Alien
is a 1979 science fiction horror film directed by Ridley Scott and
starring Tom Skerritt, Sigourney Weaver, Veronica Cartwright, Harry
Dean Stanton, John Hurt, Ian Holm and Yaphet Kotto. The film's title
refers to its primary antagonist: a highly aggressive extraterrestrial
creature which stalks and kills the crew of a spaceship.
Alien garnered both critical acclaim and box office success, receiving
an Academy Award for Best Visual Effects, Saturn Awards for Best
Science Fiction Film, Best Direction for Scott, and Best Supporting
Actress for Cartwright, and a Hugo Award for Best Dramatic
Presentation, along with numerous other award nominations It has
remained highly praised in subsequent decades, being inducted into the
National Film Registry of the Library of Congress in 2002 for
historical preservation as a film which is "culturally, historically,
or aesthetically significant" and being ranked by the American Film
Institute in 2008 as the seventh-best film in the science fiction genre.
The success of Alien spawned a media franchise of novels, comic books,
video games, and toys, as well as three sequel and two prequel films.
It also launched Weaver's acting career by providing her with her first
lead role, and the story of her character Ripley's encounters with the
titular Alien creatures became the thematic thread that ran through the
sequels Aliens (1986), Alien 3 (1992), and Alien Resurrection
(1997). The subsequent prequels Alien
vs. Predator (2004) and Aliens
vs. Predator: Requiem (2007)...
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