History Film / AlienResurrection

* EarnYourHappyEnding: [[spoiler: She's not the original Ripley, her daughter, Jonesy the cat, and anyone the real Ripley was familiar with or knew is dead, but at the end of the film, after more than 200 years of being in space, "Ripley" finally gets the chance to return to Earth. It's also hinted that she'll have a new "family" with the remaining crew of The Betty.]]

* CloningBlues: Following her death by dive into molten metal in the previous film, the military recovered a sample of her blood and attempted to clone her. The main character is Ripley 8, the first successful clone. The first seven, on the other hand, had some mishaps. As she was host to an alien parasite at the time, the conflicting genetic material resulted in numerous failed amalgams until they finally managed to iron out the process and recreate both mostly intact. Even so, Ripley 8 and the Queen still have a bit of shared genetics, resulting in weakened acid blood and acute predatory instincts for the former and increased intelligence for the latter and her spawn, not to mention a womb for non-parasitic birthing.

* CloningBlues: Following her death by dive into molten metal in the previous film, the military recovered a sample of her blood and attempted to clone her. The main character is Ripley 8, the first successful clone. The first seven, on the other hand, had some mishaps. As she was host to an alien parasite at the time, the conflicting genetic material resulted in numerous failed amalgams until they finally managed to iron out the process and recreate both mostly intact. Even so, Ripley 8 and the Queen still have a bit of shared genetics, resulting in acid blood for the former and increased intelligence for the latter and her spawn, not to mention a womb for non-parasitic birthing.

* TooDumbToLive: Dr. Gediman becomes increasingly fascinated with the aliens, to the point that he feels they will identify with him. When the Newborn approaches him after identifying more closely with Ripley 8 than the Queen, he seems to genuinely believe it might even think of him as its daddy.

* DecoyProtagonist: Captain Elgyn is played by a recognizable name and seems to have his head on his shoulders, leading you to believe he'll go for. Nope. He gets Captain Dallased less than halfway through.

* AluminumChristmasTrees: The over the shoulder blind from the half court shot? Yeah, that’s all Weaver. She got it on her sixth try. And the reason for the cut to another camera angle the instant the ball drops through the basket? Creator/RonPerlman almost ruined a perfect take with an incredulous reaction to Weaver actually making the shot.

* ActorAllusion:
** Creator/SigourneyWeaver made a point of not looking the Newborn in the eye whenever she had a scene with it. This was something she had learned from ''Film/GorillasInTheMist'' - to never look a potentially dangerous animal in the eye.

* AdaptationalExplanation:
** The novelization explains that the reason why it took so long for Purvis' chestburster to emerge was because he suffered from thyroid deficiency, which slowed down the chestburster's development.

* LargeHam: Creator/DanHedaya as General Perez, particularly during his introduction and [[spoiler:death scene.]]

* MadeOfPlasticine: [[spoiler:The Newborn]] when it is sucked out of the airlock through a dime-sized hole, even though when we first see it, it was tough enough to rip off a Queen's head with one swipe of its hand.
* {{Matricide}}: Played with. The Newborn, immediately after being born, inspects the Queen Alien and kills her. However, he then thinks of Ripley as his real mother, and acts affectionately towards her.
* MercyKill:
** Call offers this to Ripley while Ripley's still a prisoner, but Ripley is at best apathetic about having been cloned and refuses.
** Ripley 7, the only living but horribly deformed failed clone, requests this from Ripley 8. Ripley delivers.

** The ''[[Literature/AlienOutOfTheShadows Sea Of Sorrows]]'' novel said that [[MegaCorp Weyland Yutani]] came back into power by using {{Terraforming}} technology to fix the damage done by the Auriga.

* NoHoldsBarredBeatdown: Purvis delivers one to Wren before killing him with his chestburster.
* NonhumansLackAttributes: Almost averted. The Newborn Alien was supposed to have visible genitals, but the studio interfered, and the idea was scrapped.

** Gediman and his assistant have a serious one of these when they realise that two extremely dangerous Alien creatures are now loose on board the ship.
** Johner has himself one about halfway through the film. While swimming through a flooded section of the ship, he casually checks behind him, only to spin around when he realises there are Aliens behind him. As expected, he shits himself.

* PeopleJars: [[spoiler:Various Ripley clones, in jars. Since the Ripleys in question are the least successful of a batch of [[HalfHumanHybrid alien hybrids]], this is stretching the definition of "people" quite a bit.]]

