Paul

I think that Simon Pegg and Nick Frost are two fantastic comedy actors, and I absolutely loved Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz. There was a lot of anticipation around Paul regarding whether it would live up to the previous two films, despite not being part of the ‘Ice Cream and Blood’ series. While it is nowhere near as good as the other two films, it is still a very enjoyable, and very funny film in its own right.

We are introduced to Graham and Clive, two men who are on holiday to America in order to go to Comic-Con and visit some of the famous ‘alien mystery’ sights. However during their journey they encounter a real-life alien who is unlike anything that they’d expect. The whole film is peppers with popular science fiction references and is sure to provide you with a fair few laughs. After they encounter the alien, Paul, they become caught up in an attempt to escape from ‘The Big Guy’ and return Paul home before he is re-captured.

Simon Pegg and Nick Frost have such an engaging on screen chemistry that when they are together they are superb. Their off-screen friendship transfers easily on screen and as a result (and as with many of the films they both star in), the two characters are easily believable as best friends. When you add a rude, humanised alien into the mix you have a scenario which is laugh-out-loud funny. Seth Rogen voices Paul very well, but the real credit has to go to whoever thought up the character. People assume that beings from another world will be all X-Files or Doctor Who, just because of the influence of the television and cinema industry, and so to create a character who himself influenced the depiction of aliens (in the film, obviously) and is opinionated, smokes and makes friends with humans makes this film feel rather fresh.

Now it would be quite easy to get offended at Paul I think. There are some strong opinions expressed about religion and evolution, and there is one character who is strongly religious until Paul shows her all his knowledge and heals her eye. Obviously, someone wrote in the anti-religious aspects to Paul’s character, but rather than the attitudes expressed intending to offend or represent a strong stance, I think they were more likely to be an aspect of Paul’s character which allowed the writers to play off against the pro-religion stance of Kirsten Wiig’s character. Rather than getting offended by these scenes, it is a lot more entertaining if you laugh at the conflict of attitudes.

As with most comedy films, there are a few familiar faces to identify, and Paul is mp exception. Jason Bateman appears as Agent Zoil, who is chasing Paul for most of the film, and does really well with the complexities of his character. I especially liked the scene where he shoots the radio and says ‘Boring conversation anyway’ in a direct reference to Han Solo in Star Wars Episode IV. Signourney Weaver puts in an appearance as ‘The Big Guy’ and is the main character chasing Paul throughout the film. Jane Lynch (from Glee) appears as the waitress at the sci-fi cafe, and is an amusing supporting character. David Koechner (from Anchorman, amongst other things) appears as an aggressive southerner who takes an amusing dislike to Graham and Clive. Finally, Blythe Danner appears as the grown up version of the little girl whose dog Paul landed on when he first arrived on earth. I especially like her character because she appears to have been driven slightly mad by the mystery of Paul, but she is rewarded at the end of the film and this is fairly touching for a comedy film.

Paul is a very funny film and has a few moments that will make you laugh aloud. There is no real ‘down point’ to the film, and there is always something going on. Even the parts that aren’t explicitly funny are very entertaining and this makes it a very enjoyable film. I find that it’s a good one to put on with a couple of friends and have a good time with.

Alien

Going in to Alien I was fully prepared for one of the greatest thriller/horror films ever, and it did not disappoint. Despite being a little bit slow starting, when it gets going it is an edge of the seat, fast-paced film with twists and turns where you never thought they’d be. There will be spoilers in this review, so be advised to stop reading if you haven’t seen it and want to.

The film follows the crew of a ship that are being stalked by an alien bent on killing all of them. It follows the pattern for many other horror films at the time, but given it was released in 1979, if anything it sets the pattern for other horror films. Considering how old it is, the visual effects are wonderful and the design of the alien is fantastic. Also, the cast is full of actors who go on to bigger and better things, largely as a result of this film. The success of this film can be measured in terms of the franchise around it. There is a vast range of comic books, novels, video games and sequels and prequels to the film. With three sequels and three prequels, Alien is one of the all-time great horror movies.

Sigourney Weaver, who becomes the focal point for the sequel films, is the famous Officer Ripley, who manages to escape the ship, blow it up, and then fight the alien one last time. She contributes an awful lot to the success of the films, and does a very good job in this role. Also making an appearance are Tom Skerritt (from MASH and Top Gun), John Hurt (from The Elephant Man, and Ollivander in Harry Potter), Ian Holm (Bilbo Baggins in the Lord of the Rings films), and Yaphet Kotto (the main villain from Live and Let Die). None of the actors particularly excel in the film, but they all add to the dynamic of the early scenes/

One of the main things that Alien is famed for is that it is more realistic than other films. This may seem like an odd statement, I mean, an alien attacking a commercial spaceship isn’t particularly realistic. However, before filming started the director, Ridley Scott, wrote the all the characters a backstory to help them prepare for their roles. Also, the cast didn't all get on which each other, and this translates into the film. Therefore, when the characters get annoyed with one another it looks so real mainly because it is. This is good and I like to think that instead of the happy, jokey image of a film set the actors were on edge with each other. Another thing is that during the chestbuster scene (if you have seen it then you will know) the actors knew what was going to happen but they didn't know how. That means that their shock and surprise when blood spurts out is genuine. To make them unaware of this is such a brilliant idea, and the sense of realism around the film has to be another prominent factor in its success.

One of the most difficult things to do in filmmaking is to build genuine tension in the audience and when I was watching Alien I was genuinely tense. There is something about the way that you rarely see the Alien and the idea of its presence is scarier than actually seeing it. The first very tense scene is when John Hurt’s face is encapsulated by the Alien. It is difficult to know what to expect, and when I first saw Alien I didn't know what the plot was at all. This scene is a horrible one, and the ‘egg’ that has attached itself to his face is fantastically designed. However, it is the design of the alien that makes the film so tense. It is easy to design a monster with big teeth and claws that could kill you as soon as you could blink, but the idea of having a mouth which houses another mouth is fantastic, and makes the alien much more imposing. Also, rather like some films these days which introduce the villain straight away, Alien leaves it a good while before showing you the alien. The use of ‘other measures’ of showing the threat posed by the alien is brilliant as well. Instead of seeing a fast-moving alien stalking Dallas in the ventilation shaft, all you see is a dotted line moving closer and closer to him.

The best thing about Alien though is the plots within the plots. One of the crew members is revealed to be an android which wanted to bring the alien back to study it. However the crew discover this and ‘kill’ him. Normally you’d have a film about an alien and what not, but here you have a film with sub-plots. It was a twist that I didn't see coming and that is what Alien does so well. It surprises you just past the point where you think everything is okay again. At the end of the film for example I thought the alien would probably be in the escape pod with her, but this wasn't revealed for so long that I had dismissed the idea and therefore wasn't expecting it to happen when it eventually did.

The legacy of Alien will live on for a while, and having seen the film it is easy to understand why. From the timeless tagline ‘In Space No One Can Hear You Scream’ to the incredible graphics and the genuinely tense storyline, Alien is a film that sets the standard for many horror films to come. It is a thrilling film, and is definitely one to watch.