I saw ET in the original theatrical release and hated it SO MUCH. I’m curious as to whether I’d still feel the same. But not curious enough to actually spend the time to see it again. The thing I remember is that I felt like the end of the movie just showed a bunch of people crying in order to get the audience to cry.
@SSteve I didn’t hate it, but I’ve watched it only once. I’ve watched Close Encounters, Alien, & Aliens many times, and various Star Trek & Star Wars countless times.
Depends on your nuance of “best”,
Best single alien species design, “Alien”.
Best variety of alien species, tie between “Star Wars” and “Men in Black”.
Best endearing alien, tie between “E.T.” and Yoda (“Star Wars”).
Best comedy with aliens, “Mars Attacks”.
Most “human” alien, “Star Man”.
Most creative plot with aliens, “Cowboys and Aliens”.
Most thought-provoking, tie between “The Day the Earth Stood Still” and “Forbidden Planet”.
Most likely to be razzed, “Howard the Duck”.
Note 1. By “tie”, i mean there are arguments for both, and i would vote for either.
Note 2. i’m completely ignoring “aliens” in the current fad of Super Hero movies (Marvel, DC), as these tend to be “humans” with super powers or “aliens” with human traits or “deities” instead of “alien species”.
Note 3. Various robots (Wall-E, Johnny 5, R2D2, Robbie, Tobor, etc.) constitute a different genre.
@kittykat9180@phendrick Short Circuit was filmed in my neck of the woods (NW Oregon). I recall when traffic on a section of rural road on my commute to work was interrupted (several flaggers were stopping traffic) for a full week because they were shooting scenes for a movie. I later learned that the movie being filmed was Short Circuit.
When I finally watched the movie, I was looking for the scenes that I saw being filmed as I waited (on multiple days) to continue my commute. Finally, I recognized the background during a scene where the main characters were having a discussion while riding in a van. The background seen from inside the van was some unrecognizable (to me) place, then the van turned a corner and for about 3 seconds the background was the spot of road on my commute, then turned another corner and it was somewhere else again.
That’s it. After a week of disrupting commuter traffic while filming - 3 seconds of a spot on a country road seen through the van window behind the actor saying their lines.
@kittykat9180 the 1st 3 were Awesome! You probably don’t know but in the Comic Book about Howard, he Ran for Prez of the US. He would be far better that ANY one that ran this time!
@kittykat9180@mycya4me@Star2236 i’m still a kid at heart, so could watch it now, albeit i thought the ending was pretty cheesy, even more than the rest of the movie. Could go for some of Howard’s attitude though. Also liked Lea Thompson in it.
Liked first season of Caroline in the City with her before producers screwed up the story line.
@IWUJackson I love SF, my wife tolerates it. A friend tolerates SF, his wife loves it.
He called me up and said they were taking us to see Galaxy Quest. I was surprised and asked if he really like it enough to watch it again. He replied: “No, I want to watch you watch it!”
I also like the forth kind. I thought that was a good alien movie, even though you never really see the alien. And we used to watch critters all the time as kids.
Not just one measly alien, skulking in the shadows, barely even seen. An entire horde of them, jumping out in full view to wreak mayhem and/or get blowed up real good. And then the epic final battle of the queen alien and Riply with her cargo loader. Awesome!
Lots of good ones listed so far.
If you haven’t watched Resident Alien it’s an awesome series if you’re looking for that instead of a movie. SO MANY FANTASTIC CHARACTERS!
Best alien movie? Do you mean the best one written/directed by an alien, starring an alien or aliens, or meant to appeal to an alien audience? Need specifics.
ET traumatized me a child!
@ragingredd I love the movie but there’s a couple moments that creeped my TF out. Like the scene in the cornfield. 🫣
@FightingMongoos
that and the scientist in the white coveralls
/youtube Earth Girls Are Easy
@2many2no OMG Yes, I have a T-shirt! It was so very funny!
I saw ET in the original theatrical release and hated it SO MUCH. I’m curious as to whether I’d still feel the same. But not curious enough to actually spend the time to see it again. The thing I remember is that I felt like the end of the movie just showed a bunch of people crying in order to get the audience to cry.
@SSteve I didn’t hate it, but I’ve watched it only once. I’ve watched Close Encounters, Alien, & Aliens many times, and various Star Trek & Star Wars countless times.
@blaineg So what are you doing on December 18th?
https://tampatheatre.org/movie/close-encounters-of-the-third-kind/
@yakkoTDI Nice, but whatever I’m doing will be a couple thousand miles away from Tampa.
Not a movie, but a Twilight Zone episode:
To Serve Man
Thor followed by The Avengers
Depends on your nuance of “best”,
Best single alien species design, “Alien”.
Best variety of alien species, tie between “Star Wars” and “Men in Black”.
Best endearing alien, tie between “E.T.” and Yoda (“Star Wars”).
Best comedy with aliens, “Mars Attacks”.
Most “human” alien, “Star Man”.
Most creative plot with aliens, “Cowboys and Aliens”.
Most thought-provoking, tie between “The Day the Earth Stood Still” and “Forbidden Planet”.
Most likely to be razzed, “Howard the Duck”.
Note 1. By “tie”, i mean there are arguments for both, and i would vote for either.
Note 2. i’m completely ignoring “aliens” in the current fad of Super Hero movies (Marvel, DC), as these tend to be “humans” with super powers or “aliens” with human traits or “deities” instead of “alien species”.
