Alien (1976)

Not really sure what is left to say about this one that has not already been said many times over. The crew of a commercial ship on flight back to earth picks up a life signal on a nearby planet, which they must investigate according to company policy. Bad move. Foolish crew member sticks his face unknowingly into an alien egg which spits out a facehugger, a slimy tentacled thing that attaches to your face and implants an egg down your hatch. The alien youngster later arrives by bursting out via the poor guys stomach in the classic chestburster scene. From here on out it's your typical "people stuck in a building with a monster" format, and it's done quite well. The atmosphere of the film is really terrific, definitely made me feel nervous and a bit claustrophobic even though I was sitting at home in my own living room. The set design, particularly of the alien hive was terrific and the same goes for the interior of the Nostromo. Good stuff. The alien design by H.R. Giger is of course a classic, and truly original for it's time. Love the drooling, elongated mouth perfect for chewing up a midnight snack of human astronaut. All in all, "Alien" is a moody, atmospheric classic not to be missed by the serious horror student.