claustrophobic movies
Das Boot 1981
Buried 2010
The Descent 2005
Panic Room
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MovieChat Forums > General Discussion > claustrophobic movies
Going on a limb here and say 'Star Trek: The Motion Picture.' In the vastness of space, everything aboard the starship USS Enterprise seems so enclosed last I remember. Being a vessel of exploration, it would make sense for it to be primarily fitted for function over other amenities.
I felt this factor was amped up in the film due to the lack of color in many places, particularly the scene in which an entire crew of cadets are present. I think the filmmakers wanted to give a sense of isolation, that the struggle in the search of one's identity being separated by technology, tied in directly to the film's premise of finding purpose.
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'Das Boot'
Dark, crowded, smelly, and living inside a pressurized metal tube. No thank you. Hope no one needs to use the restroom.
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Alien
shareIn giving an average score in his first review of the film, paraphrasing Roger Ebert, he said,"It's a haunted house on a spaceship."
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It truly is!
I have a theory about Alien, though... second half of the 70s, Jaws had started the summer blockbuster trend, and then Star Wars solidified it.
Fox is hungry for another one and it needs to get done quickly. They know a big factor in Jaws was the almost unseen monstrous threat. Star Wars' major point of originality was to portray a space movie that is "lived in," dirty and industrial and authentic.
Perhaps Fox should take these two datums, combine them, and make a movie focusing on them.
Voila, Alien = Jaws + Star Wars.
Evidence? Alien release date: May 25, 1979, two years TO THE DAY after Star Wars released. I know 5/25/77 well because I was born 5 days previous.
Alien is an extremely calculated movie, engineered to make a lot of money with minimal fuss (which is why the interesting stuff from the script got yanked out, hell Fox didn't even want to spend money on the space jockey set, so it had to be slightly cheated, which creates a minor size discrepancy).
Sounds like a solid theory.
shareFascinating.
It's been a while since I've read up on the film, but didn't director Ridley Scott disagree with Fox execs on a bunch of things; over the kind of corridor lighting in the spaceship, what degree of range of motion should the alien have, and how should the alien look, forcing set designers to get very creative with heavy restrictions?
I thought Fox went into the project with big ideas, as you say, but felt they bit off more than they could chew, losing confidence in their goal. Wasn't Fox surprised by the film's success, assuming what a headache it had been working and collaborating with staff on the set?
You clearly have put a lot of effort into your cool theory.
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One more piece of evidence: Alien had a short lived toy line, including stuff intended for small children. It was cancelled after parents complained.
Fox REALLY wanted Alien to be the R-rated Star Wars.
I wasn't aware of this
https://www.dreadcentral.com/last-toys-on-the-left/262691/whatever-happened-original-line-alien-1979-toys/
It was close to being very inappropriate. If Ridley had his way, Sigourney would have been nude at the end instead of in underwear.
shareFox probably didn't know what they wanted Alien to be? It would explain why Aliens put less emphasis on horror and more on action, complete with a rescue mission other than going back to retrieve a cat.
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That's a good quote👍
Ebert had a way with words
Even more impressive considering he waited to watch films all the way through before starting to jot down notes of his thoughts. He wanted to take it all in, big picture. I love reading his scathing reviews where he tears into films he despises. Remember 'North' (1994)? HaHa!
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Saul fia (Son of Saul) (2015), I think it's the POV combined with the grim circumstances that make the film feel very claustrophobic to me.
sharePandorum and Event Horizon made me feel pretty claustrophobic.