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# ‘Alien’ still scary after all these years
- URL: https://www.smdp.com/alien-still-scary-after-all-these-years/
- Published: 2003-10-31T16:00:00.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-23T03:09:12.000Z
- Author: Dan Dunn
- Tags: Entertainment, Santa Monica, #archive-import

*Review*

“I don’t usually revisit my films, but after I took a look at ‘Alien,’ I thought that it really held up well after 24 years.” So says director Ridley Scott, explaining why he chose to re-release a gussied-up version of his seminal horror picture. My guess is that profit also had something to do with the decision, but that really doesn’t matter. Scott’s correct — two decades later, “Alien” is still scari-er than all hell, and the digital restoration and new six-track stereo mix make the film look and sound better than it did back in ’79.

“Alien,” which stars Sigourney Weaver, Tom Skerritt, John Hurt and Harry Dean Stanton, tells the story of a crew of space travelers whose ship is invaded by a most terrifying interstellar monster. The “Director’s Cut” features several previously unreleased scenes, including a jarring moment in which Weaver’s Ridley discovers the remains of Brett (Stanton) and Dallas (Skerritt). There’s also a physical confrontation between Ripley and Lambert (Veronica Cartwright), and a shot of the alien hanging from chains just prior to claiming a victim.

Additionally, Scott trimmed a few scenes, creating what he calls “a slight difference in energy from the 1979 version.” The energy may have changed, but the horror remains the same. As a whole new generation of theatergoers is about to discover, “Alien” is perhaps the most frightening film ever made. (Rated R for sci-fi violence/gore and language. Running time: 116 minutes

*Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on October 31, 2003.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/103103.pdf?ref=smdp.com)