Alien Quadrilogy (Alien / Aliens / Alien 3 / Alien Resurrection)
TheAlien Quadrilogyis a nine-disc boxed set devoted to the fourAlienfilms. Although previously available on DVD as theAlien Legacy, here they have been repackaged with vastly more extras and with upgraded sound and picture. For anyone who hasn't been in hypersleep for the last 25 years, this series needs no introduction, though for the first time each film now comes in both original and "special edition" form.Alien(1979) was so perfect it didn't need fixing, and Ridley Scott's 2003 director's cut is fiddling for the sake of fiddling. Watch it once, then return to the majestic, perfectly paced original. Conversely, the special edition of James Cameron'sAliens(1986) is the definitive version, though it's nice to finally have the theatrical cut on DVD for comparison. Most interesting is the alternativeAlien 3(1992). This isn't a "director's cut"--David Fincher refused to have any involvement with this release--but a 1991 work-print that runs 29 minutes longer than the theatrical version, and has now been restored, remastered, and finished off with (unfortunately) cheap new CGI. Still, it's truly fascinating, offering a different insight into a flawed masterpiece. The expanded opening is visually breathtaking, the central firestorm is much longer, and a subplot involving Paul McGann's character adds considerable depth to story. The ending is also subtly but significantly different.Alien: Resurrection(1997) always was a mess with a handful of brilliant scenes, and the special edition just makes it eight minutes longer.TheAlien Quadrilogyoffers the first and fourth films with DTS soundtracks, the others having still fine Dolby Digital 5.1 presentation. All four films sound fantastic, with much low-level detail revealed for the first time. Each is anamorphically enhanced at the correct original aspect ratio, and the prints and transfers are superlative. Every film offers a commentary track that lends insight into the creative process--though the Scott-only commentary and isolated music score from the firstAlienDVD release are missing here.Each movie is complemented by a separate disc packed with hours of seriously detailed documentaries (all presented in full-screen with clips letterboxed), thousands of photos, production stills, and storyboards, giving a level of inside information for the dedicated buff only surpassed by theLord of the Ringsextended DVD sets. A ninth DVD compiles miscellaneous material, including an hourlong documentary and even all the extras from the oldAlienlaserdisc. "Exhaustive" hardly beings to describe theAlien Quadrilogy, a set that establishes the new DVD benchmark for retrospective releases and looks unlikely to be surpassed for some time.--Gary S. Dalkin