MovieChat Forums > Alien (1979) Discussion > Good movie, but very overrated

Good movie, but very overrated

posted 2 years ago by jasonbayly13181 (178)
26 replies | jump to latest

Watched it for the first time in a long time a few nights ago. It's incredibly slow, almost the the point of being boring. Definitely a 70's feel to it in the fact there's little to no score with dialog that was badly redubbed in post production. It definitely gets more interesting by the end, but even the ending leaves a little something to be desired. I definitely see how it was ahead of its time back in 1979, but it just doesn't seem to hold up well nowadays.

[–] BourbonKing (5705) 2 years ago

sorry but you didn't sell to me why it's "overrated". This movie set the standard for Sci-Fi horror movies even up to today and that cannot be denied and you won't be able to find counterfactual proof of any other Sci-Fi horror movie from that era having a bigger impact.

So you found it slow and boring, so what? I can read countless other reviews stating the same thing and I find that level of review incredibly lacking in originality and tact.

[–] jasonbayly13181 (178) 2 years ago

So you’re saying your opinion is 100 percent right while mine is 100 percent wrong. Got it 👍🏻

[–] BourbonKing (5705) 2 years ago

Yor opinion lacks any original detail outside of just saying that it's "slow and boring, therefore it's OVERRATED".

[–] bobbydallas (8214) 2 years ago

i enjoyed the slow pace,
it gives time for things to happen

[–] InvitationToLove (12) 2 years ago

1. How old are you?

2. What modern day sci-fi films rank among your best?

3. Which, if any, 70s (or earlier) sci-fi films DO hold up well for you, even today?

[–] rnmboon (387) 2 years ago

The "slowness" is one of the things that makes it so good to me. And personally I feel sorry for those who have never learned to appreciate film with a more moderate pace. Seems as if these days everything needs to be cut like a 3 minute video clip. My theory is that this is because CGI won't look too good if shots are long enough for viewers to really notice what is actually on the screen. Alien doesn't suffer that problem because so much of it is centered around more classical, physical forms of special effects. It will probably still look great long after films that are 30 to 40 years younger begin to feel dated.

[–] AllTracTurbo (27) 2 years ago

I haven't seen the Alien movies in at least 10 or 15 years and decided to watch them in chronological order. I just finished this one and also feel that it is very overrated. I watch a lot of movies, even back to silent films and I don't have a problem with slow movies that build tension, but this one has very little plot or character development. I wasn't bored while watching it, but was left with an underwhelming or unfulfilled feeling because very little happened throughout the film in terms of a story.

I am not saying it is bad, just that it is not as good as I was expecting based on it's reputation. I actually enjoyed Prometheus and Alien Covenant a lot more than this one.

I have similar feelings about 2001: A Space Odyssey. I didn't enjoy the first movie that much and feel that it is very overrated, but I enjoyed it's sequel 2010: The Year We Make Contact a lot and think it is a much better movie.