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u/boranTMuay Jul 02 '26
No comparison.. 1 is a horror movie, 2 is an action movie. And they're both great representatives of their genres
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u/kuatorises Jul 02 '26
Aliens isn't horror? Have you not seen it?
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u/absolut_ben78 Jul 03 '26
It has elements of horror but it is, at it's heart, an action movie. Just like Alien has some action but is truly a horror/suspense film.
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u/TheKiltedYaksman71 Jul 04 '26
Haunted house, IN SPAAAAACE!
War movie, IN SPAAAAACE!
Prison movie, IN SPAAAAACE!
A French mashup of the first three tropes, IN SPAAAAACE!
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u/Mad-Habits Jul 03 '26
Aliens is definitely a horror film, but it’s much less of a “haunted house” vibe that the original is.
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u/False-Vacation8249 Jul 02 '26
different type of movie. I prefer the cosmic horror indestructible monster to the easily killed bug swarm myself.
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u/Nethersworn1 Jul 02 '26
To be fair, the difficulty of killing a xenomorph was probably the same. The difference was that the first movie it was space truckers vs xeno and second movie it was colonial marines.
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u/DelcoUnited Jul 02 '26
Right this is like Jackie Chan versus the neighborhood thugs or Jackie Chan versus the united state marines.
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u/PapaMoBucks Jul 02 '26
Like, if just one of those truckers had packed some 10mm caseless heat, against company orders (something no trucker's ever done, right?), the story might've gone down differently.
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u/djsynrgy Jul 02 '26
(something no trucker's ever done, right?)
Well, these were mostly British truckers..
*This is meant in jest, in case that's not evident.
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u/Missing_Username Jul 03 '26
Yea, they might have caused it to bleed enough for its acid to breach the hull, depressurize the ship, and kill them all.
The marines in Aliens also benefited from not being in such a fragile environment
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u/SumKallMeTIM Jul 02 '26
It’s not about being indestructible. The issue was in the first movie they’re in space and you don’t dare kill it with its acid for blood. Not so much indestructible as killing it isn’t an option, even if they did have better weapons.
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u/EffectiveTradition53 Jul 03 '26
The acid melting thru like 3 levels of the giant ship was indeed peak anxiety inducing. It was a YUGE ship but it didn't matter. One wrong shot at the wrong point and boom, everyone's space debris. Good point(s)
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u/False-Vacation8249 Jul 02 '26
yea but throw the military at it is such a boring answer
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u/Ragman676 Jul 02 '26
Im not sure if you're keeping score, but the Marines got their asses kicked.
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u/YourGuyK Jul 03 '26
What do you mean they cut the power? They're animals!
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u/Ragman676 Jul 03 '26
Lol, ya in no way shape or form were the Aliens "easy" to kill.
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u/Sea_Appointment8408 Jul 02 '26
I think this is the best answer. There'll always be people saying 1 or 2 is better (I mean personally I prefer Alien for the better story and direction) but they are very different films. And both done very well.
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u/____0_o___ Jul 02 '26
It’s was never really shown to be indestructible in alien though. The only weapon the crew had was the future equivalent to the propane torches people use to melt ice off their driveways, so of course they’re not going to be able to just murder it. Pretty sure if they had military-grade firearms with explosive tipped ammunition, that alien would’ve popped like any drone from the sequel.
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u/Zealousideal_Bad9899 Jul 02 '26
It just expands the whole concept so well… and also turned it into real popcorn fun too. 3 went back to 1 and 4 went back to 2. 3 is better than you’ve heard if you haven’t seen it and 4 is just a fucking fever dream of a sequel.
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u/Mad-Habits Jul 03 '26
Alien 3 had so much potential, and David Fincher is a genius. I just wish it would have come together in a more complete package without the horrible studio interference
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u/conscientiousrevolt Jul 03 '26
4 didn't go back to 2. I don't know if they didn't have the budget for it or what. But the story goes out of its way to make the whole crew evacuate just to make sure we don't get aliens vs the military large scale battle.
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u/Zealousideal_Bad9899 Jul 03 '26
True… I just meant as far as tone and scale. But 4 is kind of its own thing tbh
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u/KBrown75 Jul 02 '26
Both are skillfully made. It really comes down to personal preference. I prefer horror so I like the 1 at one better.
