"Species" (1995)

I'm not gonna lie-- I really just don't get Species.  Don't get me wrong-- I love thrillers that deal with hot, killer aliens, but it's the premise I have problems with.  Basically, a bunch of scientists receive a message from space detailing how to splice an alien's DNA with a human's.  They decide it would be an awesome idea (although I have no clue why), and the result is Sil-- an alien/super model who goes crazy and homicidal looking for a mate to birth more babies with.  I don't really blame Sil for all of this, but instead the wacky scientists who decided to treat genetics like a piece of Ikea furniture.  Didn't there moms tell them not to listen to life-altering messages from alien strangers?  Sheesh.

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You can rent Species from Netflix or you can buy it from Amazon.  Know what else you can do?  Check out the trailer below, of course!



P.S. Calling all Alien fans-- H.R. Giger, who designed the monstrous, eggplant-head-shaped creature also designed Sil for Species, as well.  In fact, H.R. Giger was so into this flick that he actually spent $100,000 of his own money to make sure an expensive scene was shot.

P.S.S. This film was actually adapted from a Dark Horse Comics series of the same name.  Apparently, in this case, the book-- er, comic book-- was better....

"Aliens" (1986)

As much as I love Alien, its sequel is just as good-- if not better.  Aliens is a terrific sci-fi thriller directed by none other than James Cameron.  When Ripley arrives at Earth after tons of years of floating through space in an ageless sleep, she discovers that not only is her daughter long dead, but also that a whole slew of people are occupying the planet where she originally discovered the alien.  Of course, they have now lost contact with the planet, and force Ripley to go to the colony to face the entire race of evil space creatures.

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While you can't watch it instantly, you can still rent Aliens from Netflix.  You can also purchase it directly from Amazon (I found mine at a Goodwill, but that's a whole other story).  In the meantime, check out this rad trailer:



P.S. A lot of people seriously questioned the decision to replace original director Ridley Scott with newcomer James Cameron.  At the time of filming, The Terminator, Cameron's first hit, had yet to be released.  The assistant director had to be fired because of his hostile attitude towards Cameron.

P.S.S. One of the eggs from Aliens is actually displayed at the Smithsonian Museum in Washington, D.C.

"The Thing" (1982)

I'm super excited to see The Thing in theaters this Friday.  However, I'm slightly disappointed, too, since I am a die-hard fan of the original.  Before the remake, John Carpenter directed The Thing, a film set in the Antarctic.  When an innocent-looking dog arrives at the scentists' campsite, a vicious alien creature is unleashed on the unsuspecting fellows, which include Kurt Russell.  It can take anybody's form after murdering them, and the men who are left are constantly wondering which one of them is "the thing."

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You can watch The Thing instantly on Netflix, or you can buy it directly from Amazon (this is on my wish list!).  Check out the cool preview:



P.S. While this is the predecessor for The Thing (2011), this is actually a remake of The Thing from Another World (1951).

P.S.S. According to director John Carpenter, who is famous for Halloween, this film is actually his personal favorite.

"Alien" (1979)

Today's horror movie will probably be familiar to nearly everyone reading this: Ridley Scott's Alien.  It is a surprisingly haunting sci-fy flick that features a young Sigourney Weaver as Ripley, a futuristic officer of a space craft.  When her ship gets strange signals from a planet, they find themselves face to face with a parasitic alien who has two sets of sharp teeth, an egglant-shaped head, and, oh yes, acid in the place of blood.  The creature begins picking off the crew one-by-one, leaving Ripley to try to save herself and the ship from the creepy alien.

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While it isn't available to watch instantly yet, you can still rent Alien from Netflix.  If you're like me, however, you may want to go ahead and buy this from Amazon... In the meantime, check out the infamous scene below:



P.S. In the original script, the character of Ripley was supposed to be male-- until Sigourney Weaver came along, that is....

P.S.S. The alien was designed by artist H.R. Giger, famous for his futuristic, gothic art.  Several sketches had to be discarded because of sexually explicit material....