ALIEN QUADRILOGY discussion thread (including all the glitches) (1 Viewer)

[Carter of Mars]

The 9-disc Quadrilogy wasn't enough? I tend to think most people were overwhelmed by what they saw. It was too much. And did it sell well enough to justify re-visiting that well? I remember that set was quickly broken apart and the movies were sold individually. And I've seen tons of the sets just sitting around, while Fox re-issued the original 1999 DVDs, including a recent 3-disc box set of the first three films.

 

[Nelson Au]

Thanks Jim! I'll either go for an upconvert or HD-DVD player as it will upconvert too. There just doesn't seem to be any indication as a clear format winner yet!

 

[Robert Anthony]

I remember that set was quickly broken apart and the movies were sold individually.

It was announced before the set was released, if I remember right, that you'd be able to purchase the movies individually after a month. The set's "Breaking apart" wasn't a result of poor sales. That was always in the cards.

 

[Charles de Lauzirika]

No compromises were made for seamless branching. The Assembly/Special Edition cut of "Alien 3" in the Quadrilogy set is based on a specific cut of the film created by Fincher and Rawlings. As such, we felt that we should stay as loyal to the actual work generated by the filmmakers as we possibly could. To cherrypick from the two workprints and merge those elements together would have generated a new version of the film that was never part of the original creative process. Without Fincher's direct guidance, our approach had to be one of disciplined restoration, not unchecked revisionism.

But I do think there's one more pass to be had with the presentation of the "Alien" films, beyond a simple HD upgrade.

 

[oscar_merkx]

Hi Charlie

Good of you to chime in with some comments.

Would you be able to elaborate on that comment ?

Cheers

Oscar

 

[captainjoe]

I enjoyed the alternate cut of Alien 3. It's very different from the theatrical cut and it isn't in the best of shape but I was expecting a lot worse. It still looks great.

 

[Roy Batty]

Should we take this as a hint of things to come?

Thank you again for chiming in from time to time, Mr. Lauzirika, it is a much appreciated oportunity.

And, if you happen to read this, please, could you clarify for me a doubt that has haunted me since the QUADRILOGY set was released?

The so-called Ridley-grams for ALIEN were supposed to be complete, but they were not, they ended abruptly and quite soon. Was that an oversight glitch?

Thanks a lot!

 

[Charles de Lauzirika]

Nope...not hinting at anything. But if Fox ever wanted to revisit the films, there is certainly more that can be done. Hard to believe, I know...

As for the missing Ridleygrams, yes, it's an authoring error that slipped through the cracks during the mad rush to finish. Hopefully, it's something that can be fixed in the future.

 

[Jim C]

Hi Charlie, many, many thanks or clearing that up for me Being an avid follower of this film, it's something that I have always questioned after viewing the A3:SE on the Quad set. Really nice to know that you and your team completed this cut with the upmost respect to Fincher and Rawlings' work.

As for the scenes and footage that didn't make the cut, I take it this footage has been preserved and could at some point be included on a future release? Also, in your A3 documentary, David Giler mentioned a 3 hour cut of the film shown to the studio execs - was that accurate, or was David just thinking off the top of his head with regards to the length of the assembly? My understanding from interviews with Fincher, was that initial assembly of the film clocked in at around 2hrs 20 mins?

Also, will your uncut A3 documentary ever see the light of day - I'm sure it would have offered a terrific insight into the problems that the production experienced (however, I can understand if you can't answer this ).

Keep up the fine work Charlie. Your hard work, efforts and enthusiasm for the products you create is truly exceptional. I have high hopes for the new Blade Runner set, and I already know that I'm going to love the results - it will sit proudly alongside my Quad set(s).

Regards
JC

 

[Jim C]

That is my understanding as well Robert I don't think for one minute that this set under-performed in sales numbers - it's one of Fox's most valauable and profitable assets.

Regards
JC

 

[WillG]

Also, will your uncut A3 documentary ever see the light of day

I remember a HTF Fox studio chat a couple of years ago where that question was asked and the response indicated that the uncut doc would never be released.

Of course, things like this have been said before and you never know what a studio might do to sell a new edition of a film. I wouldn't hold my breath on this one, though.

 

[Jim C]

No problems Nelson Definately go for a new Hi Def player if you can, you will be in awe of how stunning both HD-DVD and BD are. Besides, player prices are slowly coming down in price - and it's really worth the extra investment.

Regards
JC

 

[Mark_TS]

A little off topic, but...
In an interview with Yaphet Koto years ago, he remarked that there was enough cut footage from ALIEN for at least a 3 hour version of the movie (or was it 5?)

I was hoping for a longer version myself.

It's my impression from Ridley's remarks that he "tightened" the pace of the film to make it less slow and cerebral-which to me, gave the film its dark, brooding atmosphere-and was possibly done to appease todays MTV generation attention span.(?)

He shouldnt have.

Most of todays generation wont like the film anyway, as it has no car chases, laser battles, bossomy girls in tight clothing, constant explosions or loads of "action" (or Marines in constant machine gun battles)-it had a too realistic, sixties trancelike quality-in real time- for many.

