The discussion of the Alien series of films and the props used in them is the aim, but if it's got Big Bugs and Big Guns, then they are welcome too!





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 Post subject: Re: FURY 161 Staff Jacket
PostPosted: Wed Oct 28, 2020 10:06 am 
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The only trouble with wearing this jacket regularly through the winter is that there are more opportunities for awkward conversation.
For people who don't recognise it from the movie that motto can be a touch 'oppressive'.
An old friend of mine, whom I know to have been a POW in Germany, looked closely at it once and asked me what it was about. I couldn't explain quick enough!

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PostPosted: Wed Oct 28, 2020 1:56 pm 
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Oh damn! I can see that being an awkward conversation.

I have a winter jacket decked out with Alien Isolation patches, so it says Sevastopol all over it. Well in the last year that became a much bigger deal (the real Sevastopol being in Ukraine) so I had to try to explain why I was wearing a jacket inspired by a game, inspired by a film, inspired by an author who happened to write about that port over a hundred years ago! Sheesh.

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PostPosted: Wed Oct 28, 2020 2:01 pm 
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Yes, I can see what you mean.

The patch motto is very possibly (I would argue certainly) inspired by the ‘Serenity Prayer’ of Alcoholics Anonymous, which begins: ‘God, grant us the serenity ...’ The theme of the patch may imply serenity in overcoming an ‘addiction’ to violent crime instead of alcoholism. The prisoners aspect in addition to the religious aspect (Christian fundamentalism) would also fit in well with the Alcoholics Anonymous subtext, in my opinion.

The patch motif and motto may also - possibly only coincidentally - suggest some BDSM themes also, in my opinion.

In any event, the amount of thought that went into the design of this simple prop really showcases the attention to detail that characterizes the costume design in this film. There’s so much backstory hinted at with little details like that, and it captures the imagination.

Just another reason that this film is an underrated classic I guess.

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PostPosted: Wed Oct 28, 2020 5:39 pm 
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Schreiber wrote:
The patch motif and motto may also - possibly only coincidentally - suggest some BDSM themes also, in my opinion.

It's not just you!

Harry

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PostPosted: Wed Oct 28, 2020 9:00 pm 
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Harry Harris wrote:
Schreiber wrote:
The patch motif and motto may also - possibly only coincidentally - suggest some BDSM themes also, in my opinion.

It's not just you!

Harry


Then you notice the corset-like laces on the back of the trousers...

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PostPosted: Wed Oct 28, 2020 9:44 pm 
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Hey, if anyone is in need of a pair of boots for their impression, I have this pair that is available for a very reasonable price or trade for a pair in my size. They are UK size 11, 14 hole, leather and in excellent condition. The brand name is Undercover. Have a look. I’m parting with them because I wear a size UK 10.

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PostPosted: Wed Oct 28, 2020 9:55 pm 
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retrogarde wrote:
Harry Harris wrote:
Schreiber wrote:
The patch motif and motto may also - possibly only coincidentally - suggest some BDSM themes also, in my opinion.

It's not just you!

Harry


Then you notice the corset-like laces on the back of the trousers...


I can see the corset analogy there! That’s cool. I would love to learn more about how the costume designers went about conceiving of these things.

I would love a pair of these trousers. I recall that someone mentioned on this forum that they might possibly be in a position to reproduce them? I’ll try and find the post. Maybe it would be possible to contact a manufacturer somewhere and have them remade based on photos?

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 Post subject: Re: FURY 161 Staff Jacket
PostPosted: Thu Oct 29, 2020 10:44 am 
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That would be me.

It's a project which is in my mind but very much 'on the back burner' at the moment.

I need to shop around a bit to find suitable fabric. They're made of olive drab sweatshirt fleece. I've tried a few suppliers for samples but none have been a passably good colour match yet. I then also need to find the matching rib for the cuffs, waistband and pockets.
Buying a neutral fabric and dying it is a possibility, but with polyester and blends it can be very hit and miss.
Certainly, there are suppliers out there - I've just got to find one who doesn't charge the earth for a small quatity.

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PostPosted: Thu Oct 29, 2020 11:53 am 
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Yes! It was a post you had made. Thank you for replying here.

What about crowd funding this project? I would really like to make this happen. If you have other priorities at the moment I understand, though!

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 Post subject: Re: FURY 161 Staff Jacket
PostPosted: Thu Oct 29, 2020 12:36 pm 
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The main issue I have at the moment is a lack of workspace... That's affecting my business, not just these projects so it's high on my list to remedy!

