--- title: "Alien" year: 1979 kind: "film" canonical: "https://film.one/film/alien" fi1m_id: "alien" imdb_id: "tt0078748" tmdb_id: 348 wikidata_id: "Q103569" fi1m_score: 92 critics_score: 81 critics_reviews: 6 published: "2026-09-12" updated: "2026-09-26T14:46:45.316462+00:00" region: "PL" licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # Alien (1979) Directed by Ridley Scott · 1h 57m · PISF 16 · Horror, Science Fiction ## Identity Alien - **Canonical:** https://film.one/film/alien - **Type:** Film - **Fi1m ID:** alien - **IMDb ID:** tt0078748 - **TMDB ID:** 348 - **Wikidata ID:** Q103569 - **Same entity:** https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0078748/, https://www.themoviedb.org/movie/348, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q103569 **Fi1m score: 92** · Critics 81 from 6 reviews *In a sentence:* A spaceship ought to feel bigger than this > Ridley Scott’s *Alien* makes confinement frightening long before the shocks arrive. Its crew could be more fully written, but the acting, the ship and the patient build-up make this a horror film we recommend without hesitation. ## Synopsis Aboard the spaceship Nostromo, a crew encounters an alien life form. Dallas (Tom Skerritt), Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) and Lambert (Veronica Cartwright) face an unknown creature in surroundings that offer little room for escape. Their fellow crew members include Brett (Harry Dean Stanton), Kane (John Hurt), Ash (Ian Holm) and Parker (Yaphet Kotto). Directed by Ridley Scott from Dan O’Bannon’s screenplay, *Alien* places these people in a shared working environment where an encounter with another life form becomes a threat to everyone aboard. ## Review Ridley Scott’s *Alien* is a frightening, patient horror film that earns almost every minute of its 117-minute running time. Dan O’Bannon’s screenplay gives the crew a simple problem, and Scott spends his time making us feel how difficult it will be to survive it. The science-fiction setting never puts the danger at a comfortable distance. These people seem to have jobs, habits and reasons to irritate one another, which makes their predicament much easier to believe. Michael Seymour’s production design makes the Nostromo feel occupied, used and difficult to get out of. There is a physical weight to the place that matters more than its plausibility as a vehicle: we believe people have to live and work inside it. Derek Vanlint’s luminous photography gives those enclosed spaces enough presence to become frightening before anything happens in them. We felt trapped by these interiors, and caught ourselves watching the space around the actors as anxiously as their faces. Tom Skerritt, Harry Dean Stanton and Yaphet Kotto help establish that this is a crew, with the unpolished ease of people who spend too much time together. Their ordinariness is useful: the danger is more disturbing when it interrupts people we can recognise. Sigourney Weaver’s Ripley is particularly good because her concentration makes the danger feel like something requiring an immediate, practical response. Weaver never asks us to stand back and admire her, and the film benefits from letting that performance remain so direct. Editors Terry Rawlings and Peter Weatherley understand how much suspense depends on waiting. The pauses give us time to notice the ship and think about what could be sharing it; the shocks then arrive with an unpleasant physical force. Jerry Goldsmith’s score helps sustain that discomfort during the waiting, so a quieter passage never feels like a guarantee of safety. The cutting and music make Scott’s patience productive, although anyone expecting constant action will have a long wait. There are limits to O’Bannon’s script, and the film does not always conceal them. Several of the crew remain lightly sketched, and Veronica Cartwright’s Lambert deserves more room to develop. Once the basic danger is established, some of the suspense repeats a pattern we have already learnt. We would gladly trade a little of that repetition for more time with the crew. The confined setting puts *Alien* firmly in the haunted-house tradition, with its crew facing something dangerous at close quarters. Scott makes that familiar situation work through the sheer physical presence of the ship and its unwelcome occupant. The distrust of corporate authority adds a further worry, since being at work carries some expectation that somebody is responsible for your safety. Familiarity with the premise is no reason to expect an easy evening. Scott makes the waiting uncomfortable enough that knowing the broad shape of the story offers surprisingly little protection, and 117 minutes is a long time to spend wishing a place had another exit. See it with the lights down, and resist the temptation to talk through the quiet stretches. *Fi1m score 92, published 12 September 2026.