* DegradedBoss: Much like in ''Film/{{Aliens}}'', the new Xenomorph Drones all get this treatment again due to them facing off against properly armed humans once more, and also, their Cloned Queen even somewhat gets this treatment due to the Newborn Xenomorph specimen easily killing her off by swiping her upper jaw right off of her EyelessFace when the First Acheron Queen some 200 years before her easily proved herself to be far harder to kill off than that.

* FailsafeFailure: The ''Auriga'' is programmed to automatically return to Earth in case something goes wrong. Unfortunately, the ''Auriga'' is the site of an alien breeding and testing facility, which is the absolute '''last''' thing you want near an inhabited planet.

%%* ActionizedSequel: Played at the very least half-way straight due to the presence of a fully fledged hive of Xenomorph Drones along with their Cloned Queen and also the Newborn Xenomorph specimen and also the presence of manmade weapons with which to fight back against them throughout the film. However, the on-screen action plays out more similarly to that of a comic book rather than the obviously really dark and also nitty-gritty militaristic action seen throughout the events of ''Film/{{Aliens}}''.

* AdmiringTheAbomination:
** Dr. Gediman is fascinated by the Newborn, as well as the normal Aliens, and seems to consider himself their father.

* ApeShallNeverKillApe:
** Call also brings this up after Ripley 8, who is also a hybrid (since she was the host that the new Xenomorphs were cloned from), shoots a Xenomorph, asking her why she would basically kill one of "her own kind". Ripley just shrugs it off with a dismissive "It was in my way".

* NoEndorHolocaust: The movie ends with [[spoiler:the good guys destroying the aliens on the research ship by crashing it into Earth's surface. We get a view from space as it crashes into what appears to be the east coast of either Africa or India, producing an ''enormous'' explosion that realistically would undoubtedly have killed millions... ''maybe'' more than a xenomorph infestation. In this case it is implied that Earth was already a devastated wasteland ("Earth. What a shithole."). The Special Edition contains an alternate ending with the protagonists in the ruins of Paris, which appears to be a wasteland. There's also a scene where Call says she re-calibrated ground level -- ensuring the ship would crash in an uninhabited quadrant]].

* PregnantReptile: It's unclear exactly what taxonomy the [[StarfishAliens Xenomorphs]] would belong to, but they're clearly not mammals since they reproduce through eggs and do not rear their young. However, because of retaining some of Ripley's DNA after gestating inside her, the new Queen ends up birthing a life newborn.
* ProtagonistCenteredMorality: The crew of the Betty are portrayed as a crass but generally endearing RagtagBunchOfMisfits, glossing over the fact that they are remorseless human traffickers responsible for handing twelve innocent space travelers over to the mad scientists who [[CruelAndUnusualDeath use them as xenomorph hosts.]]
* RaisedByRobots: [[spoiler:Call]] is a second-generation android, in that she was created by other androids. They're considered an anathema to humans.
* RidiculouslyHumanRobots: [[spoiler:Call is revealed to be one.]] So much so that Ripley says, "No human being is that humane."
* RobotGirl: [[spoiler:Annalee Call]]. It is interesting [[HumansAreBastards how fast]] other characters forget that they used to think about her as a human when they find out.

* RoboticReveal: [[spoiler:Call is revealed to be an android.]]

* SkullForAHead: The hybrid alien has what can only be described as a skull face.
* SociopathicHero: This Ripley is extremely cynical and callous, due to partially merging with the Aliens. A doctor theorizes that she has some form of emotional autism. Some examples of her sociopathy are trying to strangle Dr. Wren on a whim, breaking another doctor's arm immediately after she wakes up (in a deleted scene), and looking at another character getting dragged off by the Aliens with curious fascination. The only time she shows any real emotion is when she finds her other clones and incinerates them, and when her "son" (the Newborn) dies.
* SparedByTheAdaptation: In the video game, the space station burns up in the atmosphere instead of actually slamming into the planet with a blast radius large enough to certainly be an extinction-level event.

* SuperNotDrowningSkills: The characters hold their breaths for about ten minutes in the underwater scene. It's especially silly in Christie's case, since he's carrying someone else on his back as well. Justified for [[spoiler:Call, since she's an android]], and possibly Ripley, depending on how much her physiology was altered by mixing with the Aliens' DNA (who do just fine underwater). One does actually drown, but only because an Alien grabbed her and dragged her back until she died.
* ThereIsNoKillLikeOverkill:
** Johner gets startled when his face almost touches a spider web. He angrily holds his sidearm up to the spider and fires.
** The group plans to blow up the ship. [[spoiler:That plan fails, so they crash it on Earth.]]
* ThrownOutTheAirlock: [[spoiler:The Newborn is disposed off by ejecting it into space. Because the hull puncture is so tiny, it is slowly ripped apart and sucked out.]]