Once I've got my workroom sorted, crowdfunding could certainly be something to look into. Although I don't anticipate a massive cost. Fabric should run somewhere around £7-£15 per metre. A few m would make sever pairs of trousers.

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PostPosted: Thu Oct 29, 2020 1:17 pm 
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This sounds great to me!

Do you think that you might be in a position to start discussing funding and production of trousers after the winter holidays? The price range you estimated seems so low! This is very exciting. Let’s make this happen!

P.S. it’s cool to be able to chat with you about this stuff after having read your posts on this forum about prisoner and staff costumes before I joined. It’s cool that other people are into this obscure subject!

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 Post subject: Re: FURY 161 Staff Jacket
PostPosted: Thu Oct 29, 2020 1:42 pm 
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We've got a good group here; we all bounce off each other in these projects. You fit right in :)

The actual sales cost of the trousers would be higher of course, that's just an estimate of the fabric costs and I'll need to make allowance for my time to produce them. But it's not going to be massively expensive.

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PostPosted: Thu Oct 29, 2020 2:28 pm 
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Happy to be aboard!

Yeah, I anticipated that the final costs would be higher. It would be incredible to own a pair (or two!) of them.

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PostPosted: Fri Oct 30, 2020 4:57 am 
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Just before Andrews gets snagged by the Alien we see a shot of him from behind and he has some sort of pouch or pack on his belt. Any idea what it is?

Attachment:
alien3-movie-screencaps.com-7974.jpg
alien3-movie-screencaps.com-7974.jpg [ 85.83 KiB | Viewed 12530 times ]


Also, I love the sculpture of Justice (looking decidedly male) in the background.

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PostPosted: Fri Oct 30, 2020 12:41 pm 
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That is a cool pouch.

Here it is from a slightly different perspective:

Image

As with identifying any prop in this film, there is a question that we need to ask ourselves: was it (a) a dedicated production-made item, i.e., a prop; (b) a repurposed military surplus item that has been production modified; or (c) a repurposed military surplus item that has not been production modified?

Assuming that it was neither option (a) nor (b) and is an otherwise commercially available and easily identifiable item with probable military surplus origin (as is the case in the N2B jackets), I conducted a brief online search with various search terms. I scrutinized numerous photos in an attempt to locate the pouch in question.

I haven't been successful, but I have some general speculative remarks to maybe help narrow down the search, if in fact it is a military surplus item and not only a prop or production-modified item.

It appears to be rubberized, which strongly suggests that it is a post-WWII item, as rubberization was characteristic of Cold War era combat equipment. A limited number of items during WWII were indeed rubberized, e.g., the early variant of the Wehrmacht gas cape bag, but rubberization didn't characterize equipment before and during wartime to the extent that it did afterward. Since the film was released in 1992 and production started before that year, it is reasonable to assume that the item could have been produced between 1945 and 1990, capturing the entire Cold War period.

The materials, construction and dimensions of the pouch suggest to me that it may have been a surplus gas mask carrier. I cautiously make this assumption based on comparison with other gas mask carriers, e.g., that of the Swiss, which bears the strongest resemblence, in my opinion, and some others. Its original purpose may correspond to any number of things, however, such as pouch to contain medical supplies of some description, garments, personal provisions or possibly even ammunition. The guiding assumption being that the item it housed should remain as protected from moisture as possible.

Here's the Swiss gas mask bag for reference:

Image

If we’re not successful in identifying the pouch as a military surplus item, if this is the case, or the pouch is only a prop or a production-modified military surplus item, it would be possible to fabricate it. It appears to consist of only rubberized canvas and a snap closure, with some means of affixing it to the body, which are obscured from view unfortunately. There may be a strap visible to the right side of the pouch, but in my opinion, this could be part of a garment or something else entirely and unrelated to the pouch.

In another photo from that scene (posted below), the prisoner in the far right frame is wearing two pouches, one of which (his right side) is at a glance almost certainly a black (or production blackened from olive drab) US Army canteen cover. I am not certain about the pouch worn on his left, but I could investigate. This lends some credibility to the assumption that surplus items were simply repurposed, possibly with some production modification.

Image

Let’s keep looking.

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Last edited by Schreiber on Fri Oct 30, 2020 12:44 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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PostPosted: Fri Oct 30, 2020 12:44 pm 
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retrogarde wrote:
Just before Andrews gets snagged by the Alien we see a shot of him from behind and he has some sort of pouch or pack on his belt. Any idea what it is?

