Alien Anthology Box Set (6 Discs) (Blu-ray)

No need for me to review the films themselves!! whats the point?? people want to know one thing here! the picture quailty!! and yes, they have done a great job!! Alien has never looked better! very clean, sharp and full of detail! but for those who are worried about Aliens :) threre is no nasty over the top DNR! they cleaned it properly, you can still see grain but its so much better than any previous release! Aliens is clearer than ever! with all the detail! as for the sound, everything is better again, clear, boomy soundtracks that will please the fans. Should I mention the extras?? blimey, its good so much!! where would I begin? some of the highlights is screen tests of Weaver for Alien, the never seen Burke scene which to be honest, is ok, its pretty short. as for the rest, tons and tons of documentrys and the Alien 3 uncut making of!! yes, you get to see some heated comments from the director on set, Fox are Morons, classic

Lots of people keep banging on about the sound on Alien not being very good.
The reason alot of the dialogue in Alien is quiet is that Ridley Scott wanted to the films events to feel more plausible to the audience, he intended to play out the script in a way that made it feel more natural and almost akin to a documentary in its stylings. Often the characters argue and speak over each other, and lines are mumbled so you sometimes have to listen closely to what is said. This is both to show the strained relations of the crew on board, and to amp up a tangible sense of tension and dread which hangs over the film. All of this is intentional.

Well, here it is; this is sure to be one of the biggest Blu-Ray releases of the year. Recently, I have seen screenshots in 720p of these films, and I can tell you, if that's how good they look in 720p, it's looking very bright for the 1080p Blu-Ray releases. Now, I absolutely flat-out adore ALIEN. Ridley Scott's first step into Science-Fiction is perfect. The mythology was set up, introducing us to the Derelict Spacecraft, the Space Jockey, the Xenomorph Alien itself, and off course Ellen Ripley. I haven't nothing more to say other than, it is perfection. Now, ALIENS, is just that one step better. It takes all the best elements from the first film, and expands. Giving us action, that unlike most other action films, is not sensless and moves the story along. James Cameron's greatest film to date, is the perfect sequel of all time, and manages to expand on the rich mythology that Ridley Scott introduced to us. Now, ALIEN 3, which was directed by David Fincher is underwhelming, but by no means is it bad. The problems that the film has, is that Fox tooled about with the production too much, and that two great characters from the second film were killed off. Not to mention the awful digital Alien. However, the film works at times, enough to say that this film is worthy to be in this franchise. ALIEN RESURRECTION; I have nothing to say. I hate the film. Good casting. Bad everything else. I'm glad that this set did not include the awful Alien Vs. Predator movies (well, the first isn't bad). But, I can see another edition of this set coming out in 2012 or 2013, when Ridley Scott's two Alien Prequels are released.

I am extremely excited to get this set, and for Ridley Scott's prequels to be released. Not to mention the massive amount of Extras.

This is what Blu-Ray was made for. This is definitive, even if one of the films is awful.

Pre-Order this now!

Buy this now!

This is going to be amazing!

I have watched all of these now and also heard the sound through my sound system on all four films

Alien...
The conversion to blu ray for this film is excellent, the ship and the material on the peoples clothes is shown in such detail for such an old film..But I do agree that the voices sound a bit low compared to even the sound affects that come through the center channel but it isn't dire, I am well impressed and I am really glad I bought this box set for the first film on blu ray alone.
Films 1,2 and 3 all have the isolated score of each film in digital sound, and all of the films including the 4th one have 2 versions of the films.

Aliens...Apart from Blade Runner transfer to blu ray this has got to be the best I have seen yet but yes I was honestly very very pleased when I seen who clean the picture was in the second one. Watching Aliens is usually like watching the film through a haze...just like the standard DVD for Blade Runner, but I am amazed at how much they have cleaned this up, it is almost as if someone has came along and gave the lense a damn good polish. The clarity in picture and sound is amazing, although again the voices do seem slightly lower than they should be compared to everything else.
Question...whatever happened to Bill Paxton, he was brilliant and the line "incase you haven't been keeping up in current events, we just got our a**es whipped pal!", I still laugh to this day, brilliant. Bill Paxton is very entertaining to watch in Aliens.

Alien 3...I have never seen the directors cut before until now, I have to say it certainly adds much more to the film , a whole lot better in my opinion, although it seems very long, bi enjoyed it so much it did not seem so long, the picture and sound are fantastic...I also feel this film is underrated...and always thought the ending to this film was absolutely brilliant.

Alien Resurrection...I saw this a very long time ago, and I thought it was ok...but yes it certainly feels kind of detached from the other 3. One of the things that really got me is you are supposed to believe Ripley was cloned bundled with an alien inside her...I think this was a kind of weak idea to carry the story on from Alien 3 so we could still have sigourney weaver and more Aliens in it.
I liked this one and I would say some of the moments in it are kind of nice and I almost felt sad for the alien at the end. It was also nice to see Winona Ryder in this too, so the fourth one is not a complete loss it is actually not really all that bad, it is simply not as good as the other 3 and at parts it just seems kind of boring. Again has 2 versions, but this one does not include the isolated score....which probably just as well.
There is another 2 discs with a load of stuff like still galleries of props and featurettes etc...yes a lot of stuff, I love my boxed set.

This is a class package, even if you have already bought the 2003 released DVD Quadrilogy this is well worth the money. ! the bonus features on this dics are outstanding with even more new features not featured in the DVD Quadrilogy. The picture quality for all four movies is the best they have ever looked and really brings out the dark shadows of Alien and the dim blue lighting of Aliens.
As for the movies......
ALIEN. (1979)
A ground breaking sci-fi horror clammy suspence the excellent acting, the start of Riply's nightmare and the greatest movie monster ever! a ground breaking classic !
*****
ALIENS (1986)
This has to be up the with The Empire Strikes Back and GodFather 2 as the best sequels ever. The tension is unbearable and the action is brilliant the movie is a long bumpy ride of terror, Ripley's character is the back bone of this franchise and the final pay-off with the Queen Alien is one of the most Jaw dropping in cinema history. One of the best movies ever made.
*****
ALIEN 3 (1992)
On cinema release this movie was hated by Alien fans. But watch this movie again and it just drip feeds you clammy terror of the first. Sure some of the characters are a bit underwritten and all having bald heads only adds to the confusion. But the feeling of impending doom is hard to shake off. The studio cut the hell out off this movie , but to see director's David ( seven, Fight Club ) Finchers Vision, watch the full version contained in this box-set and you will see what a under-rated classic this movie is.
This Blue Ray edition even manages the remaster the extended cut and fully irons out the sound quality to perfection.
****1/2
Alien Resurrection (1997)
This is by far the weakest of the saga, for me even worse than AVP and AVPR ! The thing about the Alien movies although being sci-fi they were all set very real future and acted with conviction. This is directed by a French guy who had no idea what the movies were all about. but the under water attack is still worth watching. He even messes up the Queen Alien by killing it off by it's hybrid offspring in pathetic fashion. As for the hybrid, I have seen scarier monsters on the Muppet Show ! and for the suprise ending ( oh the alien got on the ship...again ) just proves what lack of thought went into this movie.
As a stand alone movie it's not bad, but as the fouth chapter of this classic saga it's a dumbed down crushing disappointment!
***

This collection is what the Blue ray was made for, Three brilliant movies, and amazing bonus features.
Go buy it now!

See if you like.....
Predator Trilogy (1987-2010)
Alien Vs Predator (2004)
AVP Requiem (2007)
The Teminator Quadrilogy (1984-2009)
The Thing (1982)
Outland (1981)
The Abyss (1989)