How Alien Changed Sci-Fi Cinema in 1979

As with all episodes of this podcast there are spoilers ahead! For full detailed show notes (without character limits) you can choose the episode on the watch page here: https://www.everyscififilm.com/watch This is a special crossover episode with The Lorehounds podcast. To learn more about The Lorehounds and their extensive coverage of multiple TV series you can visit their website here. Description It has been 45 years since the first Alien (1979) film released in the cinema receiving lukewarm reviews. Perhaps the impact of a different kind of science fiction film was completely lost on film critics having to deal with the many clasher films of the 70s and a slew of Star Wars rip offs? But since then, Alien has cemented its reputation as a sci-fi film classic. Although there were many sci-fi horrors in the 1950s B-movies this film was different. There is no dashing hero, no damsel in distress waiting to be rescued, no bug eyed monster that takes away from the gritty realism of the film. This film set science fiction cinema on a different course. The Experts Roger Luckhurst is a Professor at Birkbeck, University of London. He specialises in literature, film, and cultural history from the 19th century to the present. He has written/edited a crazy number of articles and books including the BFI Film Classics book on Alien. Jason Eberl is a Professor for Health Care Ethics at St Louis University with a special interest in biotechnology, human enhancement and the philosophy of human nature. He has also written extensively including a range of books that examine the philosophy of various mainstream media such as Star Wars, Star Trek and Battlestar Galactica. Co-Host David is one third of The Lorehounds and is joining as co-host for this special crossover episode. Chapters 00:00 Intro to the show and Alien's bad reviews 02:55 The Origins of Alien 06:22 Why was Alien such a success? 08:06 Alien's departure from the slick sci-fi aesthetic 09:15 Truckers in Spaaaace! Grittiness and the late 1970s political landscape 17:13 The protagonist: breaking away from gender stereotypes 24:00 Giger's art and the Xenomorph's life cycle 26:50 A lack of eyes, Charles Darwin and Francis Bacon 30:31 The ship and the alien 33:43 The other monsters: Ash the android and the company 39:39 The history of heads speaking the truth 41:12 The Company: The factory line, Joseph Conrad & Belgians in the Congo 46:17 Jones the cat 51:22 The Philosophy of Alien 53:38 Recommendations 58:02 Outro NEXT EPISODE! Next episode we have a discussion about a long-lost pioneer of science fiction literature from the late 19th Century. Robert Duncan Milne's work had largely vanished despite a book drawing attention to him in 1980. Milne was born in Scotland and died in San Francisco just before the dawn of the 20th century. Much of his legacy and work is thought to be lost due to the huge earthquake in San Francisco in 1906. My two wonderful guests are working hard to have him and his work recognised.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.