Original artwork, not a still
We're on an express elevator to hell - going down!
— Aliens ‧ 1986
Behind the line
What it means
Our interpretation.
A panicked, hyperbolic way of saying things are heading fast toward disaster. The image of an express elevator makes the descent sound quick, with no stops, and the exclamatory "going down" turns the dread into a shouted, darkly comic announcement.
Context reviewed
In context
Spoilers for AliensShow the scene
Hudson says it during the dropship's plunge from the Sulaco to the surface of LV-426, trying to get his fellow marines fired up for a mission most of them expect to be a waste of time. He has already spent the trip needling Sergeant Apone, Vasquez and Lieutenant Gorman. On the ground they find the colony ravaged and only one survivor, a girl nicknamed Newt.
Sources (2)
- Xenopedia: William HudsonBiography, Mission to LV-426Reference checked
- Wikipedia: Aliens (film)Plot sectionReference checked
Context reviewed
