Since the Alien franchise has been coming up a lot, I ended up watching Aliens again over the weekend. (I wish there was a 4K but maybe the transfer wouldn't be great based on when the movie came out; still, the bluray special edition, most recent, is pretty nice.)
It's odd -- I have typically viewed the film (the long version) as a story of motherhood, as you have a woman who lost her daughter through shit luck, who finds another girl who needs her and she becomes a surrogate mom, and this is pitted in a crazy way against the alien queen who is also a mother -- and you have two mothers drawn face to face by the end of the film, either fighting to preserve the lives of their children and/or wreaking revenge on each other for destroying their children. I've seen the film in light of that for many years now.
But this was the first time I looked at the film as a story of a trauma victim who ends up finding another trauma victim and the bond they build.
I mean, I don't really see Ripley as a "victim" in many ways because she is so damn proactive and strong. But the reality is that she basically watched her entire crew brutalized in the first film and barely escaped with her life aside from her own resourcefulness, courage, and perseverance. Then she gets home and finds out her daughter is now gone
and the whole opening segment of the film is Ripley basically experiencing terrible episodes of PTSD. (I'm pretty sure Burke either says that or highlights it, but the film kind of glosses over it once it starts rolling.) Ripley only goes back to LV-426 in fact because she is traumatized by her dreams and feels the only way to stop her nightmares is to convince herself that the aliens no longer exist and/or make sure they are all dead...
plus her natural sympathy for others who might be experiencing the same horror she is.
And then she gets there and finds a little girl who lost not just her entire family but her whole community. Newt is ALSO experiencing PTSD after surviving for days without any help or weapons. She bites Hicks, flees Ripley, then fights like hell when Ripley puts her arms around her, then drops into dead silence for awhile. Even after she "engages", she's still marked by the highlights of a trauma survivor: She constantly is wedging herself into tiny spaces so that nothing can sneak up on her and/or to hide herself, and she's very pessimistic about their chances. "It won't matter," she says. It's as creepy AF to see the effect of her experiences on her. But there are so many moments that seem indicative of people who have suffered terrible trauma.
But it's another reason she and Ripley bond. Yes, Ripley becomes her surrogate mother just like Hicks becomes her surrogate husband (I have to say, it is one of the best moments I have seen in a film, emotionally, because it is so underwritten yet acted so well: Ripley tries to say goodbye to Hicks, knowing she will probably die and the rest of them after, and he corrects her by abruptly giving her his first name, and she is surprised and gives him hers, and he just says, "Don't be long, Ellen." Damn, there is so much to unpack in that 15-second sequence.), and it's even paid off at the end when Ripley wins and Newt calls her "Mommy" -- but it's also really obvious now on this viewing that they are both bonding because of being trauma victims. BOth of them also become proactive: Ripley takes charge of her destiny again, regardless of living or dying, to save Newt, and Newt opens herself up to Ripley.
It's just kind of incredible, the catharsis for both of these very scarred women, to try to heal and take control of their lives again. It's even in the last lines: "Can I dream?" asks Newt. "Yes, honey. I think we both can," replies Ripley.
I think this is why Aliens is one of those beloved action films that, aside from having many archetypical characters and memorable lines, operates on a few different authentic levels at once. It might be an action film, but it's just basically making "active" what amounts to strong dramatic arcs and truthful experience in how people deal with loss and trauma in ways that allow them to regain their humanity.
EDit: I gotta say too, I am trying really hard to reconsider Alien3 on the merits... but I can never ever EVER forgive how despicable the opening was, where basically a restored mother/daughter relations
as well as the healing of trauma victims are both treated as little more than plot detritus to be discarded for a far lesser story. I mean, it makes my stomach churn just to think of it. It's absolutely vile.