On the other hand, the long time fans of the film would have snatched up an extended DVD version of the film in a snap, no matter how long or slow paced of a build up it was, if done in a sensible way-because the film was an enviornment unto itself. One of the few films that gave the true feeling of the vast, eerie, mysterious loneliness of space, and was to me, what made the film special, along with the alternate low key music soundtrack.

Without looking, I think the 'Directors Cut' is actually a bit shorter than the original.

This is not to disparage Scott, as I love most of his films.

Rather, like the extended version of ALIEN 3 (now there's a slow, cerebral movie for you-which I also enjoy)-an extended version of ALIEN is what I would like to see-more shots of exploring the planet, the derelict, more crew interaction, more shots of the Nostromo's interior (ie -rooms we saw little of-like the engine room labyrinth- or perhaps sets we never saw at all.)
It would have also been nice to see more of the refinery-as it was always seen from a distance-and in the shadows.
Was any footage shot that had the crew roaming around on that platform?

It is also too bad Scott was not given the money to add more to the film.

A hole chisled through the deck of the derelect ship into the rocks beneath it, to the cave/chamber below, made little sense.
I wasnt an actual passageway, or part of the ship, it seemed, and you dont drill through your hull, to get at whats below no matter WHAT it is...
But that is not Scott's fault

My $.02...

(and I will add the Charlie and Ridley did a great job with what they did come out with-the transfer of the DC of the film is stunning, as are the extras.)

Well, maybe when the HD version comes out....

 

[mike kaminski]

Yeah, i doubt the uncut Alien 3 doc will ever be released since it is a decision that Fox made since the doc portrays them and their representatives in a very slanderous light (i remember one description where Fincher, looking pissed off, levels the boom mic to himself and says something like "i hope twentieth century fox realised what morons they are" or something like that). One of the chapters, which was entirely deleted and was focused on the tense relations between Fincher and the producers, was called "Wreckage and Rape" i believe.

As for teh DC cut of Alien, i really like it. Its subtly different but faithful to the theatrical. The only bit of trimming that was done was the tightening of a few shots when Brett searches for Jones--and this, i think, was a good decision. It has less to do with appeasing the MTV generation--the fact is, when this scene was shot this type of slow build of a person searching in the dark and being pounced on was new and suspenceful, but now it is a cliche; the audience knows exactly what is happening and shots drag on. There is also a terrific shot that at first i was opposed to showing the creature hanging in the rafters before it kills him, but its so quick and abstract that it regains the mystery and suspence that has been lost due to the rest of the scene being a cliche now. The new scenes are all well done, though i think the Cocoon sequence still interuots the flow and pace of the end and adds little--though compared to the original cut of this scene, it is a vast improvement.

As for the hole in the deck on the derelict, that is very ambiguous. For one thing it is never clear if the egg chamber is part of the planet or part of the ship. I never took the hole as being "chisseled in" or anything, it just looks like a hatch of some kind.

 

[Charles de Lauzirika]

I'd say about 90% of your comments here are incorrect. No offense.

There was nothing slanderous in the uncut version. Politically uncomfortable? Absolutely. But slanderous? No.

As for the bit with Fincher grabbing the boom, he did it with a smirk, obviously blowing off some steam. It's actually a pretty funny moment. People seem to think there's footage of him throwing furniture or screaming at Fox executives. This is completely untrue.

I originally titled the entire documentary "Wreckage and Rape: The Making of Alien 3." "Wreckage and Rape" is actually the title of one of the cues on the officially-released "Alien 3" soundtrack and it seemed to pretty well sum up the (un)making of this film.

 

[oscar_merkx]

mmmmmmmmm, never even made an attempt to watch Alien 3 or the documentary.

Perhaps time has come to do just that

 

[mike kaminski]

I agree that considering comments like those, given the circumstances and context, slanderous is an exaggeration but my impression was that that was how Fox viewed such material. After all, wasn't it they who cut the doc up, fearing it was bad publicity? Or am i totally off the mark here. I always thought that the retitling of the doc and the deletion of significant material which might be contrary to Fox' PR strategy was a rather rash, last-minute decison made by them.

 

[TravisR]

If there was enough deleted stuff to make a three hour cut of the movie, I'd be surprised if it worked better than the two hour cut of the movie. Both versions of Alien work great as they stand now. I think adding an hour would slow the movie down too much and adding three hours would be a disaster.

All that being said, if there was that many scenes sitting around, I'd love to see them... as supplements.

 

[WillG]

The only bit of trimming that was done was the tightening of a few shots when Brett searches for Jones

That's not all that was cut from the DC. Other bits include the section of Ripley and Dallas' conversation about Ash, where Dallas reveals that Ash was a last minute crew replacement. Dallas' final conversation with Mother where he tries to query on methods and odds of killing the Alien is gone (which I personally really miss). Some other small trims are made, for example, Ripley approaching Mother's terminal room.

Charlie, if you have an unedited copy of the Alien 3 doc, maybe you could turn your back and if somehow it could get "stolen" and then if it should wind up available on "secondary markets"

 

[Lord Dalek]

All I'd really want is a functioning DTS track on Alien. One that didn't cause the disc to glitch up on my decoder so I'd have to buy another copy which coincedently happened to have the same glitch.