you have to start the ball rolling with your own opinion first...

The best film in the franchise, I'd bet. My answer is: no. Alien is.

if you twist my arm i'd go with the original, but both of the first two installements are masterpieces.

I prefer Aliens.

This is an odd case where I DO think Aliens is the overall better product...but wouldn't exist unless Alien set the general tone/direction! Kinda like a coach taking over a Super Bowl caliber team and winning it all with minor tweaks (cough*Jon Gruden with the Buccaneers in 2003*cough).

BUT because Alien is a straight up HORROR movie, I'm gonna lean toward Alien! All 4 have a special place in my heart (3 was a return to form by a talented director, 4 was just a fun popcorn film!) Hope Covenant can step up to the plate!

Alien for me, but Prometheus holds a dear place in my heart

Aliens is the very best. In fact after this movie the whole series went down the crapper.

Aliens is horrible... i rewatched it recently after seeing Covenant and rewatching the original Alien... no comparison... Aliens is mediocre... it really is just a very basic action movie...

one of the worst in the series...

It doesn't how much you whine about it it's still going to be remembered as the best and most badass entry in the franchise. :D

@Charles Dance said:

@FunRoyal said:

It doesn't how much you whine about it it's still going to be remembered as the best and most badass entry in the franchise. :D

To fans of Arnie films and not horror, perhaps.

Yeah because anyone who thinks it is the best has to fit a certain ignorant criteria right?

No, I prefer Alien. I do however, argue that Aliens was necessary and led to wider appreciation of the original film. There were many moviegoers--myself included--that embraced Aliens more at first because it was fun and approachable and had quotable dialogue. I was young and felt that Alien was slower and a bit boring. Only over the years have I grown to love the original much more.

Also, I very much believe that the Alien franchise wouldn't be alive today had Cameron not made Aliens. Giler and Hill were shepherding the sequel and they were making almost no headway until Cameron came along. Every other director after him has botched every other film, so it's difficult to argue that another director could have made a better "faithful" sequel. We'd likely have gotten a re-hash of Alien, instead.

@AlienFanatic said:

No, I prefer Alien. I do however, argue that Aliens was necessary and led to wider appreciation of the original film. There were many moviegoers--myself included--that embraced Aliens more at first because it was fun and approachable and had quotable dialogue. I was young and felt that Alien was slower and a bit boring. Only over the years have I grown to love the original much more.

Also, I very much believe that the Alien franchise wouldn't be alive today had Cameron not made Aliens. Giler and Hill were shepherding the sequel and they were making almost no headway until Cameron came along. Every other director after him has botched every other film, so it's difficult to argue that another director could have made a better "faithful" sequel. We'd likely have gotten a re-hash of Alien, instead.

Even though I prefer Aliens by a hair I think you make a good point. Here is the thing Alien is a masterpiece. It was amazing and truly timeless, it holds up so well. So Cameron crafted a sequel that was different. Whether you prefer the first or not we should be happy that it was good and it was not simply a rehash of the first one.

Aliens has no atmosphere.. no mood... it's not eerie and haunting like Alien was... Aliens is a cartoon by comparison... just watch them side by side...

Aliens is basically the live action version of the last third of Avatar...

WTF are you on dude? It has atmosphere, it has mood, it has better characters than the original.

how would you describe the mood or atmosphere of Aliens? i dont see it... Alien is haunting and eerie... the tension builds up gradually to some very viseral horror...

I just see it as such a generic space military action movie with some mommy/daughter issues tacked on the front and peppered throughout...

I am open to hearing your thoughts