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When one looks in the box, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the cat.

Reactor

Stubby the Rocket commented on the new, official Prometheus trailer when it was released, and noted the typographical hearkening to the initial Alien trailer. Clearly, Tor.com weren’t the only ones who noticed, as this fan-made “trailer” for Alien shows – set to the style and music of the new Prometheus trailer, using footage from the 1979 film, the juxtapositions between the new film and the classic are eerie. Seriously, watch the above.

Some things to note, aside from the typographical tricks: while the Prometheus trailer uses the loud horn bursts that have become commonplace in movie trailers, it also uses the scream-ish noise from the initial Alien trailer. There are also similar shots of the U-shaped structure in both, framed similarly — though the fan-trailer chooses, interestingly, not to use this footage from Alien. The shot-to-shot similarities between the Prometheus trailer and the ’79 Alien trailer are striking in juxtaposition, and the thematic/emotional resonance that the fan-made “new” Alien trailer pulls out of the both is stellar.

Is it weird to admit that I actually wasn’t excited about Prometheus until I saw the fan-made Alien trailer and watched them all back to back? Because I’m totally more interested now, what with the inter-referential nature of the original trailers as displayed by the fan-made one. Neat.


Lee Mandelo is a multi-fandom geek with a special love for comics and queer literature. She can be found on Twitter and Livejournal.

About the Author

About Author Mobile

Lee Mandelo

Author

Lee Mandelo (he/him) is a writer, scholar, and sometimes-editor whose work focuses on queer and speculative fiction. His recent books include debut novel Summer Sons, a contemporary gay Southern gothic, as well as the novellas Feed Them Silence and The Woods All Black. Mandelo's short fiction, essays, and criticism can be read in publications including Tor.com/Reactor, Post45, Uncanny Magazine, and Capacious; he has also been a past nominee for various awards including the Lambda, Nebula, Goodreads Choice, and Hugo. He currently resides in Louisville and is a doctoral candidate at the University of Kentucky. Further information, interviews, and sundry little posts about current media he's enjoying can be found at leemandelo.com or @leemandelo on socials.
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