Alien 3 is the most interesting DVD of the set. Why? Because this has the best behind the scenes story. I will address that in the DVD extras review. But first, let’s talk about the movie.

Starting with this movie, the studio wants to closely control the production of the film, because this is now a successful franchise, and they want to make sure they maximize their earnings. Unfortunately that means that the talent involved is not given the artistic freedom to express their vision, and the result is a poor quality movie.

On this DVD there are 2 versions of the movie, the theatrical cut and a Special Edition, which includes scenes that the studio decided to cut. This is not the director’s cut, because the director refused to participate in this DVD, but it’s a closer cut to his original edit.

This is a very dark and depressing film, which takes place in a prison planet. Everyone is bold, and live and work in a series of dark tunnels. The feeling of this movie is like a test-drive for Fincher’s later movie Seven.

The added Alien mythology in this script is that the Alien can take on some of the physical characteristics of its host. So in this film the Alien looks more like a four legged animal. In the original cut the host was a dog, while in the SE the host is an ox. Because of this difference, they chose to use a puppet Alien to try and convey a four legged Alien running. This puppet Alien is then composited with the actual footage shot with the actors. I thought the look of the Alien running was ok, but once it is composited with the actual footage it just looks out of place.

An entire sequence added in the SE is where they imprison the Alien in a secure room, which is then freed by the crazy Golic. I found that sequence intersting, certainly something that never happened before.

I like that Ripley was a host for an Alien, that was a long time coming. And luckily she does die in the end, otherwise I would have hated it.

The ending was also changed by the studio. Originally Ripley just jumps into the lava, and that is it. But the studio added the alien coming out from her womb right when she’s falling, and her keeping it from running away, and sacrificing herself to kill it. This scene is not needed at all, we already know she’s making this sacrifice, and making the Alien come out just when she falls is too unbelievable.

The SE is a better cut, but ultimately this movie is flawed, read on to find out why.

Rating: 2 Stars

The production was doomed since the beginning. The studio approved a concept by Vincent Ward which included a planet made of wood and a religious cast of inhabitants. Then they hired a director and started constructing the sets. Then they decided that they didn’t like the wooden planet, so they totally changed the script. The first director resigned, and instead of halting pre-production and concentrate on the new script, David Fincher was brought on board to continue the production.

A lot of money had already been spent on pre-production, the studio did not want to post-pone the release date, and the script was not finalized!! How the hell can you shoot a movie without a script!?!?!? The studio sent people on the set to watch over Fincher, and second guess him. The budget was limited, and the studio/producers kept changing their minds on the script. And Fincher had no control over the final edit.

Needless to say it was a nightmare for the director. I am surprised the movie didn’t turn out worse! All this behind the scenes is portrayed in the DVD extras, with one voice missing: David Fincher. He was offered to be interviewed, but he refused. It must have been a traumatic experience that he just wanted to forget.

Apparently 30 mins of interviews were cut from this 3 hour documentary by the studio (Fox), and those were the most honest and parts that Fox did not want us to hear. And for that my score will be lower.

DVD Extras Rating: 3 Stars