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Alien Quadrilogy

Alien Quadrilogy

List Price: $99.98
Your Price: $74.99
Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Must have Progressive Scan!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Review: I am not writing a full review on the set, but I love it and I think it is a great collection of movies. Everyone who says that the discs do not work and say "they own the top of the line DVD players", obviously don't have the top of the line DVD players. I have two different DVD players, one new Sony that has progressive scan, and the other is an older Panasonic without progressive scan technology. The discs freeze in the Panasonic DVD player, but not in the Sony one; this is because the Sony has progressive scan. Also, the "plastic cases with sharp edges" do not scratch your DVDs unless you are incapable of putting the DVD in the case. I have had no problems with the Alien Quadrilogy in my Sony DVD player and none of the discs were scratched when I opened the box. It is definitely worth the buy. The movies are great. I just didn't want any people to get misled, thinking that the set is total garbage and that the discs don't work. Make sure you have a good DVD player.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: the movies are pretty good as always, but...
Review: The quality is very bad.
I bought this set and the discs were scratch and the spanish subtitles didn't exist (???)
Finally I returned it.
The Alien Legacy is better than this showy edition.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: The only thing that stopped me from giving this a 5 was.....
Review: Ok let me start off by saying these movies are awesome. I would of given it a five but Alien ressuerection was what stopped me.(read on i'll explain).

Alien (1979)
This movie was very good. It had the horror, the suspense, and the question "what next".The seen with the chestburster was pure originality. It is about a ship with 8 crew members who are in hyper sleep and on their way home. They are then woken up by a distress call and go to a foreign planet to check it out. Little did they know this was a warning not a distress call. I give it a 9/10.

Aliens (1986)
Even though the first was great this was much better. It has way more action, much more suspense, AND MOST IMPORTANT MORE ALIENS (INCLUDING THE QUEEN).In this movie Ripley is picked up by a spaceship where later she finds she's been asleep for 57 years. She then accompinies a military group to go to the alien planet to kill them all. Little does she know this is probably the biggest adventure she has ever faced.
I give this a 10/10 (best of the series)

Alien 3 (1992)
This is definetly the darkest of the series. I find it to be pretty good. It's a little slow at the beggining but it gets fast paced later on. In this one Ripley's ship crashes on a prison planet. She later finds out that the crash was caused by an alien who got on bored. She finds that all 25 men on the planet are all rapest and very religous and must be very careful around them. Nobody believes her about the alien that is on the planet and they find it to be true when they get picked off one by one. Then Ripley finds out that the Queen alien is IMPLANTED in side of her and will die. She is determined to kill the alien and then herself to save mankind.
This movie is decent and gets an 8/10.

Alien Ressurection (1997)
This movie was a disapointment to me. I hated the way ripley was so close to the aliens especially at the end when she crys as her "child"(the alien)gets sucked out of the ship. In the Fourth installment of the Quadrilogy Ripley is cloned(since she dies in the 3rd one) so scientist can get the alien out of her to breed and study. While she looks the same she has quality's like an alien(acid blood,temper,super strength). She then says she is the mother of the aliens. The aliens get loose and she must try to stop them with the help of the crew members.
I find this the worst of the series and it's lucky to even get the score i'm giving it 6/10.

If ressurection was better i would of given the set 5 stars. See for yourself.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Different Directors ruin a movie series....
Review: Well as the JAWS movies showed, if you do not have the same director and film crew work on any of sequals to a succesful first film, then there is no sense of continunity between the movies, no sense of them being connected in any way. That was certainly true with the Alien movies in that each time, a different director worked on the movie, and it was with a different film crew, and they all approached it differently. All four of these movies might has well have taken place in different universes.
Anyway, in each case the production design of these movies was way over-kill. The ships looked like flying gas cans, the aliens looked like puppets operated with wires. When they used CGI effects, they looked bad. I think the best ship design ever was the SULACO from ALIENS. That movie had the best story, mostly good effects, and a mother/daughter relationship between Ripley and Newt that made the audience want to see that more then the aliens. I think James Cameron did it best. The others need to be shown the door.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: It is an improvement over the "Alien Legacy" set, but STILL
Review: ...if I had it to do all over again, I believe I would have bought the movies one 2-disc set at a time rather than all at once in this box set.

Buying the box set is a bit easier on the bank account, and there is a bonus 9th DVD that can't be had any other way...but the 9th disc is more of an appendix and even the most hardcore "Alien" fan probably won't watch it more than once.

The problem I have with the box set isn't its content; the alternative versions of each movie alone make this latest reissue absolutely necessary...and as each episode in the series has an entire separate DVD's worth of bonus features, a viewer can literally spend an entire weekend watching a single movie.

However, the box set's composition is a serious let-down. Its design means that it must be ceremoniously unfolded each time a disc is viewed. This puts extra wear on the package, contributing to an early disintegration. The rubber-based glue used to secure the plastic disc fasteners to the cardboard packaging is also of inferior grade; even the slightest temperature fluctuations cause the glue to lose its cohesive qualities. The end result is that that the whole thing falls apart. I'd expect a lot better from Fox, especially considering the fanbase for this franchise.

