Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #412 in DVD
• Released on: 2003-12-08
• Rating: Suitable for 18 years and over
• Formats: Box set, PAL
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 9
• Running time: 461 minutes

Amazon.co.uk Review
The Alien Quadrilogy is a nine-disc box set devoted to the four Alien films. Although previously available on DVD as the Alien Legacy, here the films have been repackaged with vastly more extras and with upgraded sound and vision. 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 it. Watch once then return to the majestic, perfectly paced original. Conversely the Special Edition of James Cameron's Aliens (1986) is the definitive version, though it's nice finally to have the theatrical cut on DVD for comparison. Most interesting is the alternative Alien3 (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 the story. The ending is also subtly but significantly different. Alien Resurrection (1997) was always a mess with a handful of brilliant scenes, and the Special Edition just makes it eight minutes longer.

On the DVD: Alien Quadrilogy offers all films except Alien3 with DTS soundtracks, the latter 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 that lends insight into the creative process--though the Scott-only commentary and isolated music score from the first Alien DVD release are missing here--and there are subtitles for hard of hearing both for the films and the commentaries.

Each movie is complemented by a separate disc packed with hours of seriously detailed documentaries (all presented at 4:3 with clips letterboxed), thousands of photos, production stills and storyboards, giving a level of inside information for the dedicated buff only surpassed by the Lord of the Rings extended DVD sets. A ninth DVD compiles miscellaneous material, including a Channel 4 hour-long documentary and even all the extras from the old Alien laserdisc. Exhaustive hardly begins to describe the Alien Quadrilogy, a set which establishes the new DVD benchmark for retrospective releases and which looks unlikely to be surpassed for some time. --Gary S Dalkin

DVD Description
The definitive DVD box set of the most terrifying saga ever created -- over 40 hours of addidional footage. Four discs containing the original theatrical versions of each film in addition to the extended versions with Alien containing the 2003 Director's Cut and Aliens 3 including Fincher's workprint.

An additional four discs containing new, detailed commentaries, interviews, multi-angle anamatics, pre-production, production and post production featurettes, 252 pages of Stan Winston's fascinating workshop, screenplays and intriguing easter eggs. The final bonus disc contains rare still archives, theatrical and television trailers, interviews and fascinating special effects footage.

Special Features
Over 40 hours of all new bonus materials on 9 discs:
Disc 1 (ALIEN)
118 minutes viewing the 2003 Theatrical cut with all new commentary and Ridley Scott's new intro
Disc 2 (ALIEN BONUS DISC)
216 minutes of all new, never before seen video features
Disc 3 (ALIENS)
154 minutes viewing the Special Edition cut with all new commentary and James Cameron Intro
Disc 4 (ALIENS BONUS DISC)
198 minutes of all new, never before seen video features
Disc 5 (ALIEN 3)
137 minutes viewing the theatrical cut with the all new commentary
157 minutes viewing the all new Special Edition Cut
Disc 6 (ALIEN 3 BONUS DISC)
174 minutes of all new, never before seen video features
Disc 7 (ALIEN RESURRECTION)
109 minutes viewing the theatrical cut with the all new commentary
120 minutes viewing the all new Special Edition Cut with intro by Jean Pierre Jeunet
Disc 8 (ALIEN RESURRECTION BONUS DISC)
194 minutes of all new, never before seen video features
Disc 9 (BONUS DISC)
104 minutes of all new, never before seen video features

DTS 5.1 sound
Limited edition, numbered and highly collectible packaging with special printing and green digi-stack trays

Customer Reviews

Slightly overambitious but a must have for fans
There's not been much left out of this Alien DVD collection that's for sure.

I'm a huge fan of the films, the first two are outstanding, the third is very good and the fourth...well, it's the weakest of the four by far but I've still watched it a few times :)

I think the fact that this set has been so ambitious is partly its downfall. Each film and it's special edition is on one DVD and the picture quality has suffered somewhat for it - It's hardly the worst around but could have been a lot better better. Take for instance Aliens, there's probably 5 hours of video (standard + SE versions) to be crammed onto one disc and the only way that could be achieved is compressions,compression, compression! I guess the only other option would be to have each version of the film on it's own disc so there was enough storage for the film to span the dual layers and take less of a hit on the picture quality stakes. However, that would have lead to a pack of 13 or so discs I guess! I would have bought it...and still would if it comes out! Let's have it on Bluray.......!!

Anyway, that's the only real negative.

