and that shot is so great

(01:06:53):
because you do think, oh, it's moving towards her, but
then it's revealed that it hasn't quite become aware of
her yet, but you have that worry in the back
of your head of what, well, now that ship is gone,
she has no other option. She's trapped in this small
space with this rather large, very dangerous predator um and
for her to think of that in that level of

(01:07:15):
fear too and be still and just do what she
has to do and succeed. But and then and then
you've got it, like hanging out the airlock, I know
that that one final little thing too. And then she
hits the blaster. Yeah after burner, Yeah, that was pretty amazing.

(01:07:35):
Why does she wait so long to open the door?
I know, at first I think she was waiting for
it to fully unfuril and get out of that space.
But it seems like she waited, and maybe the answer
is just for a more badass ending for it to
rush at her and her hit it. But last night,

(01:07:55):
you know, after it completely got out, I was just like,
hit hit the door, hit it now it now. But
she waited, and I mean it's probably just all about
tension building. It definitely built up the tension. I feel
like there's a couple of things going on when I
watch it where I think there's a part of her
that's waiting for this like perfect moment, because she does

(01:08:17):
shoot it with a harpoon too, to get about that, Yeah,
to make sure she gets it out there, because it's
hanging on for a second. Yeah. Yeah. So I think
it's that like waiting for the moment to do it,
but also knowing like it's a really dangerous predator and
like any sudden movement might trigger it to attacks. So

(01:08:38):
I feel like she was maybe some of it was fear.
I think a lot of it was waiting for the
right moment because she didn't want to suck it up.
That was their only chance. And it also maybe it
was all about just getting that one iconic shot with
her in the space helmets looking, you know, right right
beyond her field of vision there. Yeah, just send him

(01:09:01):
a history, you know, it's amazing. Absolutely, I love that shot. Um.
I I can't remember, but I'm pretty sure Sigourney Weaver
um ad lived or improv to that song, and they
liked it so much they had they kept it in,
but they had to pay the royalties for that song. Yeah,

(01:09:23):
I'm sure they found a little money in the budget.
I think they were fine. I caught one and I'm
meant to look this up. I'm sure it's addressed online
as a goof. But when that when mother is counting down,
it says twenty seven after did you notice I did

(01:09:43):
not notice that it's like one seven, No, no, it
goes two seven one, or it's someone it's either in
between twenty one and twenty or one and twenty two.
She says again. I was like what and I rewound
it twice and she does. I want sure someone has

(01:10:06):
has has said something about that. It can't be. This
is one of my favorite things though, of like people
who love movies, is is I bet yours? Well? No,
I bet you there is an explanation someone's come up
with of like, well, I bet you know. Mother was saying,
because the ship is four to six to seven is

(01:10:27):
if they can get outside the ship. You know, it
is a fan explanation. And this is one of my
favorite things about Star Wars that gets so messy is
people will be like, it's weird that Princess Leah has
this accent. Why does she have this accent? And we're
all like, oh, it's just you know whatever, and then
Disney is like, oh, it's a core accent because she's
really like, they'll come up with an explanation. I guarantee

(01:10:48):
you chuck there is It was probably a mistake, but
there is an explanation out there I'm gonna find and
I might I might have to que it up again
just to make sure that I wasn't hearing things for
like a third time. But maybe she was really just
fucking with Ripley. Yea, because she was so cool. She's
right down to the wire and she's like mother the coole,

(01:11:09):
it's back in and she's like too late. She's it's like, yeah, yeah,
it should have she Ripley should have said wait, yes,
should have been twenty I think mother. That was all mother,
just having a laugh. By the way, the geeger Bar
is in Switzerland, and just google image a picture of

(01:11:31):
that bar and I'll meet you there. In a couple
of years. We'll figure out the movie crush Field Trip. Yes,
it looks pretty amazing. I mean it's it's literally like
crawling around inside the spine of a of a zeno.
More get on the company dime check. Yeah, sure, guys,
we want to do a special episode from the geeger Bar.

(01:11:54):
Cool cost us like ten grand. Yeah, but it'll be
that like one and a half hours of content killer
be so good? Sign me up. Uh, well, you got
anything else? Annie? I have a million quotes, but uh,
if you would want, if you want to hear them,
because I feel like I've made my point. We did.
I did go through all of them on stuff I've

(01:12:15):
never told you. Well, when was that released? Like, what
was the title of that episode? People should definitely listen
to that. It was released in October because it was
the fortie anniversary. Um, this is the second time I've
watched this movie for research, and it was called feminist
movie Friday Alien with all like three exclamation points, and
then the description was Annie finally lives her dream and

(01:12:37):
talks about Alien while her co host patiently listens to her.
Oh that's so great. I'm gonna listen to that actually
too for a deeper dive. UM. I appreciate you coming
on and doing this again. I hope it wasn't a
retread for you. Oh no, no, no no. I loved it. Um.
I was really thrilled. And that was the one you chose,
and it was we went over different topics last time.

(01:12:58):
I was much more talking about abortion and sex and
stuff like that, so it's a little different. Well that
may have scared me, so it's disturbing Annie. My mom's
calling me. I gotta go upstairs now. Well, this is fantastic.

(01:13:20):
It's always great to see you, and you're one of
my favorite cast members for movie Crush, and uh, you
know we'll do it again in a couple of months
or so. Yes, I love being here every every time.
And don't forget we have to return the Jedi. I'm ready. Yeah, yeah,
I'll hit Holly up and we'll get you both back
in here. I'm ready to all right, Thanks Annie, thank you.

(01:13:43):
Movie Crash is produced and written by Charles Bryant and
Roel Brown, edited and engineered by Seth Nicholas Johnson, and
scored by Noel Brown here in our home studio at
Pontsty Market, Atlanta, Georgia. For I Heart Radio. For more
podcasts for my Heart Radio, visit the iHeart Radio app,
Apple podcast, or wherever listen to your favorite shows.