Alien Anthology Preview

This week SFX got a sneak peak at the Alien Anthology Blu-ray ahead of the London Film Museum’s October long exhibit

With the 30th anniversary of Alien rolling round just last year, and the 25th anniversary of Aliens sneaking up faster than a Facehugger in search of a gob, there could be no better time to celebrate the seminal science fiction saga. To mark the occasion Twentieth Century Fox have applied all the bells and whistles… and then some to the Alien Anthology, released on Blu-ray 25 October.

Earlier this week SFX was invited to take a sneak peek at what to expect from the Anthology – and we can tell you a new name isn’t the only thing that’s changed (though we are gutted “Quadrilogy” never caught on). As well as shiny new transfers (including a colour-corrected, de-grained and Cameron approved Aliens that looks better than it even did on the big screen), the unflinching Alien 3 documentary is presented with 30 minutes of previously cut footage (including an onset Fincher outburst) and there are over five hours of new/extended interviews, bringing the total length of special features in the set to over 60 hours!

Monkey Island hotel? We're there!

Best of all though is MU-TH-UR mode, which allows you to tag topics as you’re watching the films, and then takes you to the appropriate moment on the final two discs, which house most of the bonus features, when you’re done. Much better than intrusive picture-in-picture tracks if you ask us and a feature that finally makes use of Blu-ray’s potential.  Check out the clip below for more information.The eagle eyed among you might also notice a few changes to the actual films, for example in the climax of Aliens, the gaffe where you can see Lance Henriksen’s hole in the floor as Bishop reaches for Newt has now been painted out digitally. But don’t worry, from what we’ve seen there’s nothing as blasphemous as Greedo shooting first.

To celebrate the release the London Film Museum, in association with The Propstore of London, will be featuring a fantastic collection of props and costumes from the Alien films throughout October. SFX wandered round the collection earlier this week and glimpsed Sgt Apone’s outfit, a Facehugger, pulse rifle, sentry gun (from the Aliens deleted scene), a warrior Alien suit and a full-sized Alien Queen, among many other bits and bobs. For fans of the series it’s an essential pilgrimage. Those eagerly awaiting the release of the Alien Anthology might also want to check out the Aliens Desktop App http://www.alienanthology.co.uk. Anyone’d think it was Aliens month…