The list of extras for each film is extensive and too long to list. It'll keep die hard fans happy for a long time. Alien and Alien Resurrection have DTS sound which is a nice addition.

The set is well presented in a fold out book/box with each DVD having it's own 'page' to hold it in place. There's a little booklet too with a small plot summary and chapter list of each film and details of the extras.

The films themselves and the special editions are probably familiar to many - the only two I had not seen were the special editions of Alien 3 and Alien Resurection. I think the weakest directors cut is the one for Alien 3. It changes key elements of the plot (such as the animal that gives 'birth' to the alien in this film) and I just didn't think it worked well at all. All the other director's cuts expand characters or add in cool stuff (like the robot sentries in Aliens) without changing the key details and are better for it.

Anyway, for this price this pack is one of the best bargains going. 9 Discs containing easily two of the best Sci-Fi films of all time supported by slightly weaker but still watchable 3rd and 4th installments and a rake of extras. I just can't help thinking that if you're a stickler for picture quality you may feel slightly underwhelmed with this set. It's a missed opportunity to give the absolute best but still a worthwhile purchase.

Recommended ****

One of the greatest box sets ever.
Wow! This box set is simply mindblowing. There are two versions of each of the four films in the series, the original version and a director's cut, an extras disc for each film and to cap it all, a general extras disc with features which look at the sries as a whole. There is simply nothing more that you could wish for from this franchsie. Not only this, the packaging is very high quality with a nifty little booklet style presentation instead of cardboard folded packaging whihc does not withstand the ravages of time.

The films themselves are great, the highlight for me will always be Ridley Scott's original film and its director's cut. the film is a stunning masterpiece, an object lesson in cinematography, editing and the creation of that key element of horror,- claustaphobic tension. It is quite simply one of the best films of any genre of all time and richly deserves the accolades and positive reviews it regularly gets. It has stood the test of time extremely well and is almost worth the cost of the box set by itself. As sequels go, Aliens is an excellent film and they do as is usually the case get progressively less good although both Alien 3 and Alien Ressurection offer much to the viewer and place an interesting spin on the franchise.

I paid over £60 for this set when it was first released and I felt then that it was worth every penny. Now the cost seems to have plummeted, it makes it even better value for money. As box sets go, this one rocks and is certainly the one I would want to be stranded on a desert island with.

Value for money.
For £22.00 on Amazon you get a grand total of 9 discs containing all 4 Alien films remastered, with both the theatrical and extended cuts, which in the case of Aliens and especially Alien 3 is an improvement on their original release. For each movie you get two discs, disc one containing two versions of the film and disc two has probably the most comprehensive in depth look into just about every aspect of the Alien saga. From the first draft of the script to casting to principal photography to special effects and many more story/technical features including input from directors Ridley Scott, James Cameron, and Jean Pierre Jeunet and the cast in crew of each film everything is covered.

Particularly enjoyable was the split interview between creator Dan o Bannon and producer Walter Hill, both claiming other had less to contribute to the pictures etc. Each Disc two contains detailed files on pre production-post production work. Just everything is packed in, in a fascinating look into the films, in particular the look into what went wrong on Alien 3 with frank interviews from various cast and crew members along with producers and so on which shows you how NOT to make a movie. Seeing the films digitally is something to savour on this format with commentary tracks for each films including Scott, Cameron and Jeunet and various cast members including Sigourney Weaver for the Alien track, the only commentary she does on any Alien film.

There is also an hour-long documentary about Alien, along with trailers, still galleries a look into HR Gigers design for the Alien and how it was made real through sculptures and animatronics. All these features are highly entertaining and then you have the films. For me anyway Alien and Aliens are two of the best Sci-Fi thriller/horror or in the case of Aliens action movies ever made but to go through all the things that made those movies great would require two more very long reviews, and the DVD collection covers it pretty well anyway trust. If you're an Alien fan buy it is EASILY worth its price tag and is tremendous entertainment in the films alone then all the many bonuses will provide hours of viewing pleasure, there is also a sleek booklet contained it the case which shows the time line between each movie and lists the bonus features cast crew and an interesting little snippet on Alien 3. This set is a great addition to any DVD collection and contains some of the most detailed and fascinating documentaries I have seen for any films. Though for people who live in Ireland anyway, the DVDS are a mere 20.00 in HMV, trust me that's some bargain for 9 discs, 4 films and for the above mentioned extra features which are so good the films themselves ALMOST become the bonuses in this mammoth set.