The Monstrous Hundred continues with the 90s, a turning point in effects-making with the advent of CGI. Tremors (1990) Kicking off the 90s roster of creature features on a fabulous note, Tremors is one of the most brilliant, all-around engaging monster movies of all time. From the witty dialogue penned by S.S. Wilson and Brent… Read More Special: Monster Legacy’s Monstrous Hundred – Part 3
We continue with the second part of the Monstrous Hundred. Now we dive in he 70s and the glorious 80s, which saw a renaissance of practical effects. King Kong (1976) Probably the weakest of all Kong films (not including the abhorrent Skull Island), and one with a remarkably extended and multi-limbed controversy behind it. Regardless,… Read More Special: Monster Legacy’s Monstrous Hundred – Part 2
“Three years ago, when I was here for King Kong,” humbly said Carlo Rambaldi at the 1980 Academy Awards, “I don’t know English, and I said ‘Thank you’. Now I learn very well English, and I say, ‘Thank you very much!’”. Carlo Rambaldi (September 15, 1925 – August 10, 2012) was an Italian special effects… Read More Exclusive: “The Mechanics of Monsters: From Carlo Rambaldi to Makinarium”
“No one understands the lonely perfection of my dreams. I found perfection here. I’ve created it. A perfect organism.” “They want Aliens, I’ll give them fucking Aliens,” said Ridley Scott of the eponymous creature’s return in Alien: Covenant. Previously, the director had said that “the beast is done. Cooked,” something that resulted in the complete… Read More StarBeast — Alien: Covenant, the Alien
From the onset, it was known that the monsters in Alien: Covenant would be mostly digital effects. “We knew from the outset that we were going to do fully CG versions of all the creatures,” said visual effects supervisor Charles Henley, “but Ridley also wanted to have something there on set that he could frame… Read More StarBeast — Alien: Covenant, the Neomorph
Main Articles: StarBeast — Alien: Covenant, the Neomorph StarBeast — Alien: Covenant, the Alien
Monster Legacy had the privilege and honour to interview Adam Johansen, head of Odd Studio, about their work on Alien: Covenant. For the film, Odd Studio merged with Conor O’Sullivan’s Creatures Inc. to create a series of practical creatures that would serve both as onscreen effects and as reference for the digital effects.
Main Article: Invaders on the Fourth of July
The question of whether or not we are alone in the universe has been answered. The Alien invaders of Independence Day are not seen up close in the film until Hiller knocks one down after its craft crashed. The creature is subsequently seen within a laboratory where the film recreates a key sequence concept common… Read More Invaders on the Fourth of July
Whilst Alien Vs. Predator marked the first film appearance of an Alien birthed from a Predator host — abbreviated in ‘Predalien’ — the concept had already been explored in the eponymous comics and video games, starting from the 1995 run Aliens Vs. Predator: Duel. Shortly after the publication of that series, freelance concept artist and… Read More StarBeast — Aliens Vs. Predator: Requiem, the Predalien
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