Question about the plot to Aliens (1986)

Yeah I know it's not rescuing an animal on distinction but lots of times animals are captured without having to treat it like a crime. Apes are captured for drugs to be experimented on, and no war and political conspiracies there. I just feel that the company is making it an issue that it's not.

I still don't see why they don't just get people who actually want to do such a mission rather than manipulating people into doing it. If people in real life are willing to capture dangerous wild animals to be studied, why is it so hard to find people that are interesting doing so in the future? It just doesn't add up to me (shrug).

Plus just because these people work for the government, I don't see why they to treat it like crime. Sure they are a government company, but why would a company treat everything they do like it's a crime.

If the company would just be honest with everyone and ask military soldiers to work with animal capture experts and tell them that they want them to go out and capture an alien species to bring back to Earth to study, what's wrong with that? If not all of them want to do that, then find others to replace those people.

Why didn't they take that approach instead? And if Ripley protested, they could just tell her that's fine, we don't need you anyway, and she can just look for another job?

Probably because the people who truly would WANT to do something like that wouldn't agree to dissecting a new species for military/corporate profits. If they DO want to support it for military/corporate profits, then they're aware enough to realize their personal risk. That's assuming the corporation would allow their more educated and invested scientists to risk their life. Those people are more valuable alive than marine boots.

As to why they don't team up, see above + more costs in now sending two teams to work in tandem. If they don't want to do it, then time is wasted recruiting, rather, requesting others to sign up. So much easier, cheaper, more efficient, and tidy to just pay your government wing to order the marines out on a doomed mission.

This will probably be my last reply. I can't tell if you're asking questions just to ask questions to see how long someone will make an effort or if you are sincerely questioning all of this. Either way, it has gone far beyond analyzing a fictional story created for a movie fantasy. These questions can continue infinitely and still never satisfy your opinions on what motivates some people to do the things they do.

Final answer: It's a movie because someone wanted to make one.

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Okay thanks I am not asking questions for the sake of it. It's just in other movies, the military has no problem going on dangerous missions that are for military purposes.

In movies like Avatar and District 9, the military is all for risking their lives, for military purposes, because they believe in military and government.

So since other movies have no problems with people willing to do that, I am surprised the people in the Alien universe, have trouble being persuaded the same way.

Aliens (1986) is an allegory for the war in Vietnam.


Seriously though, 4 pages of the same questions, and answering them in as many different ways as possible... and you still don't understand the movie.
Like YN, I'm done as well now. I can't explain the same things over and over any more.

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I'll reply to this one because I think it sort of contradicts some of your previous positions. What I mean is, that most of this thread has been trying to explain how the military were sent because they were expendable. That little information was given to them deliberately to keep them unaware of the true risk that they were entering (for reasons already provided). So far the question seems to have been "Why not ask those who would want to go instead of sending the marines?"

I took you to mean civilian scientists, which is technically the only other option if not the military.

Reading this post quoted above I'm curious if you mean military scientists (or anyone in the military who would want to take such a risky mission).

If THAT is the case, then I don't think it changes much but it may help clarify our points a bit. I've stated that civilian scientists (most likely employed by WY) would not be sent because they are too valuable as compared to nameless grunts.

Military scientists then (if I'm now reading you correctly) would only open another door of complexity. Again, the mission isn't meant to succeed as far as the crew is concerned of what the mission is. The actual mission is to bring back a specimen by any means necessary. Sending military scientists complicates that because they at least have more than a high school education (I'm assuming that the selected crew had fairly low education given their attitudes and general history of military service recruitment---could be totally wrong, but I think the stereotype is what's playing here in this movie so it's reasonable to make that assumption I think). Higher education suggests that they may more likely see through the guise and realize what corporate plans are playing out. Why risk that? The less the crew knows the better, so throwing in actual scientists would only increase the odds of them figuring it out and turning on corporate.

Maybe some super military group could have gone in, captured one, and brought it back. Why would I want survivors if I'm developing new military tech? Why would I want to risk word getting out that I now have possession of what could arguably be the most important warfare discovery known to man? Why would I want 10 or so people all aware of exactly what and where this organism is to bid their knowledge to competing corps that could later affect my markets?

