Aliens is a fantastic movie, period. For what it is, the movie excels. It’s a sci-fi/horror/action movie and it delivers on all three counts. The creatures are horrific, the environments are deliciously futuristic in appearance, and the action is fast paced and exiting. For a movie that’s over 20 years old, almost every visual aspect of the film is convincing, save for some black lines on a miniature spaceship. Though the movie manages to stand tall in each of its three major genre categories, this is not why the movie remains truly great. Any sci-fi movie can have outstanding effects, but might be lacking in other departments. Aliens is a truly great movie because it can appeal to all audiences with its example of fantastic film-making. It is a great movie on its own merits. James Cameron had outdone himself in his writing of the story, which is captivating; a great continuation of the original. With an excellent story written comes great characters. Though Sigourney Weaver does an excellent job in her return to Ripley from Ridley Scott’s ALIEN, it’s the supporting characters that make the movie entertaining. Bill Paxton comes to mind as the memorable Private Hudson who serves as the largest source for comic relief throughout his time in the movie. At a running time of over two and a half hours, Cameron creates a thrill ride. Think about movies now a days. This is nearly impossible to achieve in this day and age. People won’t sit for over two hours. I guarantee that this movie will have any new viewer on the edge of their seat from start to finish. It is pure and simply a masterfully crafted film, and my favorite one at that.