* ## What the critics say Most critics praise Alien for the patience of its suspense and the conviction of its physical world. The strongest agreement concerns the production design, H.R. Giger’s creature and Ridley Scott’s ability to make a confined spaceship sustain an atmosphere of dread. The performances also draw praise, with Radio Times singling out Sigourney Weaver. Across the favourable reviews, the combination of gothic horror and science fiction remains effective despite the familiarity of the monster-story ingredients. The disagreement concerns how much those ingredients can support. The Guardian admires the technical control and shocks while finding little plot development or characterisation. The New Yorker is the sharp dissenter, finding the crew uninteresting and the plotting repetitive, with impressive effects insufficient to relieve the boredom. The spread is therefore wide, though heavily positive: most critics find the atmosphere persuasive enough to outweigh reservations about familiarity and dated elements. ## Straight answers **Is Alien worth watching?** *Alien* is worth watching for anyone who can bear a slow, confined horror film, and we scored it 92. Ridley Scott spends most of its 117 minutes making the Nostromo feel impossible to leave before the shocks arrive, so viewers expecting constant action will have a long wait. Several crew members are thinly written, but Sigourney Weaver and the ship itself carry it. **How long is Alien, and what is it rated?** *Alien* runs 1h 57m and is rated 16 by the PISF in Poland. It is a horror and science fiction film. **Where can I watch Alien in Poland?** *Alien* is streaming on Amazon Prime Video and Disney+ in Poland, and it is also available to rent from Amazon Prime Video from zł 9.99. Availability is checked daily; the links above go straight to each service. **How violent or frightening is Alien, and is it suitable for children?** *Alien* carries a UK 18 certificate and is not suitable for children. Its shocks arrive with an unpleasant physical force after long, tense stretches of waiting, and the sense of being trapped in the ship is as frightening as anything that happens in it. Teenagers used to horror may cope; the squeamish should think twice. **How does Alien compare to Aliens?** *Alien* is a patient horror film and [*Aliens*](https://film.one/film/aliens) is an action thriller, so the choice depends on the evening you want. The earlier film is the tenser and more frightening of the two, built on waiting and confinement; James Cameron's sequel trades that dread for military spectacle, with Sigourney Weaver again giving it a human centre. We rate both highly, and *Alien* slightly higher. **Do you need to have seen the other Alien films before Alien?** *Alien* is the first film in the series and needs no prior viewing. Its story is self-contained: a working crew aboard the Nostromo meets an unknown creature, and everything you need is on screen. It is the natural place for a newcomer to start, and knowing the broad premise in advance does surprisingly little to soften it. **What should I watch after Alien?** After *Alien*, try [*The Thing*](https://film.one/film/the-thing) (1982, Fi1m 88): Another isolated workforce discovers how quickly a creature can make colleagues look suspicious. Then [*The Haunting*](https://film.one/film/the-haunting) (1963, Fi1m 84): For frightening rooms, patient direction and the considerable usefulness of keeping things unseen; and [*The Descent*](https://film.one/film/the-descent) (2005, Fi1m 85): The enclosed spaces are frightening enough before anything else enters the calculation. **What order should I watch the Alien films in?** Release order is the safe choice for Alien, and it is the order [our collection page](https://film.one/collections/alien) lists them in. *Alien* is the first of the 4 Alien titles on Fi1m; after it [*Aliens*](https://film.one/film/aliens). [The full order.](https://film.one/collections/alien.md) ### Reviews we read (9) - **Radio Times**, Alan Jones (5/5): The critic calls it a bona fide classic and a seamless blend of gothic horror and science fiction. They single out the top-notch acting, especially Sigourney Weaver, and the imaginative bio-mechanical production design with HR Giger's alien. [Read](https://www.radiotimes.com/movie-guide/b-u45wo6/alien/) - **Empire**, Andrew Collins (90/100, inferred): The critic praises the film's groundbreaking visual design by H.R. Giger and Ridley Scott's direction, highlighting its tactile world and influence on sci-fi horror. [Read](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/empire-essay-alien-review/) - **Total Film** (90/100, inferred): The review celebrates the opportunity to see the original Alien on the big screen, emphasizing its masterful build-up of tension and timeless quality. [Read](https://www.gamesradar.com/alien-the-directors-cut-review/) - **Slant Magazine**, Jeremiah Kipp (80/100, inferred): The critic praises the film's enduring atmosphere of dread created through production design and H.R. Giger's creature, calling it one of the most artfully directed and well-acted slasher movies. They note it remains effective