Contains discussion of sexual assault.
Alien 3is the second sequel to Ridley Scott’s genre-changing space horror,Alien, but, thanks to a succession of baffling missteps, the movie failed to live up to either of the previous installments. Following the success of James Cameron’s 1986 sequelAliens, theAlienfranchise seemed in a good place. However,Alien 3’s troubled production and bizarre narrative decisions meant that the franchise has failed to reach the heights of the original movies in the four decades since their release.
The comparative failure ofAlien 3can be attributed to some terrible decisions concerning the iconic character, Ripley.Alien 3takes place afterAliens, with Ripley crashing onto a planet holding a prison with around 25 inmates, confirmed to be “rapists and murderers.“TheAlienfranchise’s xenomorphsare deadly enough;there was no need to put Ripley in more danger by placing her in a room full of human predators, and this bizarre plot decision is one of many that make no sense. Ripley dies atthe end ofAlien 3, and the odd narrative choices almost killed the franchise too.
Alien 3’s Ripley Attack Scene Was Unnecessary And Predictable
There Are Few Redeemable Characters In Alien 3
One factor inRipley’s iconic statusis that she is not sexualized, so the decision to make her the lone woman among rapists, then both sexualize and violate her, feels like a betrayal of her character. Once Ripley’s situation was established, the attack scene was predictable (though mercifully short, as the enraged Dillon interrupts it) and entirely unnecessary to both Ripley and every other character. As Dillon was incarcerated for both rape and murder,saving Ripley does not undo his earlier crimes, and the failure to understand this fact affects the characterization of virtually all the male characters inAlien 3.
What Happened To Alien 3’s Sole Survivor Morse (According To Canon)
The notoriously bleak Alien 3 only features one survivor with prisoner Morse, but what happened to him in the aftermath of the 1992 sequel?
Alien 3has few redeemable characters because no matter what the inmates do throughout the movie,they cannot atone for their past violence by fighting a monster. The only morally upstanding members of the Fiorina 161 community are the unpleasant warden Andrews and his assistant 85 – neither of whom make suitable allies. Even the mysterious Clemens, expertly played by Charles Dance, is identified as one of the planet’s more reprehensible inhabitants by his prison tattoo – despite his attempts to treat Ripley and understand the threat facing the facility. His death completely curtails the pair’s relationship, leaving Ripley utterly alone.
Alien 3 Killing Newt And Hicks Made The Rest Of The Movie Difficult To Watch
Alien 3 Wasted The Opportunity To Continue The Motherhood Symbolism Set Up In Aliens
Not being believed had been a recurring theme for Ripley in the first twoAlienmovies, andthe ending ofAliensset Ripley up with supporters at last, butAlien 3killed off Hicks and Newt, and left Bishop barely operational. Giving Ripley the beginnings of a team would have developed her story, and added new characters for fans of the franchise to care about. Instead, Ripley loses everything important to her before finding herself back at square one, fighting to be believed. This made the rest ofAlien 3extremely frustrating, repetitive, and difficult to watch.
Carrie Henn, who played Newt inAliens, quit acting after the movie, returning briefly to voice a union worker in the 2020 animated adventure,Thunder Island.
The first twoAlienmovies established Ripley as a caring person. She looks out for Jones the cat throughoutAlien, and then bonds with both Hicks and Newt inAliens. This writing decision developed both Ripley’s character and the Xenomorph lore: we see the change in Ripley when she is defending somebody she loves, andAliens' xenomorph Queen fightcan be interpreted as two mothers defending their children. This motherhood theme could have been a defining feature inAlien 3whenRipley discovered that she is impregnated with a xenomorph, but the many potential implications were never explored.
Alien 3’s Strange Story Choices Killed What Could’ve Been A Great Movie
Director David Fincher Disowned His Own Movie
Alien 3should have equaled the success of the first two movies in theAlienfranchise.The technologically lacking prison setting gaveAlien 3an almost post-apocalyptic feel, which would combine another new genre with the original science-fiction horror concept. The setting was interesting and the cast featured veteran actors Charles Dance and Pete Postlethwaite alongside Sigourney Weaver reprising her role as Ripley, soAlien 3had some redeeming features. However, the decision to make most of the characters rapists while killing offAliens' fan favorites setAlien 3up to fail, even in the opinion of its director.
Comparing the first three movies in the Alien franchise
Box office
1979
$11 million
$187 million
93%
1986
$18.5 million
$131.1 - 183.3 million
94%
1992
$50-60 million
$159.8 million
44%
Sigourney Weaver confirmed thatAlien 3director David Fincherdidn’t have much creative control when directing the movie.Alien 3had already been passed between several directors and writers and Fincher had to fight to shoot the vision he wanted while rewriting the original script.Fincher eventually disownedAlien 3, saying at the Tribeca Film Festival (viaThe Wrap,) “I wanted to make all my own mistakes instead of inheriting them from other people.” Still, while the worst Ripley decisions inAlien 3were terrible for the franchise,Alien 3does have good moments, and, as theAlienfranchise is still going, thingscould have been worse.
Alien 3
Cast
Alien³ follows Ellen Ripley as she crash lands on Fiorina 161, a bleak prison planet housing a correctional facility. Stripped of weapons and facing a new alien threat, the inmates must unite with Ripley to survive while awaiting external assistance. Released in 1992, this film continues the iconic sci-fi horror saga.