See where this is going?

Ha, I'm pretty freaked out right now at just how logical this movie is considering I've really only ever looked at it as a sci-fi action thriller. Huh. Neat!

Oh sorry, what I meant was send in soldiers and animal capture experts, who are actually interested in bringing an alien back to Earth, and then once it's brought back, military scientists will want to study it from there. Or have scientists go with the soldiers if they would like to. I just thought they could get soldiers and military scientists, who were actually interested.

This is what we're trying to say though... anyone who is actually interested in these creatures, is not going to go on a suicide mission.
There's two ways to get a sample of the creature.
1. Find someone who is impregnated
2. Get a facehugger and test it on someone


LV-426 is a warzone. There's no way anyone from Weyland-Yutani who is interested in the study and capture of a creature will risk their own life... so, they send in the expendable civilians, and follow that up with an expendable band of soldiers and one of their own expendable suits (Burke).
As you saw in the movie, Burke tried to get Ripley and Newt infected. His job was to get a sample, and just like the company itself, Burke decided that the people he was with were expendable.


Right, I'm definitely done now.

Ok yeah. Fair. Still not sure it would change much as the more intelligent the crew, the more likely they would be to figure out motives. Too, from a corporation PoV, I wouldn't want loose lips telling others what they brought back. Or even risk it. Or pay for it if I could get it done the evil way. I'm assuming my corporation is evil. I think given everything that continually happens in the Alien universe that's a solid assumption!

Okay but what I don't understand is, since when are people in the military not willing to go on a suicide mission for their government? They do it all the time! Since when did they say no to suicide missions? In other movies, the military does these missions voluntarily, without having to be fooled. So I find that this movie is set in a universe where the military is not willing to risk their lives, confusing.

Are they military or Mercs? There’s a difference. $$$$ Isn’t the whole premise of alien infestation a secret so you can’t go advertising that a whole Coloney has been taken by aliens and who wants to volunteer to capture one.

I would assume mercs, or military mercs. I thought that paying them enough money would make them risk their lives, or just get soldiers who are fanatics about expanding on the government's military weaponry, who would have no problem doing such a mission.

I think you’ve got a few more posts left in you - you can do it (rob Schneider voice)

How would you recruit these people and even source these people if it’s all hush hush. If they knew the real dangers...how much more would they request? Would there be a chance that it leaked to the public with more people in the know?

Okay maybe I'm confused here, but what is the big deal if this leaks to the public. They want this alien for the weapon's devision right? But the public in real life know about all sorts of military weapons such as nuclear bombs, ICBMs, rail guns, etc.

So what does it matter if the public finds about a new military weapon?

It’s a corporation isn’t it which is a bit different from the general public. Corporations would have competitiors. Also if the public gets abreast of it...maybe they would want the planet nuked given the danger of this alien. It’s an uncontrolled predatory life form after all rather than a man made device such as a Nuke which the human has the ultimate control of. This would ruin the commercial plans of weyland Corp. isn’t that the whole point of there endeavour...profit.

But I don't think the public has the power to decide to nuke a whole planet? Since when does the public have that kind of power? The government can just say no.

You’ve got to make more of an effort to fill in the grey area and use common sense please. The planets barren and full of almost infectious like predatory aliens that threaten human kind. You don’t think the media would have a deal of this..then comes public reaction..then public demand and then government action but most of all...goodbye to the profits of weyland, they wouldn’t be able to access the alien biology etc. The planet would foremost be quarrantined.

Oh okay... Yeah I guess... It's just when you watch other movies, the military has no problem doing dirty deeds for the government. Like in Avatar or District 9 for example, the military is doing pretty sinister things, and the public either ignores them or supports them. So it's hard to swallow this Alien universe when everyone has sense of moral pride, compared to other movies, where the government has no problem finding people who are all about risking their lives to take whatever they want.

absolutely badasses, hudson come here, comee hereeeeeeee