Alien 3 Revisited: Style over Substance

Alien 3 was David Fincher's first feature film and he had to follow in the footsteps of James Cameron and Ridley Scott. The film is often criticized by fans, but it is it as bad as the hype suggests?

A defining moment from the film  with the  Alien face to face with Sigourney Weaver's Ripley. Image 20th Century Fox. 

Roger Ebert once described Alien 3 as ‘one of the best-looking bad movies I have ever seen’. Fincher started shooting the film without a finished script as he was drafted in as a last minute replacement for Vincent Ward. This was his first time directing a feature film having being recruited due to his music video success. With sets already constructed and the film over budget  he had to work with the tools he had been given. He was also facing impossible pressure to match James Cameron and Ridley Scott. There was much anticipation as the teaser trailer promised that the film would take place on Earth, however by the time Fincher was onboard that plan had been scrapped.  It seemed as though Fincher had joined a sinking ship, but could he steer it from rock bottom? 

Killing off two of your franchises main characters in the first 5 minutes is a bold move.  I liked that.  I know a lot of people felt that it ruined the end of the Aliens as it destroyed the happily ever effect, but it’s better to try and be ambitious than imitating a past performance.  For sure it is an unusual idea, but I was willing to go along with it as I had a sense this film would be a roller coaster. Instead as Private Hudson would say “We're on an express elevator to hell, going down!” The plotting is also all over the place. Paul MgcGann appears as a pivotal plot device and then vanishes without much explanation.  In the ‘directors cut’(ironically named as Fincher had nothing to do with it) it appeared that McCann’s character had whole story arc which  was cut out. The film was heavily butchered in the editing room due to studio inference.  It is nearly impossible to relate to or understand some of the new characters due to how little we are exposed to them. In Aliens the character building was a crucial component as we cared about each and every one of the marines so when they died you felt a sense of sadness, but you don’t get that feeling here.  Apart from Newt and Hick’s there isn’t really any emotional heartbeat.  Many people believe that the Directors Cut was superior although I feel it only added depth to a dying plot. While the film tried to do something different initially in the end it resorted to half heartedly trying to imitate its predecessors and it failed in both senses.  At least those people who are annoyed can look forward to Neil Blomkamp's Alien 5 which is supposed to discount Alien 3 and 4 so Hicks and Newt are set to return.

The Weyland-Yutani Commandos were one of the few highlights of the film. Image from AVP wiki

There are many positive aspects that are often overlooked. The cinematography is superb. Fincher is able to create a real pressure cooker environment by employing tight and twisty corridors with a series of tracking shots.  The first person perspective shots work very well especially when combined with his use of filter and low key lighting as create a dark and disturbing atmosphere. The costume designs are fantastic as well. Terry English did a fantastic job creating the Weyland-Yutani commando suits which show up at the end of the film.  It’s a shame they couldn’t have appeared earlier as they really do liven up the show.  It’s sort of a case of too little to late as despite the ending of the film being okay you are sort of left wanting a bit more. The film is clearly well made and full of stylish shots, although that does not mean one should overlook its plot problems.

I think in order to analyze a films legacy you have to take a look at what it has influenced.  When a head shaven Charlize Theron appeared in Mad Max Fury Road many people compared her to look to that of Sigourney Weaver’s Ripley. There you have two strong female leads in dystopian worlds and comparisons can easily be drawn.  Alien 3 has clearly had an effect on filmmaking. In terms of cinematography when you think of the image that defines the Alien franchise then surely the one that springs to mind is Ripley being face to face with the Alien. While it would be wrong to label Alien 3 as a misunderstood masterpiece, as even Fincher has disowned the film, I ‘d like to think that it contained many ideas that helped to influence modern day popular culture. Surely that is a good enough reason to justify its existence even if it does not live up to its predecessors.