Alien 3
Out of all the "Alien" films, Alien 3 is by far the weakest. I always did like the original theatrical version of the film but this new special edition gives some idea why the film was under such controversy when made back in 1992. David Fincher's first film pales in comparison to the superior works on Ridley Scott (Alien and James Cameron (Aliens.
There are major problems with Alien 3. First off, the script is badly written. The premise on a planet with a maximum security prison was a good idea but the point of everything makes no sense. James Cameron made Lt. Ripley more dimensional with her involvement with little Newt is totally wasted in Alien 3. In Aliens Newt was major part of the film but as Alien 3 she is killed off instantly making one wonder why they invested the time and effort incorporating Newt into Aliens to begin with.
There a plot points that go nowhere in Alien 3 and why the title was called "Alien CUBED" is beyond me. Ripley has a love scene in Alien 3. Come on, this is supposed to be science fiction and not a soap opera.
The second major problem with Alien 3 is that there is no suspense. Where Alien built upon
suspense slowly and creepy, Alien 3 just throws it in your face. In Alien there were times where we knew the alien was lurking while we also knew that the character was oblivious to this. With Alien 3 all we get is a quick glance to above by the character and there the alien is. Finally, the editing of Alien 3 special edition was too long. I liked the theatrical version very much but when watching the special edition, it seemed to just drag on and introduce too much information that we don't need. I can now see why 20th Century Fox and David Fincher couldn't agree, in my opinion, 20th Century was right.
There are some good things about Alien 3 that I did like. First off was the great confrontational scene between the Queen alien and Ripley in the hospital room. Second, Alien 3 had a good conclusion that was better in the theatrical version with the chestburster than in the special edition. Finally the actors were quite good in the film. It was not the acting that is the real problem of Alien 3. Where is the stalking or the hiding of the alien that was so
suspenseful in Alien or the action and great characters of Alien. In Alien 3 there are no character to like.
I do not recommend Alien 3 special edition, there is no suspense, there is barely any action and when it does occur, it is to far into the film and the script and plot is to inconsistent. I do recommend the Alien 3 theatrical version and watching the special footage documentaries reveals that nobody really knew what was going when making Alien 3. In fact, Lance Hendrickson who plays Bishop even claims that he has no idea of whom to like in the movie. In conclusion, I second that.
Runtime: 144mins
DvD Aspect Ratio:2.35:1 Widescreen
THX Digitally Mastered
Dolby Digital
20th Century Fox Home Video
Rated:R.