* DegradedBoss: Much like in ''[[Film/Aliens]]'', the new Xenomorph Drones all get this treatment again due to them facing off against properly armed humans once more, and also, their Cloned Queen even somewhat gets this treatment due to the Newborn Xenomorph specimen easily killing her off by swiping her upper jaw right off of her EyelessFace when the First Acheron Queen some 200 years before her easily proved herself to be far harder to kill off than that.

* DegradedBoss: Much like in ''Film/{{Aliens}}'', the new Xenomorph Drones all get this treatment again due to them facing off against properly armed humans once more, and also, their Cloned Queen even somewhat gets this treatment due to the Newborn Xenomorph specimen easily killing her off by swiping her upper jaw right off of her EyelessFace when the First Acheron Queen some 200 years before her easily proved herself to be far harder to kill off than that.

* DegradedBoss: Much like in ''Film/{Aliens}'', the new Xenomorph Drones all get this treatment again due to them facing off against properly armed humans once more, and also, their Cloned Queen even somewhat gets this treatment due to the Newborn Xenomorph specimen easily killing her off by swiping her upper jaw right off of her EyelessFace when the First Acheron Queen some 200 years before her easily proved herself to be far harder to kill off than that.

* DegradedBoss: Much like in ''Film/Aliens'', the new Xenomorph Drones all get this treatment again due to them facing off against properly armed humans once more, and also, their Cloned Queen even somewhat gets this treatment due to the Newborn Xenomorph specimen easily killing her off by swiping her upper jaw right off of her EyelessFace when the First Acheron Queen some 200 years before her easily proved herself to be far harder to kill off than that.

* DyingMomentOfAwesome: Purvis has an absolutely crazy death. Fresh from getting shot in the chest by Wren, he charges across the room, taking a ton of bullets. He grabs Wren, beats the overloving crud out of him and then positions himself behind Wren so his chestburster emerges straight through the villain's head.

* FoldSpindleMutilation: The fate of [[spoiler:the newborn human/alien hybrid]], who's sucked through a hole in the bulkhead.

* ActionizedSequel[=/=]SequelEscalation: Played at the very least half-way straight due to the presence of a fully fledged hive of Xenomorph Drones along with their Cloned Queen and also the Newborn Xenomorph specimen and also the presence of manmade weapons with which to fight back against them throughout the film. However, the on-screen action plays out more similarly to that of a comic book rather than the obviously really dark and also nitty-gritty militaristic action seen throughout the events of ''Film/{{Aliens}}''.

* AIIsACrapshoot: Inverted. [[spoiler:Analee Call]] found religion entirely on her own, and not as the result of any programming. The novelization hints that androids in general have started to evolve [[RobotReligion their own religious system.]] She is also the most sympathetic character out of the entire cast (not that that's saying much).

* CruelAndUnusualDeath: ''Holy shit'', the [[spoiler: human alien hybrid]]. Ripley 8 throws some of her acid blood onto a window, dissolving a hole and causing ExplosiveDecompression which sucks the creature towards it. Unfortunately, it is much to big to fit through and [[FoldSpindleMutilation gets sucked through piece by piece]]: first it's guts get sucked out, then its torso and limbs sort of implode and get pulled through, then finally its skull shatters and is sucked out, with the creature screaming in agony the whole time.
* CreepySouvenir: Ripley [[TongueTrauma pulls out an alien's head-bursting tongue]] and gives it to Call as a souvenir, who is disgusted.

* DecoyProtagonist: [[spoiler:Captain Elgyn is played by a recognizable name and seems to have his head on his shoulders, leading you to believe he'll go for. Nope. He gets Captain Dallased less than halfway through.]]

* HalfHumanHybrid: The Aliens normally adopt some of their host's genetic structure, an ability intended to allow them to better adapt to their environments. The Aliens in this film however were merged with Ripley's human DNA to an even greater extent. The drones look fairly normal, but Ripley 8 has slightly acidic blood and predatory instincts, the Queen Alien develops a quasi-mammalian reproductive system, and the Newborn is a clear mix between Alien and human physiology. Ripley's other clones are also less successful hybrids.

-->'''Vriess:''' What's got two thumbs, one eyes, and screws like a god?\\

* StealthPun: Ripley rips the inner jaw out of a dead Xenomorph Drone and proceeds to hand it over to Call, saying that it's a souvenir, so she's literally slipping her some tongue.

