Steven Spielberg names his favourite sci-fi horror movie
Steven Spielberg‘s affinity for the horror genre was evident in his earliest movies, Duel and Jaws. It is, in fact, evident throughout his filmography. However, he didn’t direct a pure horror film for nearly three decades until War of the Worlds in 2005. Despite this gap, his influence, impact on, and love for the genre can’t be understated.
Offering a peak behind his inspiration during the press tour for War of the Worlds, the director revealed that Ridley Scott’s 1979 classic Alien was his favourite “scary sci-fi” movie of all time.
Spielberg has had a storied history with the Alien franchise that we shouldn’t sell short. Without Jaws, Alien might never have existed. Dan O Bannon famously pitched the original screenplay, named ‘Star Beast’ at the time, as Jaws in space. The success of Spielberg’s blockbuster also paved the way for Star Wars – a film that proved pivotal for Ridley Scott’s decision to direct Alien. The cinematic language of Alien owes a huge debt to Spielberg – long, creeping shots, a slow build of suspense, quick flashes of the monster in question rather than the constant use that came to characterise both franchises beyond their first film. It’s no surprise that Spielberg connected to it.
Though his movies grew more sentimental over time, Alien’s influence on the filmmaker was evident into the 1980s. ET: The Extra-Terrestrial was the family film that soured contemporary audiences’ appetites for John Carpenter’s The Thing and launched Spielberg’s new reputation for the more wholesome fare. However, it began life as a horror film. Its concept of a friendly alien creature, seen as antagonistic by the world around it, is echoed in Spielberg’s notes to James Cameron regarding how he might approach an Alien sequel in 1985.
Recounted in Netflix’s The Movies That Made Us, Spielberg enthusiastically pitched his idea for a sequel to Alien: “Oh, I know what to do, I know what to do… because the first Alien was bad, have this one — the alien — be misunderstood, and the humans are trying to kill it, and running around the ship.”
“Thank goodness you didn’t do that,” an older Spielberg says to Cameron. It’s clear that E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial was, in its own way, a response to Alien. While the mere touch of an alien creature symbolises violence and violation in Scott’s films (including his prequels), in Spielberg’s E.T., it represents healing and salvation. Both films thematically reflect a struggle against a techno-capitalist regime that shows little regard for other living beings. E.T., however, ends on a more optimistic note.
Spielberg’s use of horror techniques—his films often being a little scarier than expected—clearly echoes Alien in places. For instance, Jurassic Park’s raptor sequences feel as if they could be lifted straight from an Alien sequel, with their evocative use of sound and atmosphere. When Spielberg returned to “scary sci-fi” with War of the Worlds, Alien was a crucial inspiration. “I thought, well, why can’t I try my hand at the kind of film that Ridley Scott made when he did the first Alien,” Spielberg says.
Film, like any art form, is always in communication with itself. This interplay between these two New Hollywood filmmakers, Spielberg and Scott, exemplifies how cinematic movements come about and how seemingly disparate works can influence and shape each other.