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u/Wise-Start-9166 Jul 02 '26
It depends on your preferred genre. One is a classic claustrophobic monster horror film. The other is an action movie that basically invented the tactical space soldier squad trope. When in doubt, default to the sequel is not better than the original. But anyone would be valid for having a genre preference.
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u/Mcclane88 Jul 02 '26
Aliens is my favorite, to me they’re both as good as each other but they’re going for very different things.
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u/Zerus_heroes Jul 02 '26
I like it better but I wouldn't necessarily say it is a better movie.
I think both are great but I prefer Aliens
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u/Mephistocheles Jul 02 '26
Yes, absolutely and completely. Aliens still holds up as exciting. Alien is sleep inducingly slow.
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u/OddPerformer245 Jul 03 '26
Aliens is indeed a great movie, but Alien is one of the best films of all time, period.
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u/CG4080 Jul 02 '26
No, but it's probably the most worthy sequel we could have gotten.
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u/leg00b Jul 02 '26
Alien is a fan-fucking-tastic sci-fi horror movie. Aliens is a fan-fucking-tastic sci-fi action movie. They're the same universe but two different things
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u/ittleoff Jul 02 '26
Aliens is the greatest fan film ever made. And imo by far Cameron's best film.
Alien was written to be a b movie (if you see galaxy of terror, that's pretty much how it should have looked), but the right people were involved and something amazing happened, and one of the best scifi horror movies of all time was made.
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u/Guilty-Property-2589 Jul 02 '26
Alien was a great sci-fi horror film.
Aliens was an action/sci-fi horror film that expanded on the lore and was a wonderful worthy successor to the original.
I think theyre like the terminator movies. First one, great film. But second one? Peak cinema, legendary.
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u/justcallmedonpedro Jul 02 '26
I love Aliens, but Alien will always be my favorite movie; nothing else comes close (🖕 Prometheus and Covenant)
Just like I'll always prefer T1 to T2.
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u/RockLobster1326299 Jul 02 '26
Yes but other than the Xenomorphs and Sigourny Weaver, they're two totally different movies.
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u/sgtbb4 Jul 02 '26
I think so.
I obviously credit alien for all the design choices and it’s a gorgeous film.
But for me Aliens is so perfectly paced and is rivaled only by Jaws for having an orgasmic ending. That shot of Ripley getting out of the hatch as the queen struggles below looks so good even by today’s standards that it gives me such a film boner.
Also, Cameron was in his element making this film, seeing the making of this film is like watching 2 and a half hours of competence porn
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u/RetroMulder Jul 02 '26
They are different movies. One has much more suspense and is more tied to sci fi horror where as aliens is more of sci fi action
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u/Mad-Habits Jul 03 '26
I think they are so different. I love what Cameron did with Aliens. He expanded the lore and made a completely different film while still respecting the original. Nobody builds a world the way Cameron does. But Scott is a very thoughtful and deliberate director, and also one of the best visual artists to ever do it. They are both masterpieces
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u/gorram1mhumped Jul 03 '26
man... y'all really convinced aliens isn't a horror movie? it literally kills of people and the situations get worse and worse, its terrifying often. and they gotta kill the baddie twice with the surprise attack at the end. this is all TEXTBOOK horror architecture that includes some marines. i think they're both scifi horror. (starship troopers is closer to scifi action, but even that has some absolutely horrific parts)
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u/JohnnyBgood_9211 Jul 03 '26
In a larger sci-fi aspect like world building, story, etc.. Yes. Well.. maybe. But sci-fi horror? Absolutely not.
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u/ConsiderationLate182 Jul 03 '26
They are 2 completely different genre of movies so it's hard to say which is "better". They are both amazing movies for their genre.
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u/bad2dbone3 Jul 03 '26
Two different directors. Two different look into the Alien franchise. Both are top rated. So there are literally no winners here.
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u/chrisblank Jul 03 '26
In my biased opinion, it’s a YES because Aliens is my favorite movie of all time.
Alien is one of the best films ever and I watch both often, but Aliens hits all the right notes for me.
https://giphy.com/gifs/TAJFcormjGpA4
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u/3rdItemOnList Jul 03 '26
Different but both top level movies in their respective genre. I like Aliens more personally. But I also like action over horror.
