Originally Posted by benbess
Thanks very much. Do you know if that Freud film is any good?
I have never seen it, but I own the soundtrack as a big Jerry Goldsmith fan.
Originally Posted by benbess
Thanks very much. Do you know if that Freud film is any good?
I'm a fan too. And I think that his score for Alien is maybe one of the 5 best he ever did. Do you have a top 5?Originally Posted by Brisby
I have never seen it, but I own the soundtrack as a big Jerry Goldsmith fan.
Originally Posted by Bryan Tuck
Thought I'd bump this, as I haven't been able to find a clear answer on a certain point. Does anyone know for sure if the 4.1 soundtracks on the Blu-rays of Alien and Aliens are the original 70mm mixes (or at least based on them)? Just curious.
Thanks! I figured that's what they were, but there seemed to have been some confusion around the Web about it. That's really awesome that they provided so many options. I've always heard there were some noticeable differences between the 70mm and 35mm tracks for Alien (alternate dialogue, different sound effects). Are there any examples you know of? The film history buff in me is always fascinated by the different ways certain classic films have been presented.Lord Dalek said:The 4.1 mixes are indeed the original 6-track mixes for Alien and Aliens and the 5.1 DTS-MA are just simply upmixes with some slight stereoization in the surrounds. There was a guy here a long time ago who complained about how Alien's mixed was "altered" because a directional effect was omitted when Dallas is chasing the alien through the vent and they close the hatch behind him.
Turned out the guy was wrong and it NEVER sounded like that.
Originally Posted by Sam Favate
_Man_
I would go so far as to say it's likely the "King" of all Blu-Ray franchise collections. It's got virtually every extra that's appeared on prior releases along with new material (uncut Alien 3 documentary, Burke Cocoon Sequence etc.) A neat interactive feature (MU-TH-UR mode). It's pretty much everything fans of the series could ask for. Can't think of any other set off the top of my head that is as comprehensive)It's so wonderful to see a studio like Fox treat property like this so beautifully. As most of you discovered long before me, this is an outstanding boxed set. I hope to be able to look at more of it before I return to work next week.
I understand that for many things done in movies today CGI is a necessity. But, "Alien", a movie made over 30 years ago, is a prime example how good visual design can be without the use of excessive CGI ("some Directors" seem to have forgotten this) If you think about it, nothing much happens in Alien for a good 40 minutes, but thanks to the outstanding design (and a good cast of professional actors), that time leading up to the "birth" of the titular creature is never boringAs someone who hates the abundant use of CGI used in films (it completely ruined the Star Wars prequels), I was completely enthralled watching the old school of filmmaking that involved the building of elaborate sets and use of models instead of computer generated ones.
The DC was interesting to watch and it was great to be able to see "Alien" in a theater when the DC had a brief run. But I believe the Theatrical Cut overall is stronger than the DC (And actually "Director's Cut" is somewhat of a misnomer as the Theatrical Cut is still Ridley's preferred version of the film)Last evening I watched the Director's cut of ALIEN.
Ron, can you be more specific about where you found Jon Finch? I'd like to see that and I think I haven't found it.
That was James Remar (who more recently appears in Showtime's "Dexter"), who was originally cast in the Michael Biehn role. It's my understanding that a featurette highlighting footage of Remar in the role was originally planned for the Blu-ray release, but ultimately deleted. That's unfortunate, because I don't think it's an overstatement to say that the Alien Anthology is literally perfect otherwise, utterly comprehensive and definitive.Johnny Angell said:BTW, on a similar note, I remember seeing or perhaps hearing in the commentary for Aliens that an actor who was replaced, is still in the film. We only see his back, he was one of the marines.
Normally I would agree 100% in terms of this film in particular. But I can't in this case because much of the beautifully 'distressed reality' of Scott's original sets and design are now covered in a veneer of 2010 era cartoon colors- most notably teal and orange enhancements. The film used to have a natural look to it which suited the working class aspect of the characters and their situation. On Bd, the movie now looks closer to some Michael Bay extravaganza, with the coloring making everything look artificial and hyper-real. Maybe when we get to 4K re-issues Scott will come to his senses, this teal and orange fad will be played out, and we can get the film done again consistent with the way it originally looked. In the meantime, whenever I run across the spine to this set on the shelf looking for something to watch, I sigh and lose a little more enthusiasm for this hobby. Yeah it's a packed set- but I'd trade all the extras for one copy of the film that looked natural and not tarted up like a porn star trying to look 20 years younger than she is.Ronald Epstein said:As someone who hates the abundant use of CGI used in films (it completely ruined the Star Wars prequels), I was completely enthralled watching the old school of filmmaking that involved the building of elaborate sets and use of models instead of computer generated ones.
It is nearly perfect. I love the set. The planned lone commentary from Weaver(on all the films) makes me more than a little sad though. Apparently that feature fell through in the final stages of production.cafink said:That was James Remar (who more recently appears in Showtime's "Dexter"), who was originally cast in the Michael Biehn role. It's my understanding that a featurette highlighting footage of Remar in the role was originally planned for the Blu-ray release, but ultimately deleted. That's unfortunate, because I don't think it's an overstatement to say that the Alien Anthology is literally perfect otherwise, utterly comprehensive and definitive.
Originally Posted by Paul_Scott
Normally I would agree 100% in terms of this film in particular. But I can't in this case because much of the beautifully 'distressed reality' of Scott's original sets and design are now covered in a veneer of 2010 era cartoon colors- most notably teal and orange enhancements. The film used to have a natural look to it which suited the working class aspect of the characters and their situation. On Bd, the movie now looks closer to some Michael Bay extravaganza, with the coloring making everything look artificial and hyper-real.
Maybe when we get to 4K re-issues Scott will come to his senses, this teal and orange fad will be played out, and we can get the film done again consistent with the way it originally looked.
In the meantime, whenever I run across the spine to this set on the shelf looking for something to watch, I sigh and lose a little more enthusiasm for this hobby. Yeah it's a packed set- but I'd trade all the extras for one copy of the film that looked natural and not tarted up like a porn star trying to look 20 years younger than she is.