To make a long rant short, buy these reissues. Even the ones for the chapters you might not have cared for previously; I promise you that they've all been done to the nines and are absolutely worth spending the time seeing again (sometimes as though for the first time). But steer clear of the box set; Fox has given us a shoddy product in this guise and they must be held accountable by the fans of the series.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: 5 stars for the movies, 1 star for this horrible set.
Review: I am a HUGE fan of all 4 of these movies, but this set is a fiasco:

1) Thin, tinny disks that are flawed and freeze even in the latest players.
2) Scratched disks from the factory.
3) Cheap digipak packaging that falls apart and has sharp edges to scratch your disks unless you take the utmost care when seating them back in the package.
4) A digipack holding 9 disks that takes about 5 feet to open out fully unfolded! Rediculous!! This may seem OK at first, but gets old real quick. Also, this opening and folding to access disks damages the cases very easily.

ONE STAR FOR THE PACKAGING. IT SELLS BECAUSE PEOPLE FALL FOR THE HYPE AND IT SELLS CHEAPER THAN BUYING THEM INDIVIDUALLY.

My recommendation is to shop around for the best prices and buy all 4 in the Collector Series two-disk sets. The disks are heavier and seem of better quality. They are not scratched, nor do they freeze up. The packaging is still digipak, but at least these only open to two disks rather than 9. The artwork is much nicer too. If you just have to have a 9th disk, buy the "Alien Saga" which is much more entertaining than the Quad 9th disk anyway. However, with the 2nd disk with each movie, you really don't need the additional info.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: The extras make the whole thing worth it
Review: I got this thing for christmas, and yes the only good movies are "Alien" and "Aliens". Here's what makes this DVD collection amazing: 2 versions of every movie, each movie has another accompanying disc LOADED with extras that will keep fans entertained FOREVER. You have director's commentaries, you have deleted/alternate scenes, you have different mixes, different languages, subtitles, the backstory behind every single movie, the list goes on and on forever. Plus, on the 9th bonus disc, the coolest thing is seeing a guy's collection of movie props, and I mean these are like props every fan wishes they could have. I can't go on forever about how fans of the Alien saga should buy this set (Amazon won't allow it) but you really really need to see it to believe it. This is a purchase you will not regret, trust me. I will write reviews of the movies separately on each movie for sale, not here. Here, I am just pining on and on about how the entire set is worth the price, even if it has only two good movies in it. Buy this and enjoy the world of the Alien saga.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: To Webmaster
Review: Hello, I just submitted some review in haste for this movie series and just realized the information on the features of the DVD set is already shown on your website. Thus, please don't post my review at all, to save space, thanks.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: PLEASE DON'T WRITE REVIEW UNLESS U KNOW WHAT U ARE SAYING!
Review: ...BR> I purchased this DVD set right here at Amazon to replace my 'The Alien Legacy' set. Needless to say, I'm not too happy about that...but we fans want the very best versions of our favorite movies. Anyway, who cares if this movie set is called 'Alien Zoology'? No sci-fi film has EVER come close to offering a thrill like the Alien series has. ...BR> Since I'm not interested in misleading anyone and not going to attempt to write a biased review, this is more like a description than a review. Below is EXACTLY what you will get, right from the insert in the box set. The black case is the same size as 'Alien Legacy', but the latter's silvery design looks cooler. Each movie in Legacy also comes with its own plastic DVD case. In Quadrilogy, all the dics are packaged into the black case folding one into another. Hard to describe, like a little maze. Have you guys ever seen the set called 'Spawn the Ultimate Collection'? Well, its packaged similar to that.
Do yourself a favor...always rent before you buy. Hollywood has been coming out with SO MANY bad movies its unbelievable people would waste time and money watching them. Yep, keep feeding them money so they can even make more bad movies for you.
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ALIEN
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Disc One : 1979 Theatrical Version with Audio Commentary and 2003 Director's Cut
Disc Two : 9 New In-Depth Featurettes, Deleted and Extended Scenes, Sigourney Weaver screen test
ALIENS
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Disc Three : 1986 Theatrical Version, 1991 Special Edition
Disc Four : 11 New In-Depth Featurettes, Original Treatment by James Cameron, Multi-Angle Animatic to Final Scene
ALIEN3
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Disc Five : 1992 Theatrical Version, 2003 Special Edition
Disc Six : 11 New In-Depth Featurettes, E.E.V. Scan, Storyboard, Still Galleries
ALIEN RESURRECTION
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Disc Seven : 1997 Theatrical Version, 2003 Special Edition
Disc Eight : 12 New In-Depth Featurettes, First Draft Screenplay, Multi-angle rehearsals, Still Galleries
ALIEN QUADRILOGY
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Disc Nine : New ALien Evolution Documentary, Exclusive New Ridley Scott Q&A, Laserdisc Archives, DVD ROM content
VIDEO/AUDIO
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WideScreen DVDs, Dolby Digital, Dolby Surround, Dual Layer

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...