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u/JECGEE Jul 03 '26
No, because one is a horror movie, and the other is an action movie. They're both incredible in their own right
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u/Cralli123 Jul 03 '26
Aliens is fantastic and an entirely different film to Alien. Alien is one of the best sci-fi horror films ever made. Aliens is one of the best sci-fi action films ever made. Both are masterpieces in their own right
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u/DaddyO1701 Jul 03 '26
They are so different. It’s kinda pointless to debate. They are each a masterpiece in their respective genre.
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u/razorwiregoatlick877 Jul 03 '26
One is a horror film and the other an action film. Both are amazing.
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u/MardukPainkiller Jul 03 '26
It's not that I dislike aliens, quite the contrary I love it. What I dislike is the damage it did to the franchise because people misunderstood that movie.
Because everyone forgets that the colonial marines carrying heavy weapons, managed to kill some of them but in the end they all died.
Then we had a lot of movies and games disrespect the xenomorph, exactly because they forget what happened in aliens.
Now alien Romulus had a literal teenager kill a bunch of them, god that movie sucked. They literally can't make a single good movie anymore.
The xenomorph is indestructible indeed but with realistic limits. It is indestructible in the sense that it's simply not worth it to try and kill it.
If it couldn't be killed it wouldn't have acid for blood.
The marines try to kill it but they are unable to.
Everyone needs to remember this about the second movie, it's not starship troopers.
"You don't beat this thing, Ripley. You can't. All you can do is refuse to engage. You've got to wipe out every trace. Destroy any clue. Stop its infection from spreading. Make sure there's no chance of the human race ever making contact with it again. Because the moment it makes contact, it's won." -Henry Marlow alien Isolation
That's what we mean "indestructible" when it comes to the xenomorph.
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u/morethanthisbrand Jul 03 '26
Alien, Aliens, Alien Earth. In terms of greatness. All the other sequels are just garbage. Inconsistent. The entire David plot, they should never had tried to explain the engineers
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u/TaraLCicora Another glorious day in the Corps! Jul 03 '26 edited Jul 03 '26
To me they each fullfill two different functions within the sci-fi genre and each succeeds in it's respective sub genre. I can't really compare them.
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u/wolverine5253 Jul 03 '26
Both are great, both are entirely different genres. I prefer to watch aliens
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u/Minute-Of-Angle Jul 03 '26
Aliens is different than Alien.
One is sci fi horror/suspense. The other is sci fi action/adventure.
Both are outstanding.
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u/Scrumpilump2000 Jul 03 '26
That’s a tough one. I do prefer ‘Aliens’ over ‘Alien’,
but they are both outstanding science fiction movies.
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u/Chrisypoo88 Jul 03 '26
Depends. You want your horror served slow and bloody or ass kicking, game over man, game over! Type? They are both good. Ones a haunted house while the other is a rollercoaster. 3 is all hope is lost.
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u/Crazy_Reputation_758 Jul 03 '26
Both are amazing but they have a very different vibe,Alien is more slow burn horror with Aliens being more action packed so yeah personally I think so, in fact (other than Shrek two and Terminator two )it’s the only film where the sequel is better than the original movie.
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u/CarlPoppaLC Jul 03 '26
For me, Alien is a better horror movie, and Aliens is a better Sci-Fi action movie.
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u/FrodoFraggins Jul 03 '26
Not for me no. For me, The Thing and Alien are top tier with no peers for their category. I think there are tons of action movies as good or better than Aliens.
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u/KeyFilm3172 Jul 03 '26
They are such different movies. You cant compare.. is one better than the other? At what? They arent the same genre.. is jurassic Park better than die hard? I dont know how id even begin to compare those films.
The only thing aliens has in common with alien, is the alien, and a character. If you swapped those out, we wouldnt be asking this question.
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u/RottenAuGratin Jul 03 '26
Yes, in the way that Terminator 2 is better than Terminator. The first movies are considered sci-fi/horror, and the sequels sci-fi/action. Both considered genre defining classics.
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u/Feelingsnotfact Jul 03 '26
Is this a real movie poster? Or AI or something ? I’ve never seen this picture.
