Rating: 
Summary: Essential purchase.
Review: The first Alien movie is a sci-fi/horror crossover classic. And sequels generally suck. But not this one. Aliens upped the ante in most departments: more blood, more guns, more action, more...er...aliens. Sigourney Weaver's back as the talented Miss Ripley, but this time it's personal - she knows what these aliens are capable of. So when there's alien trouble on a distant colony she's all for nuking the whole planet into eternity. But it's not to be: slimeball corporate civilian type wants to trap one of the aliens and smuggle it back to earth and make a killing. Ripley advises him that he will make a killing, all right, but it won't be the dollars and cents kind. Enter the US Marines: band of mean muthas with the kind of weaponry that would make any terrestrial enemy beg for mercy. And so battle commences and the US Marines take second prize. But the real enemy isn't the aliens...
This is the No. 1 sci-fi/action movie. Quite how Cameron manages to squeeze so much action, destruction and nail-biting suspense (and humour - check the lift scene at the end) into a 2-hour movie is amazing. The guy's a genius, but it's all down to formula, of course; take the original Alien concept, add more aliens, more hardware, more gimmicky inventions, and just make it all bigger and better. But James Cameron also manages to pull off a remarkable feat: every time you think it's all over and the big climax has come and gone, the action just keeps on coming. And when you think it's over, there's even more. Fantastic value for money plain and simple. The acting performances are great, too. Bill Paxton is in good form as the gung-ho soldier who gets slightly less gung-ho when the going gets tough. And Sigourney simply kicks ass. The effects are, needless to say, absolutely stunning. Simply put Aliens is quite possibly the best action movie of all time. Kick-ass.
Rating:
Summary: A true classic now on a better DVD!
Review: Set 57 years since Lt. Ellen Ripley's ( Sigourney Weaver) first encounter with the strange monster in space, she has been kept in suspended animation and now wakes up. She still thinks about the creature sometimes, she also plans on using a space marine corp to head to the planet of the Xenomorphs ( the name of the acid-spitting critters) to wipe them out including their queen.This is a phenomenal and classic sequel that is the second greatest sci-fi movie of all time next to " Star Wars: A New Hope", the acting is perfect including James Cameron's direction. The cast also includes Bill Paxton, Lance Harkinson and others, great monster effects by Stan Winston ( of Jurassic Park fame), gore, action, great memorable music score by James Horner and emotion with laughs. The new collector's edition 2-disc set includes both the theatrical version and the extended special edition with audio commentary by James Cameron and crew, the extras include featurettes, photo galleries, behind the scenes of the creatures and more. So if you love sci-fi, own this movie and it's definitely a true classic. Also recommended: Alien, Total Recall, Starship Troopers, Return of the Aliens: The Deadly Spawn, Contamination, The Thing ( 1982), From Dusk Till Dawn, Alien 3, Alien Resurrection, Return of the Living Dead 3, Resident Evil, Black Hawk Down, The Matrix, Star Wars.
Rating:
Summary: Aliens, the best movie in the series & the best sci-fi movie
Review: Aliens, the masterpiece by wonderful action director/writer James Cameron. Sigourney Weaver stars as the ultimate hero Ripley, a role which won her an Oscar nomination. James Cameron has also directed action hits such as the Terminator, Terminator 2, and the love story Titanic(which he won an oscar for). Set 57 years after the original masterpiece Alien, Ripley has just been awoken from Hyper-sleep to find her daughter has died and it is 57 years later. then suddenly The Company(kind of like the UN of the universe) loses contact with the planet that the aliens first came from on the original Alien, and The Company sends the marines in because the think aliens might be on the planet,and of course Ripley goes along for the ride.That's when the fun starts. Ripley soon discovers the planet's last survivor, a young girl named Newt who Ripley takes a mother-like bond to. The she battles the Aliens, and the story follows wonderfully from there.(Preceded by Aliens; followed by Alien3 and Alien:Ressurection) This movie, in my opinion, is the best sci-fi movie ever. the story isnt your typical action/horror movie scprit, it has feelings and emotion too. Also, the action is done beautifully, and it gives good scares. The Best Action Movie Ever!!!
Rating:
Summary: Listen Up!
Review: A fine DVD with extraordinary special features. I think we should just ignore dvdowner as much as possible.
Rating: 
Summary: Half of the Bonus Features stink....
Review: Half of this special edition DVD is about as special as old bread in an ice box. The Director's cut is long and meandering with the extra scenes edited it in a slow/almost pounderous way. It's like Titanic, too long and over dramatic. The Theater version is better, editing wise. The bonus features with all the interviews with the cast and crew were a bit mixed. The special effects artists sound like internet geeks with no talent. The sound editor's dialoge is slow and pounderous and the James Horner interview shows how much the composer still dispises Jim Cameron, (I'm sure the feeling is mututual). In the end, about half this DVD is a one star only.