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Amazing Beyond Description!
Review: OK, this is precisely the third time I've written this review, and I really hope it gets posted. So here goes.

There is really no way any review can truly describe the complete brilliance of both the ALIEN movies and this incredible DVD collection from a true master of the digital technology, Charled de Lauzirika. I'm a little baffled, and so truly amazed, that I struggle to find a way to describe the contents of this astounding box set, but here goes.

Picture Quality: Simply astounding. Charles de Lauzirika and Ridley Scott went through tremendous work to make the original masterpiece, ALIEN, look as good as it possibly could. Simply put, the quality here is ten times better than the already excellent original DVD release from THE ALIEN LEGACY. The movie has been totally redone, with every frame spiffed up and cleaned off with a new color timing that features bolder, brighter and more detailed colors that reveal areas of the Nostromo shrouded in darkness previously. Observe the beautiful golden tint as Brett enters the bowels of the ship, searching for Jones. The anamorphic 2:35:1 image is, as any film fan should know, the only way to watch ALIEN. the action packed, nerve wracking sequel, James Cameron's ALIENS, looks pretty similiar to the great orignal DVD, but just a little bit better, with the grain almost totally wiped away and better colors. ALIEN 3 and ALIEN RESSURECTION look just as good as the original DVDs, but just a smidge better. Simply put, there is nary a flaw in these four movies.

Sound Quality: ALIEN and ALIEN RESSURECTION have been blessed with brand new DTS sound that I, unfortunately, cannot experience. And so, it matters little to me that ALIENS and ALIEN 3 only feature excellent 5.1 surround sound tracks, as do the other two. The sound is incredibly clear, with every line of dialogue sounding clear as a bell, and the frightening alien effects and musical scores come across fabulously. listen to the clinking chains and dripping water in ALIEN, the explosions and gunfire in ALIENS, the screams and yelps that echo through the basement corriders in ALIEN 3, and the thrilling underwater action sequence in ALIEN RESSURECTION. There are absolutly no problems here, although some might be unhappy that all four films don't have DTS, I have heard that it doesn't really make that much difference.

Special Fatures: Here's where the set really shines. There are two versions of each film, which range from very little difference (ALIEN RESSURECTION) to nearly astounding in length and depth (ALIEN 3). to those who do not care for the special editions of some of the films, fear not, because the theatrical classics we all love are hear as well. Each film has excellent, in depth commentaries with the directors (except for David Fincher, who refused to participate) and the cast and crew, which provide lots of fun facts as well as giving great looks at what goes on behind the scenes, straight from the mouths of the people who brought us these masterpieces. The real kicker of this set, however, are the absolutly stunning documentaries, which range nearly three hours each. 'The Beast Within; The Making of ALIEN,' "Superior Firepower; The Making of ALIENS,' 'The Making of ALIEN 3,' and 'One Step Beyond; The Making of ALIEN RESSURECTION' provide fascinating insight into the filmmaking process that add several exra layers of appreciation when you see the hard work that went into making each film perfect just so we, the audience, could be entertained. these documentaries do not provide glimpses into the filmmaking world. They provide all out, detailed looks at every singly film, so much that you feel like you wee there, experienceing the making, too. Disc 9 features mostly trailers for all 4 movies, some of which are quite strange, as well as some additional information on the making of ALIEN, and then a complete laserdisc archive so you can finally discard of your old laserdiscs. Disc 9 also features an interesting feature called 'Aliens in the Basement; Bob Burn's Collection,' which tells all about the props for all four films.

The Movies: Of course, none of this exhaustive and extensive footage and documentaries would be worth anything if the films weren't great, and let me tell you, they are. ALIEN is quite simply one of the great movies of the 20th century. It came around at just the right time, when movies like CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND and STAR WARS were popular, and presented a bleak, realistic future with believable characters we could sympathy for. The sequel, ALIENS, is just as good, and totally different. The action is spectacular, the music amazing, and the acting some of the best of the many talented people who appear in the film. ALIEN 3 has always gotten a bad rap, but it's always been my fvorite of the series, and the extended versin greatly broadened a lot of the characters and situations. ALIEN RESSURECTION was a very fun movie made for the geek in all of us, and some people don't want to let that geek out. These are some seriously good films that can watch over and over again and never get bored.

The Bottom Line: Reading this review, I think you can see what I feel about it. THE ALIEN QUADRILOGY is simply the greatest DVD set I have ever laid my eyes on and I can't urge you enough to run out as soon as possible and buy it (because it's also a great deal). If, however, you don't care for all the films, separate DVD have been released. So, go off and buy this set, sit in you most comfortable chair, turn down the lights and experience the purest in complete terror (ALIEN), heartpounding action (ALIENS), touching drama (ALIEN 3), and silly, fun action film (ALIEN RESURERRECTION).

"This is Ripley, last survivor of the Nostromo, signing off."


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