By Wayne Neill (November 17, 2003)

While scary for its time, "Alien" has become but a cinematically calming experience. It is a drop-dead exquisite film and it unfolds like a garden of rocks: beautiful, and created with time and care, only its major inconsistency is that it is a garden made out of rocks.

"Alien's" inconsistency appears when the creature runs across the table after bursting out of a man's chest. At that point the film can either turn into a horror flick or just a calming cinematic experience. In the theater I was in it became the latter when somebody in my group laughed at the scene, which caused every one else in the theater to realize it really was humorously filmed and they laughed as well.

For the rest of the film the Alien no longer appeared as a haunting killing machine, it became more puppy-like, caressible even. The experience of seeing this classic film on the big screen is one that everybody should experience. Personally, I felt like a better person after seeing it in the theater. With the added footage that the director’s cut designation provides, it makes this film a worthy re-release. It also brings back the memories of what scared the hell out of you the first time you saw the original. So, grab a ticket and a compadre and go view this gem. Thanks for your time.