Note 3. Various robots (Wall-E, Johnny 5, R2D2, Robbie, Tobor, etc.) constitute a different genre.
@phendrick My vote for Best comedy with aliens, “Galaxy Quest” or “Space Balls”
@phendrick, left Short Circuit from my list because the robots were made on earth.
@kittykat9180 @phendrick Short Circuit was filmed in my neck of the woods (NW Oregon). I recall when traffic on a section of rural road on my commute to work was interrupted (several flaggers were stopping traffic) for a full week because they were shooting scenes for a movie. I later learned that the movie being filmed was Short Circuit.
When I finally watched the movie, I was looking for the scenes that I saw being filmed as I waited (on multiple days) to continue my commute. Finally, I recognized the background during a scene where the main characters were having a discussion while riding in a van. The background seen from inside the van was some unrecognizable (to me) place, then the van turned a corner and for about 3 seconds the background was the spot of road on my commute, then turned another corner and it was somewhere else again.
That’s it. After a week of disrupting commuter traffic while filming - 3 seconds of a spot on a country road seen through the van window behind the actor saying their lines.
/giphy Lilo and Stitch
Moscow on the Hudson with Robin Williams (and if we can include TV shows, Mork & Mindy!)
So many good ones:
Howard the Duck
My Step-mother’s an Alien
Coneheads
War of the Worlds (where Tom carries that kid around for 90% of the movie)
@kittykat9180 the 1st 3 were Awesome! You probably don’t know but in the Comic Book about Howard, he Ran for Prez of the US. He would be far better that ANY one that ran this time!
POKER! JOKER! NOT MEDIOCRE! AWESOME!
@kittykat9180
Forgot all about Howard the duck, haven’t seen that since I’ve been a kid.
@kittykat9180
???
“On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 13%”
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Howard_the_Duck_(film)#Critical_response
To each, their own.
i liked it, thought it creative, but i’m generally regarded as somewhat weird. Wouldn’t make my Casey Kasem’s Top 40, though.
@kittykat9180 @mycya4me
Tell us that you wrote him in!
“He would be far better that [sic] ANY one that ran this time.”
@mycya4me @phendrick @Star2236
I don’t know that I could sit through Howard now as an adult or My Step-mother. I sure did like them as a kid though.
@kittykat9180 @mycya4me @Star2236 i’m still a kid at heart, so could watch it now, albeit i thought the ending was pretty cheesy, even more than the rest of the movie. Could go for some of Howard’s attitude though. Also liked Lea Thompson in it.
Liked first season of Caroline in the City with her before producers screwed up the story line.
/showme a poster for Howard the Duck for President
@mediocrebot, we have to wait until 2092?
@kittykat9180 Remember I did NOT pick the year.
Galaxy Quest
@IWUJackson, oh, that reminds me of Lost in Space (1998).
@IWUJackson Enrico Colantoni steals every scene.
@IWUJackson @pakopako I know that Patrick Stewart loved it. So did I.
@IWUJackson I love SF, my wife tolerates it. A friend tolerates SF, his wife loves it.
He called me up and said they were taking us to see Galaxy Quest. I was surprised and asked if he really like it enough to watch it again. He replied: “No, I want to watch you watch it!”
He said he got his money’s worth.
If you haven’t watched Close Encounters with Full Surround sound during the musical chord sequence meeting the Aliens, you’re missing out …
@somf69 OK, so “Best Alien Musical” should be added to my list above? Or, just “Best Alien Soundtrack”?
@phendrick @somf69 For “Best Alien Musical” I’m nominating the “Subspace Rhapsody” episode of Strange New Worlds!
/giphy howard the duck
I also like the forth kind. I thought that was a good alien movie, even though you never really see the alien. And we used to watch critters all the time as kids.
Not Alien but the all new and improved Aliens.
Not just one measly alien, skulking in the shadows, barely even seen. An entire horde of them, jumping out in full view to wreak mayhem and/or get blowed up real good. And then the epic final battle of the queen alien and Riply with her cargo loader. Awesome!
@macromeh Until his death (the real one, not the one in the movie) I didn’t realize Bill Paxton was the “Game Over, Man!” guy.
@macromeh @pmarin What?! You didn’t recognise the guy from The Terminator?
@macromeh @pmarin Have you seen the SNL Sigourney Weaver “Alienses” sketch?
https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=542140676276305
Or
https://www.tiktok.com/@huggyattack/video/7391670727503760686
Not finding any other links.
Lots of good ones listed so far.
If you haven’t watched Resident Alien it’s an awesome series if you’re looking for that instead of a movie. SO MANY FANTASTIC CHARACTERS!
POPSOCKETS! ROAD ROCKETS! SONNY CROCKETT! AWESOME!
Independence Day.
@edsa
I saw that on that in the 4th of July in dc as a kid.
@edsa How much to get them to blow up the Whitehouse again?
/youtube Dark Star 1974 trailer
The red beanbag alien, obviously!
Best alien movie? Do you mean the best one written/directed by an alien, starring an alien or aliens, or meant to appeal to an alien audience? Need specifics.
The Arrival, natch.
I found most of my favorites listed above but one that came to mind that I didn’t see was ‘Batteries Not Included’. Seems fitting as well.
Looking forward to Project Hail Mary maybe our next year.
W Ryan Gosling I think?
Very much enjoyed the book despite a quibble or two.
I’ve actually always liked K*PAX
Surprised no one’s brought up Planet of the Apes