If youre talking about the most influential movies of the 80s, Aliens belongs in the top 3. Its been parodied and/or ripped off in everything from Jason X to Doom, and every subsequent bug hunt movie feels obliged to pay homage. Thats a remarkable feat in itself, but for a sequel to someone elses movie, its practically unheard of. Kudos once again to writer/director James Cameron, who made a follow-up that builds on the original but also works well enough as a stand-alone movie. Nobody couldve predicted hed one day make Titanic. All of Camerons trademarks are present and correct: a female warrior with a love of hardware, a corporate bad guy and a succession of large-scale action sequences where stuff blows up real good. For sheer entertainment, its probably his best film.
Ian Watson is the author of 'Midnight Movie Madness', a 600+ page guide to "bad" movies from 'Reefer Madness' to 'Poultrygeist: Night of the Chicken Dead.'
