When it comes to the Alien franchise you need to do 2 things.

Remember that Alien is a straightforward horror movie and that Aliens is a straight up action movie with horror elements. The two exist in the same franchise universe but as movies are basically separate entities.

There are plenty of stories out there about how Ridley Scott (who created the franchise and original film) disliked the way James Cameron took the whole Alien entity in a different direction. His original vision had nothing to do with a hive like mentality, with a queen alien and so forth. So to enjoy both movies you have to look at them separately within the same universe... Confusing I know, but essential to get the most enjoyment out of both films.

It starts of very nicely, aping the opening feel of the original movie, and the pacing of the first act is slow and methodical. It shows that the 'company' is more concerned about it's profits than it's employees (sound familiar) and is more than willing to scapegoat the only survivor (we find out why shortly after).

Please note that I own and will only watch the directors cut of this movie. I think the extended scenes, added exterior shots and information about how the company sent out some of the settlers to see if Ripley's story was true... Adds a great deal to the viewing enjoyment and I highly recommend that everyone watches it.

By the end of the first act, we have found out that a family was sent out to the crash site from the original movie, and that one of them was attacked by a facehugger... and that contact with the colony on that planet was lost... So a rescue team is on it's way to investigate and they want Ripley along as an advisor/consultant.

The special effects for this movie are pretty damn good considering it's from 1986, James Cameron makes a lot of use of miniature sets with lots of attention paid to details. So the viewer finds it difficult to tell where the miniature set ends and full size begins.

The action and tension begins to get ramped up, there's some great dialogue and friction between members of the Marines and once again female characters are not only present, but there as fully fledged characters, not just some pathetic love interest to fulfill a plot requirement... and of course Sigourney Weaver in the lead role. It's one of the reasons that the Alien franchise has survived 4 films and it's entirely down to her character. The performances of the cast is excellent, the FX are great for the period and the buildup to the final conclusion works really well... and of course has led to the often used quote 'Get away from her you bitch" in many other movies... parody or not. It's become part of pop culture in the same way as Vader telling Luke that he's his father has (albeit to a lesser degree). You mention that line, and people know what/who you are quoting.

I've lost count of the number of times I have watched and purchased these movies over the decades... I owned them on VHS in widescreen directors cuts, then the 20th anniversary 5 disc DVD boxset... then the 25th 9 disc DVD boxset and now I have them on bluray.

I will not however be buying them again in 4K when they inevitably get released again... These movies, the original Star Wars trilogy, Terminator & T2 and The Crow are movies I have spent far too much money on buying again and gain over the years.

Let's be honest, this is a better movie than Alien as it takes the aspect of making everything bigger and does it perfectly as it blends both horror and action more perfectly than the original. Sigourney Weaver (Ripley) is still perfect in this role and she honestly will go down as one of the most badass females in cinema history, but I loved the addition of Michael Biehn (Cpl. Dwayne Hicks) and Carrie Henn (Newt) who give this movie a lot more charm than the first one in my opinion as you care a lot for both these characters.

I gotta admit the practical effects in this film are so perfect as every environment looks just amazing and the Aliens look superb as well with the Queen Alien being something to truly behold. I'll admit the CGI is actually better in the first film as it was a better blend of CGI and Practical as different to this film being full CGI in those moments.

Its the last great Alien film in the franchise and if you are an Alien fan you will love it, yeah it's not as scary as the first one but James Cameron takes the premise of the original and cranks it up to 11 with more Aliens and bucket loads of action.

Three major observations from someone who has re-watched both Alien and Aliens quite a few times (and has seen the sequels once each... let's not talk about those haha).

First: given these movies are 30-40 years old, it is insane how well they have held up, effects included. The practical effects work on both these movies is stunning.

Second: these two movies work so well together in tandem, and make perfect sense from a plot perspective with the 50 year gap since the Alien ship was first discovered in between. With Alien, Ridley Scott gave us a really tight, terrifying, what the fuck is going style sci-fi horror movie that still works a treat to this day. With Aliens, James Cameron expanded the narrative scope of the universe in a really interesting way, and made an action thriller that in many ways is just as tense and terrifying as the first movie - turns out that whether you're an unarmed crew or a squad of marines, the aliens are going to go through you like butter regardless.

Third: even when judged just by on its own, individual merits, Aliens is excellent. 30 years later, and it remains one of the most spectacular action movies ever made. I've re-watched it very recently, and still had an absolute blast with it. The characters are fun as well, watching Ripley's character growth vs the first movie feels really genuine, and the pacing of the movie overall is flawless.

There's a reason it's so highly regard by so many - it's as close as we've ever gotten to a perfect sci-fi action thriller.

**A sequel on par with the first film, and one that helped cement the Alien franchise.**

I really liked the movie Alien, the first of this franchise. There is no doubt that it is one of the best and most remarkable horror films ever made, and one of the “fathers” of contemporary sci-fi cinema. This film was thought to give logical continuity to the story started in that film, and I think it couldn't be better than it is. There are many people who consider the film to be excessively dated, with sets and effects that look old. I strongly disagree. It's true that digital and CGI are not here, but if you think about the amount of bad CGI and bad effects that we have to swallow in today's movies, it's really nice to see a movie with effects that work well and look amazing fifty years later. .

When Ripley is saved over fifty years have passed since the events of the initial film. She arrives in a world that has continued to spin while she sleeps, and which does not believe her account. Still, they ask him to return to space when a colony, newly created on the planet where the first Alien was found, suddenly stops communicating. It's pretty clear that someone knows more than they're saying, and that there are, again, very strong interests from a financial point of view. But Ripley will figure it all out in due time.

The film is extraordinary and is completely at the level of its direct predecessor: the script has an excellent development, knows how to involve and capture the public's attention. Okay, there's a similar story, with the return to that planet and the return of the aliens, but the premise that leads to the return is the best and most convincing, and we don't feel tired or downtime. There's a pleasant tension, which deepens as the threat grows, and even when we don't see the xenomorphs, the fact that we know they're around increases that tension and the feeling of threat.

Cameron continues to prove his genius as a director, and manages to extract the best from everyone involved in his project. In particular, the actors. Sigourney Weaver is at the highest level and gives us an anthology work, which will open doors for her as an actress and which will mark her for life. The rest of the cast does not stand out so much, but we can praise the efforts of actors like Michael Biehn, Lance Henriksen, William Hope, Jenette Goldstein and Al Matthews. Carrie Hen, in part, is the weakest link in this cast, as her character only appears to arouse empathy and for us to connect more intensely with what we are seeing. The truth is that the way her character – a child – survives in that situation is frankly implausible, almost an authentic miracle.

Technically, the film is fantastic. It even seems like a new and relatively recent film, if you don't know what you're watching and that it was released in 1986. The cinematography is clean, sharp and there is an excellent filming and editing job. The effects are done the old-fashioned way, without the overwhelming appeal of digital, and they work amazingly well. See, for example, how the droid cut in half looks, how believable and authentic it looks. The alien is effective, menacing and fearsome, it looks like a weapon come to life and not a normal living being.

I LOVED this movie! I honestly rank this movie even higher than the first. The intense action, the gripping horror, the characters, the aliens, the ascetic...everything. And it takes its time to give us all the little hints and clues from the first film as we venture into this thrilling ride. Though I have much respect for Ridley Scott's first Alien film, this one just takes it to a whole new level in a way the first never could. THIS is how it's done.