Aliens SE DVD

“THIS TIME, ITS WAR”

Aliens is considered by many, including myself, to be the best of the Alien saga.

Ripley has been found after 57 years of floating in deep space. The lone survivor of the Nostromo, she is brought to a review hearing by Weyland Yutani Inc., the company who owned the spacecraft she blew up at the end of Alien. They decide that what she is telling them is false, as there have been no reports of a lifeform on LV-426, the planet where Kane was infected by the facehugger in the first movie. She then discovers that there are colonisers on LV-426, putting an artificial atmosphere in place to make it habitable.

Suddenly, all radio contact is lost, and a team of US Colonial Marines are sent in to sort it all out; with Ripley brought along as an adviser, and to kill her own mental demons by facing the creature.

Eventually, a lot of people die, and it is up to Ripley to again take on the queen alien; but this time shes got a power loader at hand, and an airlock again………

Unless you saw the original theatrical release, any version you will have seen on VHS will probably have been the Special Edition. For those who dont know, this version has an extra 17 minutes of footage not present in the theatrical edition. This includes details of Ripleys daughter, the Jordan tractor and Newt before the aliens infest LV-426, and some other bits, such as Hudsons speech on the weaponry the marines have. Most versions at video rental places are likely to be SE too.

The film is, in stark contrast to the first, action almost all the way through. Where the first movie created tension to keep you on the edge of your seat, and hid the monster in the dark, leaving a lot to the imagination; this one shows you a lot more of the alien, and creates a different kind of creepy atmospheric quality. And more than that, it has more guns :- ) Which cant be bad.

Yes, in true Cameron style, the Marines are out there to do one thing….. to shoot the shit out of as many aliens as is possible; and that they do. Described as “A Vietnam movie in space” by director James Cameron, it has all the elements of a great war movie: battles, drama, tension, guts & gore; and more than that, a very good underlying story.

The direction is superb; so much so that you wouldnt notice that there were only 6 suits made for the films; yet there seem to be hundreds of aliens. Without the use of computer graphics, the effects in this film still hold their own. The acting is top notch, with great performances by James Cameron regulars Michael Biehn and Bill Paxton, and of course Sigorney Weaver.

As for extras, if you like behind the scenes thingys, then this is one for you. With loads of production photographs and stuff on how the effects were acchived, despite lacking a decent featurette. There is also an interview with Cameron, discussing the story and things like that. The animated menus are superb to; not a great extra or anything, but they are the best I have ever seen. They fit in with the theme of the film incredibly well.

But one of the best things about this DVD is the quality. It is incredible, especially if you have tried to watch a grainy VHS copy before; dodgey sound and a bad picture can put you off any film. However, the picture is crystal clear, and the soundtrack is incredible. Presented in widescreen, youd think you were actually at the cinema.

Id definitely recommend this DVD very, very highly.

10/10

Added:  Wednesday, April 10, 2002
Reviewer:  Arktic
Score:
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