The general aesthetic may make a lot of us immediately think “sci-fi” when Alien comes up, but the truth is that it is also a horror movie through and through. When we’re introduced to Ellen Ripley in the original film, she isn’t portrayed as a particularly important part of the ensemble cast, but turns out to be one of the most completely awesome female characters in both sci-fi AND horror. She’s killed once, but manages to come back from the dead and destroy even more alien butt, because YOU CAN’T KEEP RIPLEY DOWN!