Attachment:
alien3-movie-screencaps.com-7974.jpg


Also, I love the sculpture of Justice (looking decidedly male) in the background.


That futuristic sculpture is mega. It's like a hybrid of Justice and a male bodybuilder. Some interesting themes going on there. I love it.

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PostPosted: Fri Oct 30, 2020 1:16 pm 
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Is the pouch on his belt though?
Looks a bit like the strap is part of the pouch, even seems to widen to the height of the it?

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PostPosted: Fri Oct 30, 2020 2:13 pm 
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Yes,I thought the same regarding the possible strap part widening toward the pouch (like a fanny pack), but I don’t think it’s possible to say with any certainty as to whether that is a strap or maybe part of a garment hanging down. It could be attached to the belt by some means or it could have a strap that we can (or can’t) see in the film still. It’s almost impossible to say.

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 Post subject: Re: FURY 161 Staff Jacket
PostPosted: Fri Oct 30, 2020 3:15 pm 
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I had a look around again online. I located these other bags that bear some resemblance to the pouch in question. They are constructed from canvas and are not rubberized. I believe these could be modified to emulate the pouch in the film still worn by Andrews (Brian Glover). They both have press studs (i.e., snaps) and a closure flap with 'square' ends (not folded inward). Have a look.

Hungarian gas mask bag:

Image

This gas mask bag is Czech:

Image

The Swiss gas mask bag (shown again below) might be the best option if modification is the means in question, however, since it's rubberized, and it looks to me like Andrew's pouch is rubberized canvas or possibly vinyl. It would be necessary to remove the stitching at either end of the closure flap to open them outward and create the square ends. This may leave some visible evidence that they were modified, however. It would also be necessary to shorten the bag and fold and re-stitch it, such that it conforms to the shape of the pouch in the still. This would also be the case for the Hungarian and Czech surplus bags.

Image

It appears that Morse (Danny Webb) may also be wearing a similar pouch on his hip, displayed in the image below.

Image

Fabricating a pouch from scratch would be an option also. The design appears to be simple. It would be possible to source some rubberized material, such as an old military poncho or tarpaulin for this purpose. The press studs are relatively easy to apply.

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PostPosted: Fri Oct 30, 2020 3:26 pm 
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punkmarine wrote:
Is the pouch on his belt though?
Looks a bit like the strap is part of the pouch, even seems to widen to the height of the it?


The material that appears to widen may in fact be Andrews' cardigan. It might appear darker in that shot that we're using to analyse the pouch in. Have a look at this image from the same scene.

Image

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PostPosted: Fri Oct 30, 2020 3:45 pm 
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Don't think so, it looks like you can see the bottom of the cardigan, just below the jacket hem on the right in Retro's picture?

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PostPosted: Fri Oct 30, 2020 3:56 pm 
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Ah yeah, you're right. It does look like some kind of 'fanny pack' strap that tapers away from the bag.

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PostPosted: Fri Oct 30, 2020 4:42 pm 
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I just ordered this larger 'Serenity' patch on ebay that Nujack brought to my attention. Thanks again, Nujack. Here's a link to the vendor if anyone else is interested.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/ALIEN-SERENITY ... 3220825902

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PostPosted: Fri Nov 06, 2020 6:04 pm 
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I did a test fitting on Halloween with an alternate trouser option. These are the correct material and I may alter them to be (closer to) screen accurate as I was able to snag a few extra pairs for $1 each.

Attachment:
123661787_10217538194582268_7156094029478767500_o.jpg
123661787_10217538194582268_7156094029478767500_o.jpg [ 201.44 KiB | Viewed 12430 times ]

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PostPosted: Sat Nov 07, 2020 9:47 am 
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Your impression looks good.

I like the trousers. It’s cool you could get extras for such a low price! Did you get them in a store or online? I have a pair that are close to those worn in the film. I’ll try and post a photo. It would be awesome to have the reproductions made.

I have a couple little projects planned. I want to compile a table with descriptions of each type of boot worn in the film a companied by photos to illustrate, including details like color, eyelet number, style, etc. I want to do this also for headwear. There is a small variety of headwear worn by staff and prisoners in the film. There seem to be for instance a minority of prisoners of who wear the M1941 ‘Radar’ or ‘Jeep’ style knit cap in olive and in black:

EAE8A0D5-553D-4FF5-BC69-083B49DD1955.png
EAE8A0D5-553D-4FF5-BC69-083B49DD1955.png [ 548.02 KiB | Viewed 12399 times ]


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