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It has been pointed out by some critics that Aliens works as an
allegory of the Vietnam War, in that an overly confident military
finds itself in a quagmire battling an unseen opponent they cannot
comprehend. Sigourney Weaver, who holds strong views on gun
control, has stated that she was deeply uncomfortable with the
amount of gun violence in the movie, and that Ripley would be
required to strap on heavy artillery herself. But she admitted she
ended up enjoying the role and that the gunplay held a seductive
appeal. The film added an additional level of depth to Ripley's
character by establishing a daughter who grew old and died while
Ripley was lost in space (this scene was not included in the
theatrical version but was seen in extended versions on TV and
DVD). When Ripley discovers a little girl, Newt (Carrie Henn),
hiding in the ruins of the colony, Newt becomes a surrogate
daughter for Ripley, allowing Ripley to overcome her feelings of
guilt and achieve closure.