Get away from her you bitch
Throughout everything which we have seen so far, Ripley has stayed in control. The only time we see her lose her composure on LV426 is towards the end of this scene when the alien takes Newt. Hicks brings her back with logic – the tracker. she goes against her earlier word, her maternal instinct overriding her logic from the initial attack. “They don’t kill you, she’s alive!” The parental feeling is so strong, that she is willing to put herself in extreme danger so that she can rescue Newt.
Flying into the reactor is not just a rescue, it’s a metaphor for Ripley’s journey into the monster’s den. It’s her chance to confront and conquer her nightmares. Had it been Hicks, Vaszquez or anyone else from the team, it’s unlikely that she would have gone back to rescue them. She’s not just facing her fear, she’s rescuing her lost daughter, and is willing to die in her attempt.
The next sequence in which Ripley prepares for the final showdown addresses the theme of misplaced faith in technology. Compare the three mindsets within the movie – the marines put all of their faith in technology. The aliens are the complete opposite, purely instinct driven. Ripley contains elements of both: the use of technology, and the parental instinct, however, she has correct mindset, using technology to complement her abilities.
This sequence is the inverse of typical action movies, and the finale works better because of it. Compare it to movies like Commando, or Rambo. Typically with a male protagonist, you expect him to kick ass, or to be an unstoppable killing machine. However, as Ripley’s not a marine, the tension is much higher, how can she possibly do this? If highly trained combat specialists couldn’t do it, then how can she? She’s a human being, terrified out of her mind, but facing up to her fear anyway as it is the right thing to do. This is bravery in its truest form.
As the lift opens, a movie icon is born.
The whole sequence as Ripley searches for Newt is wracked with tension – the music, alarms, smoke, and tracker all add to it. In facing her own personal hell, the true Ripley is revealed. Reluctant to begin with, now in the heart of a nightmare facing the terror that has gripped her, with the added dimension of her surrogate daughter.
In the depths of the alien lair, Ripley’s hopes are dashed, until Newt screams. So within the space of a few seconds, Ripley has gone from feeling terrified, to distraught, to overjoyed, to what comes next, which is facing the manifestation of her fears, the alien queen.
Ripley has stumbled right into the queen’s nest. It’s a brilliant moment of silent realization. The queen’s reveal is as horrific as it is spectacular. The lighting, looks, and noise it makes as it breathes all add up to a stunning shot. It’s like a horrific church organ come to life.
At this point there are signs of intelligence from the queen, as she understands the consequences of what the flamethrower can do to her eggs. What’s fascinating in this scene is that despite the vast differences between the two species, Ripley is able to communicate through the one universal connection which they share: motherhood – her eggs are in danger so she relents, and communicates to the warrior aliens to stay back. Had the marines entered this lair, they would have simply opened fire on all of the aliens and been overwhelmed very quickly.
What’s great about this scene is that it is played entirely without dialogue. It’s the universal experience of parenthood that allows this wordless communication between the two.
It’s interesting that despite the fact that LV426 will soon be a cloud of dust, Ripley decides to stand and destroy the queen. She destroys her eggs and shoots the egg sack, a symbolic gesture, taking away her motherhood.
The queen is a manifestation of all that she is scared of. She has entered the lair of her nightmares, and confronted her biggest fear. If she stands and destroys it, sees it die with her own eyes, then she has conquered her greatest fear, that within herself.
Ripley really went in to the depths of hell. This movie is a great expansion on the original – not just escaping a terrible monster, but going into the lair of the beast and confronting it.
The movie could have ended here and been great. But we have one more scene which makes it classic.
While Ripley makes peace with Bishop, the queen reveals herself with a spectacular entrance.
After such a master class in building up tension, this ups the ante even further than before – there are no weapons, all of the marines are either dead or MIA, Bishop is half the man he used to be (Queen takes Bishop), and Newt is being pursued by an unstoppable monster.
Ripley runs off, seemingly against her character, and everything that she has done before.
As Newt is finally cornered, we have not only one of the most memorable reveals in cinema history, but also one of the greatest lines ever delivered:
This is not just the culmination of an action movie, there are layers of meaning within the scene. It’s mother vs. mother, but also, it’s taking a stand and facing your fears, using technology, not as the solution, but as boost to your intelligence. It’s not just the power loader that will defeat the queen, the loader will run out of fuel, Ripley’s soft body could be skewered. Instead, it takes all of her knowledge, skills and experience. Technology can win a battle, but a war is won with intelligence.
Newt: “Can I dream?”
Ripley: “I think we both can.”
We see that having faced her fears head on, Ripley has finally defeated the terrors that plagued her dreams. And with that, this classic movie ends with Ripley deep in sleep, returning home.
