HTF BLU-RAY REVIEW: Alien Anthology - Page 5

I have never seen it, but I own the soundtrack as a big Jerry Goldsmith fan.
 

 

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?
 

 

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.

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.

This set came out last October (right?) and I am still watching the extras! Nearly done though - up to the Resurrection stuff. Really great set of documentaries and bonus materials.

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.

I need to pick this set up soon! It sucks when finances are in the tank! Anyway I am looking forward to getting this in HD Blu-ray.

You will not be disappointed.  Heck, I got this for myself last Christmas, and I still haven't gotten through all of it yet!  The making-of docs and "enhancement pods" that I've watched so far (Alien/Aliens/Alien 3) are amazing companion pieces to the films - very entertaining.

^ Completely agree. This set is the standard for archival releases. Unlike the new Star Wars set (which obviously followed AA's example in terms of packaging), this one has everything. Every trailer, every documentary, etc. Every movie series of the last 50 years should follow this example -- not too shabby for a series with only a 50% success rate (IMO)!

 

Hehheh... Well, to many, including myself, the entire SW series probably isn't much more than a 50% success rate either -- and that's probably forgetting about the revisionism issue too -- so ...

 

_Man_

 

Yeah, late to the party again.

 

Rarely do I have time to watch the Blu-rays that

I purchase.  However, being on vacation this week,

I finally have the time to dive into some of these 

elaborate boxed sets that I have had sealed on my

shelves for almost a year or more.

 

Last evening I watched the Director's cut of ALIEN.

Been a long time since I watched the original film

and I was pleasantly pleased to find how well it has

held up over the years.  In fact, I still find it to be 

one of the most brilliant horror/thrillers ever made.

I think Ridley Scott changed the face of science

fiction forever -- giving us something in 1979 that

we never had seen before.  In another brilliant move,

he kept the look of the film very raw and unsterile.

The Nostromo looks more like a worn tank than a

futuristic spacecraft.  The entire planet sequence 

looks amazingly real thanks to the use of smoke

and added weather elements that makes everything

appear harshly crude.  Of course, H.R. Giger's designs

put the look of the film into a category of its own. 

 

The quality of the transfer is as good as you would

expect.  The scene where Kane is shining his flashlight

over the row of alien eggs covered with a blue hue shows

more clarity and detail than I ever remembered with

any previous video releases. You can actually see the

leathery look of the eggs.

 

I also actually did something I rarely do these days --

dived into the supplements.  In this case, I watched

most of the ALIEN featurettes and was pleased to

uncover a piece of footage with Jon Finch who was

Ridley's first choice to play "Kane" before he got sick.

 

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'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 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)

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 boring

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)

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. 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.

As for the movie holding up, your darn tooting' it holds up. Even though I've seen this movie multiple times, it still has the power to provide some chills. It is technically near perfect. It has interesting characters the audience cares about. It takes it's time setting things up. I know the first time I saw it (in the theater), I was nervous the whole time, waiting for the hammer to fall.

Has there been a recent, box-office successful film that starts like Alien? You've got to be a very good director to pull that off.

 

 

 

To to the MAKING THE ALIEN ANTHOLOGY disc in 

the back of the set.

 

There is a featurette on casting.  Check that out for the

part about brining on Jon Finch.  There is a bit of footage

of him in the co-pilot's chair not looking very good.

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.

I believe there's an enhancement pod interview with Finch, where he tells a different story about it than Ridley Scott does in the full documentary.

 

The footage of the Marine's is in ALIENS.  It's specifically the shot that reveals the ceiling of the aliens' lair as all the Marines walk in, playing their flashlights around.   The part of Hicks was originally played by James Remar, who went through the whole military training and rehearsal process and then was replaced very quickly when filming began.  Michael Biehn was called in from the US and replaced him in the movie.  The only shot with Remar left in the film is that one reveal, since it isn't clear who is wearing the costume, and since a reshoot of that would have been an unnecessary expense on an already budget-challenged shoot.

 

The documentaries on all the movies, but particularly the first three, are quite instructive and refreshingly frank.  David Giler goes on at length about all the issues he had on each film, particularly in terms of the set politics on both the second and third films.  Dan O'Bannon is equally frank, both in the first documentary and in one bit of the enhancement pods, where he comments about Walter Hill and the authorship of the script.

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.

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.

 

Oh please. You want orange? Try watching the old VHS and laser of Alien. Now THAT'S orange!