It's blaster action, not Gothic future-horror. Fortunately, director-screenwriter James Cameron has shaped his film around the defiant intelligence and sensual athleticism of Weaver, and that's where Aliens works best.
Cameron's film is a lot of fun for what it is, a bonanza of brash action sequences and delicious camaraderie. It proves beyond a shadow of a doubt that while nobody can hear you scream in space, they can certainly hear you shoot.
The first of these movies remains one of the great sci-fi horror achievements of the modern cinema, but its sequel, "Aliens," is that rare instance where a follow-up deviates from the formula and finds an effective rhythm in propelling the story
This film is also the best monster movie of the year and the best picture of any kind to open so far this summer. Put it another way: Aliens is the Jaws of the '80s.