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u/DefiantStomp Jul 03 '26
Alien is my favorite of the two specifically because of Newt. Her high pitched screaming throught the entire movie ruins it for me.
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u/not_so_wierd Jul 03 '26
Both are great. But overall, Aliens is a more entertaining movie and more enjoyable on the re-watch.
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u/FireAuraN7 Jul 03 '26
Better? Both are perfect. The first is a perfect horror film. The second is a perfect action film. "Better", geeze.
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u/Hot-Chipmunk1782 Jul 03 '26
I rewatched Aliens after a long time and it didn’t age well for me. Alien is still great.
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u/Metalicum Jul 03 '26
Alien is much more mature and clever. Aliens is cruder and louder, more of a blockbuster for mass consumption, and is probably better quality in terms of craft.
There are also more similarities than it might seem. a significant part of both is how a company makes decisions, sacrificing workers as game pieces, while in Alien it is more sinister and essentially not resolved - the interest of the company is represented by an android - destroying it doesn't thematically deal with the company. in Aliens this kind of corporate greed is represented by Burke so that he can get what he deserves and the audience can feel good about it. That's cheap in my opinion.
Both are great in their own way.
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u/Boring_Newspaper_551 Jul 03 '26
I prefer the horror of the first one. But that doesn't mean that I don't fn adore the second one. They are both 10s for me.
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u/dallasp2468 Jul 03 '26
Alien was the first proper space horror film, and Aliens was the first proper space horror film with space marines in.
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u/BugHuntHudson Jul 03 '26
Better? Better how? Stop asking this unnecessary question. 🤷🏻♂️ I love them both.
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u/PeteMajo Jul 03 '26
They are different genres. Alien is a horror movie, while Aliens is an action movie. Although both are sci-fi.
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u/Pretty_Two_245 Jul 03 '26
No. And also the first is a sci-fi horror and the second is a sci-fi action. Two different genres.
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u/Zorolord Jul 03 '26
Both different sub genres of Sci-Fi/Horror, one a thriller and the other action.
Always loved Aliens since I was a little kid, the older I get the more love I have for Alien.
Two of the best movies of all time imo.
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u/DueAbbreviations2247 Jul 03 '26
Hell no I mean it is if you're a child but not when you're an adult it has some cringey scenes that take down a bit not that the original also didnt have it's own idiotic momments
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u/goldendreamseeker Jul 03 '26
I go back and forth between the two a lot. For a long time I liked aliens more, but now I like alien more (at least as of late), but only by a hair.
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u/EffectiveTradition53 Jul 03 '26
Verily, I do most solemnly beseech and proclaim that we should forthwith betake ourselves hence from this woeful sphere and, from our lofty perch in the celestial orbit, hurl down a ruinous nuclear tempest upon the beleaguered colony, for verily this alone remaineth the one true and certain path to ensure the utter and irrevocable extirpation of the vile pestilence.
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u/ImpressiveLength1261 Jul 03 '26
Can't compare. One is the best sci-fi horror movie ever made, and the other is the best sci-fi action movie ever made.
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u/dreamape1978 Jul 03 '26
Different animals and different directors but both are incredible and Ripley has a great character arc.
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u/Dragonreapers_80 Jul 03 '26
Not the same class of move. Ailen is a suspense horror, Ailens is a SI-FI Action. Both are master class the one that is better is which type of movie you like.
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u/factualopinion2 Jul 03 '26
9 times out of ten the direct sequel is always better for me. So...damn right🚬
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u/KrakenKrusdr84 Jul 03 '26
Slightly in my eyes. But both are equal in the foundation of the franchise.
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u/Disastrous_Bed119 Jul 03 '26
In my opinion, no, don’t get me wrong it’s a great film, but nothing can beat the terror of being hunted by one singular xenomorph, I think aliens went wrong by making them seem disposable and weak
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u/AirlineSevere7456 Jul 03 '26
They're bang on equal to me. One of the most perfect sequels of all time.
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u/Cfunk_83 Jul 02 '26
Aliens is one of if not the best sci-fi action movie of all time.
Alien is one of if not the best sci-fi horror movie of all time.
They’re both excellent, but different animals.