After taking Adam out to Outback Steakhouse for his birthday, I decided to go see Alien: Directors Cut before it left the theaters around here. I was the only person there and man… it was so awesome to see it like that. Sure, Alien can still be creepy with all the lights turned off and sitting along in your living room, but it compares nothing to being in a dimly lit theater by yourself, listening to the echoes of the Nostromo reverberate around you. I can’t say enough at how pleased I was to see this movie on a big screen.
I felt like the pace of the movie was changed a lot in the directors cut. From the discovery of the alien egg to the final destruction of the creature, I felt like I was in this intense and speedy time continuum. Gone were moments of quiet anticipation — everything was right there in my face. This feeling is so different than the original it’s hard to figure out which I like better.
I have a few complaints about the changes. There were a few added scenes and removed scenes that didn’t sit well with me. When the crew uses the jump ship to land on the planet beckoning them, their entry into the harsh planet’s atmosphere was incredibly dull. I think they were trying to shy away from the really old looking computer graphics and focus on the ship. Instead, this lead to a very bland scene left much better in the original. Dallas’ capture by the Alien seems quite useless. Understandably, the Alien may be programmed to save people for later incubation, but this idea is meant for the sequel, Aliens. The first Alien should continue to be portrayed as the ultimate assassin, not as a creature with a hidden agenda.
I loved a few of the clips added. These included a view of the Alien’s silhouette stalking Brett in the cooling tower, the extra blood spatter scene when the Alien bursts through Kayne’s chest, and the additional footage of H.R. Giger’s brooding and lavish interior of the alien ship which crashed on the planet years ago.
Overall, I can’t say enough about how plain cool it was to experience the movie. Hope everyone else who loved this movie as a child (or adult) had the chance to see it!
Seeing the new cut of ALIEN on the big screen was terrific! Saw it the one night with Hev and Bec, then Mom and I took Tracie to see it the next night. Two nights in a row was not too much! Especially since Lowe’s screwed up the projection on evening #1 — the opening title had the “A” and the “N” cut off in mid-letter! Check out your DVD to see how much of the whole rest of the movie we missed. But the second night, at an AMC theater in Owings Mills, they fit the whole thing on there, and the image was noticably sharper and more in focus. Altogether a much more satisfying viewing the second time. This is the third movie Lowes has screwed up for me — I’m not feeling good about going back there again.
Where I went the picture was cropped properly, but the movie was slightly “bouncy.” It was discouraging at first, but the only time I really noticed it was during the opening title sequence when the letters appeared to jitter. I attributed this to it being an old movie but… it probably shouldn’t have done that. Oh well. Part of what’s great about watching a movie in your own home theater is that if it’s not perfect you have the control to fix it. We’ll be watchin’ it soon at home; hopefully together!