despite some dated elements and single out the late-1970s distrust of corporate authority as a welcome thematic edge. [Read](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/alien/) - **The New Yorker**, Brendan Gill (30/100, inferred): The critic dismisses the film as boring and unconvincing, criticizing the crew as uninteresting slobs and the alien as not worth serious attention beyond a few scares. He notes the special effects are impressive but ultimately fails to engage due to repetitive plotting and dated elements. [Read](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1979/06/11/flying-high) - **Sight and Sound**, Philip Strick: The critic sees the film as expressing a British xenophobia through its invasion nightmare theme. They single out the luminous photography, production design and Giger creature for particular praise. [Read](https://www.bfi.org.uk/sight-and-sound/reviews/alien-archive-review-spectacularly-british-xenophobia) - **The Guardian**, Derek Malcolm: Ridley Scott's Alien delivers profuse cinematic shocks and masterful technical artifice in a confined spaceship setting, but its story is a familiar mix of older monster films with little plot development or characterization. It deserves its success for expertly manipulating a cynical audience through sheer theatricality and atmosphere, even if it falls short of great art. [Read](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2009/oct/13/derek-malcolm-alien-review) - **The New York Times**, Vincent Canby: The critic finds the film an effectively eerie Gothic tale set in space, with strong buildup of tension aboard the Nostromo as the crew encounters an alien life form. Praise is given to the elaborate production and the cast's performances in building suspense. [Read](https://www.nytimes.com/1979/05/25/archives/screen-alien-brings-chills-from-the-far-galaxya-gothic-set-in-space.html) - **The Playlist**, Rodrigo Perez (A+): The critic calls it still Scott’s greatest film, an exercise in minimalistic terror with the most unknowable, terrifying extraterrestrial creature ever seen on screen. It retains its power to terrify even after years of homages, rip-offs and sequels. [Read](https://theplaylist.net/ridley-scott-neccesary-reevaluation-20100514/) ## Details - **Director:** Ridley Scott - **Director:** Ridley Scott - **Screenplay:** Dan O'Bannon - **Story:** Dan O'Bannon, Ronald Shusett - **Cinematography:** Derek Vanlint - **Editor:** Peter Weatherley, Terry Rawlings - **Music:** Jerry Goldsmith - **Production design:** Michael Seymour - **Costume design:** John Mollo - **Producer:** Gordon Carroll, David Giler, Walter Hill - **Cast:** Tom Skerritt as Dallas; Sigourney Weaver as Ripley; Veronica Cartwright as Lambert; Harry Dean Stanton as Brett; John Hurt as Kane; Ian Holm as Ash; Yaphet Kotto as Parker; Bolaji Badejo as Alien - **Runtime:** 1h 57m - **Certificate (PISF):** 16 - **Release (Poland):** 2 January 1980 - **Genres:** Horror, Science Fiction - **Part of:** [Alien](https://film.one/collections/alien.md) · 1 of 4 - **Budget:** $11 million - **Box office:** $105 million - **Trailer:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sVwH0hIvV5k ## Where to watch in Poland - Amazon Prime Video: streaming, uhd - Disney+: streaming, uhd - Amazon Prime Video: rent zł 9.99, uhd - Amazon Prime Video: buy zł 44.99, sd *Checked 2026-09-12.* Also available in: AR, AT, AU, BE, BG, BR, CA, CH, CL, CO, CZ, DE, DK, EC, EE, ES, FI, FR, GB, GR, HK, HR, HU, IE, IS, IT, JP, KR, LT, MX, NL, NO, NZ, PA, PE, PL, PT, RO, RS, SE, SG, SI, TR, US. Add `?region=XX` to this URL for another country. ## Awards - Academy Awards 1980: Best Production Design (nominated); Best Visual Effects (won) - BAFTA Film Awards 1980: Best Actor in a Supporting Role (nominated); Best Editing (nominated); Best Original Music (nominated); Most Promising Newcomer to Leading Film Roles (nominated); Best Sound (won) - Hugo Awards 1980: Best Dramatic Presentation (won) - Saturn Awards 1980: Best Director (won); Best Science Fiction Film (won) - Golden Globes 1979: Best Original Score (nominated) - Saturn Awards 1979: Best Supporting Actress (won) ## If you liked this - *The Thing* (1982), Fi1m 88: Another isolated workforce discovers how quickly a creature can make colleagues look suspicious. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/the-thing.md) - *The Haunting* (1963), Fi1m 84: For frightening rooms, patient direction and the considerable usefulness of keeping things unseen. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/the-haunting.md) - *Onibaba* (1964): Tall reeds replace steel corridors, with bodies and survival still driving the horror. - *The Descent* (2005), Fi1m 85: The enclosed spaces are frightening enough before anything else enters the calculation. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/the-descent.md) - *High Life* (2018): Space travel stripped of comfort, with human bodies treated as expendable equipment. --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/film/alien