A friend asked me about this today. He saw an ad for 10,000 BC and laughed at how it ended with a bit where a sabertooth tiger stops inches from the face of the hero and growls at him. He asked me what the first film to do that is. After thinking, the earliest I could think of is ALIEN (1979) with the scene featuring Veronica Cartwright. Can anyone think of this happening earlier?

ALIEN has to be the first. Every time I see that shot its framed and blocked out exactly like the shot in ALIEN. I've just always assumed it an "homage".

Of course, for all I know Scott might have gotten it from somewhere else.

Is it ALIEN or ALIEN3? We're talking about this kind of growly proximity, right...



... as a precursor to this...

To look at that beautiful set up in ALIEN3 again makes me want to get up immediately and go home and watch it, flaws and all. I don't think my bosses will support this idea, however, even if it is Friday.

It's been awhile since I watched them, but I wonder if one of the BLIND DEAD films has that sort of shot (though, if so, they wouldn't be growling).

How about the end of THE LOST WORLD, when the "T-Rex" stuck his face up to the guys climbing up to the lava bed? I'll have to try and find a cap to see just how close he got.

I'm pretty sure the recent ABOMINABLE has a scene like that with a Sasquatch.

Didn't I AM LEGEND swipe that shot? Haven't seen it yet.

That's the alternate ending, the 'money shot' of which ended up in some trailers.