Very, VERY underrated.
What do we think of Alien 3?
- Thread starter saturn5
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It's not a bad film, but it isn't as good as either predecessor. It's not helped by the fact that many of the characters are woefully underdeveloped (improved somewhat in the special edition) and the fact that the presence of at least two alien eggs on the Sulaco doesn't make a lick of sense. The creature effects are also a step down from Alien and Aliens, which doesn't help this sort of film.
I always loved it, thought it was brilliantly grim and defeatist. It had a hopeless, no-getting-out-of-this tone that I admired.
But it's been a while, so I'm afraid you're going to remind me exactly what the differences were between the theatrical and DVD versions.
But it's been a while, so I'm afraid you're going to remind me exactly what the differences were between the theatrical and DVD versions.
Contextually, I guess it's disappointing that they didn't capitalize on what Cameron had set up. But the expanded universe fixed this oversight. And I think taken on its own, Alien 3 is a good movie. Yes, it is very depressing. But they did some ballsy stuff in it. And hey, at least Ripley came back to life in an interesting way in Alien Resurrection.
The movie was ok but if anything ruined it for me it was this. Ripley v Alien had been done before - if they'd made it more of an ensemble it would have added more depth to the movie and we'd have been rooting for more than just Ripley.
The work print is awesome. When I first saw this, it was a huge letdown because I was expecting Aliens. It took me awhile to really appreciate it.
And the greatest heroes too!
I'm amazed by the results frankly, I don't want a film that's 'grim and defeatist' especially after the thrilling excitment, great characters and beautiful ending of Aliens (which oddly still fits perfectly with this most bloodthirsty and violent of films).
Noticeably with other eps and even the video games they took their inspiration from Aliens and tried to pretend Alien 3 never happened.
Plenty of real world in Aliens, no one could accuse it of not being in-your-face violent and horrifically graphic. Aliens is hardly lovey dovey or over-sentimental, it just has soul and doesn't leave the audience wanting to hang themselves at the end
The games use stuff from Aliens because Aliens was the only one to give them anything mainstream to work with. The other movies don't revolve around 1-D soldier stereotypes and weaponry while Aliens DOES.
Aliens is a kiddy comic, Alien and Alien 3 are like Old-School Frank Miller works (when he was good). That's the difference in quality.
Aliens is a kiddy comic, Alien and Alien 3 are like Old-School Frank Miller works (when he was good). That's the difference in quality.
Aliens is very mature and intelligent whilst Alien 3 is dumb as hell, like some gorno goth suicide fanfic although I admit once we start getting to AvP we get into comic territory, Aliens was so terrific everyone copied it which is how we get into stereotype territory, much like Halloween spawned a thousand slasher pics thus becoming a cliche, Rambo in First Blood seems a stereotypical Vietnam vet but he created the stereotype with his impassioned speech at the end (a scene which turned an ok film into a great one)
Never read Frank Miller
Aliens is mature? It sure felt that way when I was 12 and seeing my first R rated action movie. Aliens is intelligent? Perhaps I should schedule a lobotomy so I can fully comprehend the depth and shading of "Get away from her you bitch!" or "Game OVER man, GAME OVER!" as well as you do, saturn 5. 
There were some interesting bits, but yeah, I can't get past the way they cast aside Hicks, Newt, and Bishop. Ripley's character arc in Aliens was about something powerful and wonderful, she was reborn as a mother figure. Alien3 flushed it down the toilet so they could be "grimmer and grittier," in the worst 90's era definition of the term.
You tell me!
According to Gale Anne Hurd when she first screened Aliens for a cynical industry audience in Hollywood people got up and cheered for her 'Bitch' line. Bet they never did that with Alien3? And game over is perfectly in keeping with Hudson's character.
Aliens is very intelligent, especially the way that Ripley gradually takes charge and assumes leadership, the characterisations and the way they relate to one another is excellent, she really is a fantastic, inspiring heroine who deserved a lot better than the appalling Alien3 gave her.
That's the audience for A3 were expecting another shoot-em-up action flick full of Americans, not a hard survivalist story full mostly of Brits. A3 didn't rely on one-liners the way Aliens did.
Who cares if the "Game Over" stuff was in-character? That just means its a BAD character.
Aliens is just taking a real person, surrounding her with action film cardboard cutouts till she devolves into one, then A3 makes her human again.
You say "Aliens" was Vietnam? Well, A3 was way better in that regard, since the way Ripley acts there would be more true to how a war veteran whose lost people she loved would REALLY act.
Who cares if the "Game Over" stuff was in-character? That just means its a BAD character.
Aliens is just taking a real person, surrounding her with action film cardboard cutouts till she devolves into one, then A3 makes her human again.
You say "Aliens" was Vietnam? Well, A3 was way better in that regard, since the way Ripley acts there would be more true to how a war veteran whose lost people she loved would REALLY act.
They gave him that opportunity for the Quadrilogy Special Edition, but he basically told them to go fuck themselves. He's really pissed about how they treated him and subsequently embarrassed about the film.
So don't count on it...
Strange, considering it's not like he refused to ever work with 20th Century Fox ever again. He made Fight Club for them.
As to my opinion of the actual film: Meh. The theatrical version isn't worth it at all. The workprint is much better. It has a lot of interesting bits. However, it's got some of the most incompetant, incomprehensible action scenes in Hollywood history. This is a cardinal sin for an action/horror franchise and is why I usually rate it at the bottom of the pile (even when compared to the AVP movies).
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