WingKongExpress

I think I got the last Anniverary Edition of Alien in Canada and I love it. It is the same version that is in the Legacy set. If the two disk set has better video than it must be amazing because the first time we see the alien ship on my DVD is one of the most impressive things I have ever seen on DVD.

ckolchak

it is amazing.
all the films PQ is improved in the new set, but most of all , the first film.
part of the reason was the film was re color timed, and this pulls out a lot of detail in shadow areas.

i was perfectly happy with the old disc, but difference between that old one & this new one is akin to the difference between a state of the art dvd and HD.

Bob_F1

I'm pretty sure that my head is about to explode.

Is the image quality the same on the most recent 2-disc Alien set and the Alien version in the Quadrilogy set? And what about the "Aliens" versions.

Bob

ckolchak

Aliens is improved, but the improvement is much more subtle.
you will notice it on a large display.
depending upon your display you may not notice it all- but it is the most refined this film has ever looked on home video (i've owned the collector LD, and the first single dvd)

the transfers in the new set have the benefit of 4 yrs of improvments to the efficency and quality of compression, authoring, etc. and in the case of Alien, it was originally a disc that was packed with special edition content.
that's all been moved over to a second disc which gives the film even more room to breathe.

the improvment to Alien is much more immediate.
yes, the same transfer that is in the Quad is in the 2 disc package.

the original Alien disc still hold some value as it contains two non duplicated extras which are quite valuable
1) Scotts commentary is different
2) it contain production sound and the original Goldsmith music cues which were replaced by Scott before the film was released.
very interesting stuff.

Bob_F1

Thanks for the great info!

Bob

Bob_F1

OK, here's a follow-up. I checked out the Quadrilogy versions of Alien and Aliens from my local library and watched all four discs thoroughly. I also watched the entire Quadrilogy disc 9.

I found all the extra commentaries and featuretes to be, by and large, fascinating. But, I don't expect to watch those again. So I'll probably just pick up copies of the latest 2-disc versions of the first two movies.

And, on the downside, sometimes you can learn a little too much about how a movie was made. Knowing some of the inside special effects tricks took some of the magic out of several scenes.

Bob

Fok

Does the Quadrilogy contain the extras found on the Legacy set?

Bob_F1

I don't know about the extras but "johnglad" wrote a nice comparison of the Legacy and Quadrilogy sets on the first page of this thread.

Bob

NaturalMystic79

Quadrilogy is a great buy. Sure part 3 is weak, but the other films are great (yes I liked Res!).

Bob_F1

Here's another update. I just watched the two disc Quadrilogy version of the last film, Alien Resurrection.

I think it's a decent film but, IMO, it doesn't come close to either of the first two films. Sigourney Weaver's Ripley character is more odd than anything else. The plot is weak and the cast of secondary characters, with the exception of Ron Pearlman's character, is on the generic side. And Winona Ryder seems *totally* miscast. I don't know what they were thinking with that.

I was surprised that Josh Whedon wrote the script since I am normally a big fan of his work such as Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

The extras are excellent, however, and that alone might make it worthwhile for people that are interested in what goes into making a movie. I thought it was wild that Sigourney actually made the over the back basketball shot. She had been practicing it but she had resigned herself to just making the motion so that the "swish" could be done via CGI. Watching the raw footage of that is funny since Ron Perlman is so shocked that he went out of character reacting to it.

Next up is Alien 3.

Bob

Bob_F1

OK, I recently finished watching the two disc Quadrilogy version of Alien 3. Now I've seen the complete Quadrilogy set.

I actually liked this one better than Alien Resurrection, although both films were a disappointment when compared to the first two. I found Alien 3 pretty interesting until Charles Dance's doctor character was killed off.

The extras on this one were, at times, fascinating. It's hard to believe that such huge films can be such a mess during production. Or maybe it's not so hard to believe.

The script uncertainties and problems really show in the end product. And it's a shame that director David Fincher didn't participate in the DVD release. I did find the Special Edition to be a better movie.

I found the extras segment on cinematographer Jordan Cronenweth struggles with Parkinson's disease sad to watch. (They apparently had to release him after a few days on the job.) What a terrible disease.

Anyway, for a *great* review of the Quadrilogy version of Alien 3, check out Aaron Beierle's most excellent write-up:

Aaron Beierle's Alien 3 Review

I found myself nodding my head in agreement over and over again while reading that.

Bob