* UpCloseWithTheMonster: The Newborn hybrid, immediately after it is born and kills the Xenomorph Queen that birthed it, gets up in Ripley's face and clearly considers ripping her apart as well before stopping and imprinting on her.

* ZerothLawRebellion: [[spoiler:Annalee Call]] is revealed to be an "Auton" -- second generation robots, designed and built by other robots. "They didn't like being told what to do," rebelled, and in a subtly named "Recall" humanity launched a genocide against them, of which only a handful survived in hiding. Judging from [[spoiler:Call's]] behavior, it seems that the 1st generation robots programmed the 2nd generation Autons to be so moral that they discovered the Zeroth Law, and realized that the human military was ordering them to do immoral things, like kill innocent people. For a rebel robot, [[spoiler:Call]] is actually trying to save the human race ''from'' the Xenomorphs, when if she hated humanity she'd just let the Xenomorphs spread and kill them. She even respectfully crosses herself when she enters the ship's chapel, is kind to the Betty's wheelchair bound mechanic, and is disgusted by Johner's sadistic streak. Given that they live in a CrapsackWorld future, as Ripley puts it: "You're a robot? I should have known. No human being is that ''humane.''"

%%* ActionGirl: The Ripley clone. Also Call.

* ArtisticLicenseSpace: [[spoiler:The Newborn]] gets its entire body sucked through a dime-sized hole in the airlock window. If you were naked and subjected to the same conditions, you should be able to walk away in spite of the suction[[note]]unless the pressure level inside the spaceship ''greatly'' exceeds earth's mean atmospheric pressure ("greatly" as in "many times the pressure" -- which of course would be utterly stupid, as it would add a whole lot of unnecessary stress to the ship's hull)[[/note]].

* BigNo: Vriess when [[spoiler:Wren shoots Call.]]

* CameBackWrong: Ripley 8 retains the memories of her original self, but traces of the Alien DNA have changed her personality and parts of her body considerably.

* ExplosiveDecompression: Ripley uses this to kill [[spoiler:the Newborn]] at the end, when it is [[ThrownOutTheAirlock blown into space]] through a hole in the ship. A tiny hole. (Originally introduced in Dan O'Bannon's spec screenplay, ''Star Beast''.)

* OffingTheOffspring: [[spoiler:Ripley considers the Newborn, a murderous abomination, her "son", as well as the other Aliens ("I'm the monster's mother"). She ends up killing both of them.]]

* PlaceWorseThanDeath: Johner half-seriously says that he'd rather face the Aliens than go to Earth.

* StealthPun: Ripley rips the inner jaw out of a dead Xenomorph and proceeds to hand it to Call, saying it's a souvenir. She's literally slipping her some tongue.

* StockSubtitle: "Resurrection" is notoriously overused in the film industry as a sequel subtitle.

* AluminumChristmasTrees: The over the shoulder blind from the half court shot? Yeah, that’s all Weaver. She got it on her sixth try. And the reason for the cut to another camera angle the instant the ball drops through the basket? Creator/RonPerlman almost ruined a perfect take with [[{{Corpsing}} an incredulous reaction]] to Weaver actually making the shot.

* {{Corpsing}}: Vriess's line was originally "Who were you expecting? The Easter Bunny?" but it kept setting everyone off in hysterical laughter (due to the actor saying "''Eastern'' Bunny").

* Decoyprotagonist: [[spoiler:Captain Elgyn is played by a recognizable name and seems to have his head on his shoulders, leading you to believe he'll go for. Nope. He gets Captain Dallased less than halfway through.]]

* HiddenInPlainSight: Vriess has the parts to a shotgun attached to his bulky electric wheelchair. He doesn't need to worry about metal detectors because it blends in with the chair.

''Alien: Resurrection'' (1997) is the fourth film in the ''Franchise/{{Alien}}'' film series. The screenplay was written by Creator/JossWhedon, and was directed by French director Creator/JeanPierreJeunet (''Delicatessen'', ''The City Of Lost Children'') and is his only Hollywood studio-based film to date.

* SpaceDoesNotWorkThatWay: [[spoiler:The Newborn]] gets its entire body sucked through a dime-sized hole in the airlock window. If you were naked and subjected to the same conditions, you should be able to walk away in spite of the suction[[note]]unless the pressure level inside the spaceship ''greatly'' exceeds earth's mean atmospheric pressure ("greatly" as in "many times the pressure" -- which of course would be utterly stupid, as it would add a whole lot of unnecessary stress to the ship's hull)[[/note]].