Agreed on all counts. But apart from being a master class in tension, the sentry gun scene has another valuable component that I personally think should have secured its inclusion on its own: The ruggedized remote-control laptops have what I consider to be the absolutely best example of UX ever made for a movie. Not only because it makes the unfolding situation clear to the viewers, but also because it’s exactly what I’d expect from a military interface upon which lives literally depend and which is designed to be operated by Private Schmuck in the field: Functional, clear and concise. It’s the perfect antidote to the ludicrous meaningless greeble seen in most other sci-fi, and a sharp contrast to the over-complicated and visually confusing mess seen in Prometheus onwards. It’s a big part of what I generally admire about the OG Alien aesthetic: Pragmatism. These people are there to work. Their tools aren’t made to look pretty. They’re there to get the job done.
Agreed on all counts. But apart from being a master class in tension, the sentry gun scene has another valuable component that I personally think should have secured its inclusion on its own: The ruggedized remote-control laptops have what I consider to be the absolutely best example of UX ever made for a movie. Not only because it makes the unfolding situation clear to the viewers, but also because it’s exactly what I’d expect from a military interface upon which lives literally depend and which is designed to be operated by Private Schmuck in the field: Functional, clear and concise. It’s the perfect antidote to the ludicrous meaningless greeble seen in most other sci-fi, and a sharp contrast to the over-complicated and visually confusing mess seen in Prometheus onwards. It’s a big part of what I generally admire about the OG Alien aesthetic: Pragmatism. These people are there to work. Their tools aren’t made to look pretty. They’re there to get the job done.