Memory: The Origins of Alien
Ohjaus:
Alexandre O. PhilippeKäsikirjoitus:
Alexandre O. PhilippeKuvaus:
Robert MuratoreSävellys:
Jon HegelNäyttelijät:
Dan O'Bannon (a.o.), Ridley Scott (a.o.), H.R. Giger (a.o.), John Hurt (a.o.), Ronald Shusett, Roger Corman, Veronica Cartwright, Tom Skerritt (lisää)Suoratoistopalvelut (2)
Juonikuvaukset(1)
Memory was a script that Dan O’Bannon started in 1971, abruptly hitting a wall at page 29. But after the idea gestated for several years, it ultimately took the form of Ridley Scott’s masterpiece Alien. Alexandre O. Philippe’s documentaries - most recently 78/52, about Hitchcock’s Psycho shower scene - have interrogated cinema’s cultural ripples. If Memory: The Origins of Alien were only a comprehensive account of Alien’s origins - ancient myths, comic books, H.P. Lovecraft, sci-fi movies, and parasitic wasps - it would still be fascinating. But how did Alien lodge itself so indelibly into our cultural imagination? Philippe’s real interest lies in the deep resonance of myths and our collective unconscious. The strange symbiotic collaboration between Alien creators O’Bannon, Scott, and H.R. Giger suggests a greater synchronicity across history, art, and storytelling, a synchronicity that gives us the Furies, creatures of Renaissance painting, and even chest-bursting aliens. Propelled by a pure joy of cinema (and sociology), the film is strewn with unearthed archival material, designs, and story notes. It’s safe to say you’ll never think of Alien the same way again. (Sundance Film Festival)
(lisää)Arvostelut (2)
The passages about the shooting of the crucial scenes are interesting and also reveal several sources of inspiration. But some of those mythological aspects, where everything can be related to everything, demand a lot of imagination and fabrication. #KVIFF2019
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The documentary Memory: The Origins of Alien, deals with the birth of Alien in two ways - first the birth of the concept, or what pieces of work and writers influenced the iconic Alien as we all know it today. This part is devoted to screenwriter Dan O'Bannon, and I am glad that this relatively underappreciated creative has been given a lot of time in this documentary. Then there is the notionally second part of the documentary which mainly deals with the literal birth of the alien in one of the most memorable scenes in movie history when we get a relatively detailed analysis of how the so-called "chestburster" scene was made. Although I was a little embarrassed a few times while watching this documentary - it seems to me that director Philippe became too obsessed with the mythology of the Greek Furies, and devotes too much time to it. The hysterical emotional outpourings of Clarke Wolfe seemed very out of place especially - otherwise, I was satisfied with the information presented within a packed and solidly crafted documentary. I also appreciate the fact that the makers were not afraid to address the respected Ridley Scott, who in recent years made new Alien prequels, which maybe show he forgot what made the original Alien one of the most unforgettable gems in movie history. [KVIFF 2019]
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