The latest "Alien" unexpectedly achieved high box office
2024-08-21
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Dong Ming, special correspondent of this newspaperThe latest installment of the classic sci-fi IP "Alien" "Alien: Revenge" was released simultaneously in China and the United States on August 16, and has received good word-of-mouth and unexpectedly high box office. This "alien creature" born 45 years ago still has a strong charm and attracts today's audiences.“Return to the roots of science fiction horror”"With an opening (first weekend) box office of $41.5 million, Alien: Reaper ended the three-week domination of Deadpool & Wolverine on the North American box office chart." U.S. media Variety said on the 18th, "Including overseas revenue of $66.7 million, the film's global box office has now exceeded $100 million, and with good word-of-mouth reviews, it can be said that it has made a good start." Variety revealed that the film cost only $80 million, and its current box office performance ranks second in the series, second only to 2012's Prometheus (which opened with $51 million). "This will put an end to Disney's (the parent company of producer 20th Century Fox) box office winning streak in this summer season."The story of Alien: Reaper is set between Alien and Alien 2. It tells the story of a group of young space explorers who venture into an abandoned space station and encounter a terrifying alien life form - the Alien. Like the 1979 film Alien, the film creates a narrow, dark and dangerous space environment where humans are hunted by top alien monsters and face the human struggle of morality and trust in despair. Although Alien: Reaper is not directed by the founder of the "Alien" series, Hollywood famous director Ridley Scott, the new young director Fed Alvarez is also a director who is good at suspense and thriller. He has shot horror films such as "Don't Breathe", "The Call" and "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre". "We hope to return the film to the origin of science fiction horror, not only in terms of plot, but also in terms of visual effects." Scott serves as the producer and controls the overall quality of the new film to continue the "Alien" series. As for the cast, Ripley, played by Sigourney Weaver, the "Valkyrie" in the "Alien" series, did not return, but young Carly Spaeny inherited Ripley's bravery and tenacity.Alien: Reaper has achieved good reputation after its release, with 81% media freshness and 86% audience popcorn index on Rotten Tomatoes film review website. This score ranks among the top three in the Alien series, second only to Alien 2 (94%) directed by James Cameron in 1986 and Alien (93%) in 1979, higher than Prometheus and Alien: Covenant directed by Ridley Scott, and far exceeding Alien 3, Alien 4 and the rumored Alien vs. Predator. On Metacritic website, the film received an average of 64 points in mainstream media reputation, among which the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) praised: "This smart, exciting and sometimes awe-inspiring work is the best Alien movie in decades." Variety believes that "this is a confident horror film that is entertaining and nerve-wracking." However, in the view of Daily Screen, "This is just a well-executed monster movie, and its moderate ambition makes this sequel seem a bit empty and mechanical."Leading the box office chartsAfter the release of Alien: Reaper in China on August 16, the word-of-mouth and box office exceeded expectations, with a score of 7.7 on Douban, surpassing the previous film in the series, Alien: Covenant. The film topped the box office charts for two consecutive days last weekend, and as of the afternoon of August 19, the total box office had exceeded RMB 220 million. Maoyan Professional Edition even raised the total box office forecast to RMB 730 million. If this result can be achieved, it will not only surpass Prometheus and Alien: Covenant, which were previously released in China, but will also become the most popular Hollywood movie in this summer, showing the huge potential of science fiction thrillers in the Chinese market.The film's release and hot sales in China also touch upon the old question of "how to remind minors to watch movies with caution". Previously, a parent said that his child felt uncomfortable and scared while watching the movie. The parent condemned the theater for showing movies that children cannot watch and demanded a refund and compensation. Such news has aroused considerable repercussions online. Netizens generally believe that minors, especially those under the age of 10, are indeed not suitable for watching movies such as "Alien". The film is also rated R in North America (children under the age of 17 must be accompanied by parents or guardians to watch it). Parents should understand the type and elements of the film in advance, and the film company and the theater must also fulfill their clear obligation to inform. On the evening of the 17th, 20th Century Fox, the producer of "Alien: Reaper", posted a message on Weibo, "Minors, please choose to watch carefully", and the main poster of the film also gave a reminder in white text on a red background (Figure ①).45-Year-Old "Alien Universe" Is Still GrowingThe reason why the "Alien" series has been so popular for so long is that it established the "science fiction thriller" sub-genre of movies and created a chilling image of alien monsters on the screen. Until the 1970s, Hollywood science fiction movies were mainly Stanley Kubrick's "2001: A Space Odyssey" and George Lucas' "Star Wars", and the screen was mostly full of magnificent cosmic epics. The emergence of "Alien" changed people's optimistic understanding of space exploration: the mysterious universe is shrouded in danger and killing, and humans are just the lingering prey in the mouths of powerful alien monsters - such screen settings have had a huge impact on the development of science fiction films. At the same time, the alien image created by Swiss painter HR Giger is also unique, combining the hard exoskeleton of mechanical and organic life forms, as well as corrosive body fluids, plus the alien eggs, face huggers, larvae breaking chests and other settings to form a full set of "alien aesthetics", which has penetrated into various fields such as film and television, animation and video games. After Ridley's "Alien", several world-class directors such as Cameron, David Lynch, and Jean-Pierre Jeunet participated in the series, adding strong personal styles to the series, whether it was the grand and exciting action, or the intensification of psychological fear, the rendering of weird painting style, and the brave human women and cyborgs with unclear positions in every episode, which are all settings that movie fans talk about with relish, and gave birth to spin-offs such as "Alien vs. Predator".The US "Time" magazine believes that "since the first "Alien" (1979), the series has been instilling a deep-rooted sense of fear in the audience." But Scott is not satisfied with this. In recent years, he has personally created the two prequels "Prometheus" and "Alien: Covenant". In addition to creating horror and thrills, he tried to borrow the discussion of human origins in "2001: A Space Odyssey" and the paradox of humans and cyborgs in "Blade Runner" to elevate the science fiction theme of the entire series to the grand proposition of "Who are we, where do we come from, and where are we going."Although this creative direction was shelved due to its poor box office performance, FX has already developed a new series based on it, Alien: Earth, which is set before Prometheus and details the rise of the "Wyland Yugu Corporation", the mastermind behind the movie, and the battle of androids on Earth. The critical acclaim and box office success of Alien: Taken Flight has given this IP a new opportunity, pushing creators and audiences to complete the missing link in the "Alien Universe" and truly connect this terrifying alien monster with the fate of mankind. ▲
