Discrimination In Alien Nation

Race and discrimination have been an important and popular topic for Hollywood to take on in the film industry. Many movies have been made about the subject using very conventional approaches; however, Alien Nation takes a more unconventional approach to the subject. Even the title of the movie alludes to the bigger meaning behind the film. Alien Nation; alienation. With the use of sound, makeup and costumes, and estrangement of the Newcomers’ characters Alien Nation sheds light on the racists attitude often seen displayed in America.
Sound in Alien Nation is one of the ways the filmmakers depict the difference in the Newcomers to humans. Their voices and native language are vastly different. Their native language obviously differs in ways

George uses his native tongue and although his partner does not understand the words he uses, he understands the overall tone of the conversation, even going so far as to ask if his wife keeps him on a short leash. While the two men are different in appearance and their native languages are not the same, the audience sees them growing a lot closer than they ever thought possible.
Another method used to to highlight the drastic differences between humans and Newcomers in Alien Nation is the use of makeup. From the shapes of their head to the markings on their necks Alec Gillis, Shane Mahan, John Rosengrant and Tom Woodruff, the makeup artists for Alien Nation, did an excellent job of giving the Newcomers a look of being ever so vaguely different from humans. While it was obvious that they were not from Earth the Newcomers did not stand apart too much. This made them easily distinguishable, however still gave them a slight human

The film draws connections between the opening scene where passers-by are being interviewed about their feelings on the Newcomers. Their answers range from feeling like their jobs are being taken, asking why we (referring to The United States of America) have to take them, and expressing fears for their educations because of the Newcomers seemingly advanced learning skills.
Rockne S. O’Bannon, the writer of the film, obviously wanted to make a connection between the way people often speak of immigrants and the way the characters were speaking of the Newcomers. In Things Made Strange, Simon Spiegel explains it best, saying: “In daily life, we often perceive things only superficially—i.e., we do not really see them the way they are. To truly see things again we must overcome our “blind” perception, and this is only possible when they are made strange again. (Spiegel, 369)”
Seeing something through a different perspective, even as something as frivolous about an alien spaceship crashing to Earth and the way the aliens and humans have to adapt, grow, and learn to live together in a buddy-cop movie setting, can change a person’s view on the subject. While it was intended to be a comedy with a deeper meaning perhaps the viewers went away laughing, but also realizing the depth in the