Rating:
Summary: The pinnacle of sci-fi horror!
Review: What can I say that hasn't been said before about this film? I remember that I was scared as hell when I saw this movie in the theater, and I had nightmares for a week after that. Even today this movie stand the test of time. Overall: EXCELLENT!!!!!!!
Rating:
Summary: James Cameron's Sci-Fi Horror Masterpiece Is Now Complete
Review: I reviewed an older version of Aliens on DVD, but wanted to comment on all the additional features of the new version of Aliens on DVD. This DVD has EVERYTHING that the last DVD release of this film did not have. There is feature length commentary with the director, the producer, and many of the stars of this movie. The movie also has the original theatrical release of this film, as well as the director's cut with 17 additional minutes. Like the first Alien movie, I liked the original theatrical release better because it seems a lot tighter, and the extra scenes with the colonists before the Alien attacked and Newt and her family take away a lot of the suspense of the original film. Of course we all know when Burke and Gorman arrive at Ripley's apartment to talk to her about going on a mission to the colony where they have lost contact that the aliens must have taken over, but not knowing exactly what happened makes it a much scarier movie. The second disc has the making of Aliens, and reveals a lot of secrets like how the loader that Ripley uses at the end of the film to get rid of the alien works. Considering that there was no CGI in 1986, I have no idea how they were able to get the loader and the queen alien to look so realistic, with out any wires showing or any people operating these giant objects looking like amateur puppeteers. Also the second disc has the complete first draft of the Aliens script written by James Cameron. This was on the Laserdisc of Aliens years ago, but was not on the first DVD release of this movie.
Rating: 
Summary: Theatrical Release vs Special Edition
Review: I give it 3 1/2 stars. The Special Edition of the movie is highly over-rated. The movie wasn't all that scary. The one thing I hated was that you would see the alien for a second and then it would be shot to death. It made the aliens look like they were harmless. I don't like the Special Edition because you have to wait an hour before the marines land on the planet. All that extra stuff on LV-426 was pretty cool, but it took way too long to develope. I give ALIENS Special Edition 3 stars. I liked ALIENS a lot better after seeing the Theatrical version. You get to the Sulaco 4 scenes earlier than you do in the Special Edition. In my opinion, I think they should have left out most of the 17 extra minutes of the movie in Special Edition. Everything happens sooner in the theatrical version and the first battle starts 8 scenes sooner. I would rate this movie lower, but if there was no Queen, it wouldn't get 4 stars. The extras on the disc are great! You get 151 minutes of featurettes and still photo galleries.
Rating:
Summary: Aliens - One of the best Sci-Fi action flicks ever made!
Review: If you're searching for a high speed, low drag super action thriller, search no more because "Aliens" is the film you're looking for! Even if you've not seen the first movie, "Alien" you'll still be able to enjoy this film to the fullest. That was of course by the design of the producers and this films superb director, James Cameron. Few sequels ever out do or exceed the accomplishments of their predecessors but "Aliens" can certainly be counted among those select few! With an exceptional script and an extremely talented cast, James Cameron crafted one of the best films to have ever graced the silver screen and the home theater screen. Few films raise the blood pressure such as this one does as James Cameron and crew crafted a film that excels in all points, from intense suspense to breakneck pace in action. What's even better is that this film bears many viewings; I can't even begin to remember how many times I've watched this extraordinary film. The VHS tape I had for the film died long ago and this review is for the June of 99 DVD release that has long since completely sold out prompting the latest DVD release! If you've watched more than one James Cameron film, you might begin to notice a bit of a recurring pattern as far as the exceptional actors that always seem to make it into his films, time after time. "Aliens" of course stars Sigourney Weaver in the role that has made her a household name and her performance for this film is extraordinary to say the least. Chief among the Cameron cronies (meant in a nice way of course) are Michael Biehn, Bill Paxton, Lance Henriksen and Jenette Goldstein who all perform brilliantly in this film and can be found in many of his other exceptional films. Also of note in "Aliens" is the dramatic role for Paul Reiser, a genre he's long since abandoned for comedy but his performance is quite memorable. Director James Cameron also wrote the script for "Aliens" along with David Giler and Walter Hill, all of which deserve all of the accolades they've received and continue to receive for their work on this incredible film. Few directors capture the imagination as he does. Of note also is James Horner, who was responsible for the score and the work he did on this film turned out to be quite exceptional, as is usual, whenever his name appears in the credits, the film is usually a huge success. Just a note on the "Space Marines" featured in this extraordinary film, from a present day soldier's point of view. No matter what happens in the future, I seriously doubt that the Marine Corps would ever adopt wearing US Army rank insignia on their uniforms. I'm sure that many a present day Marines has had their feathers rustled a bit upon noticing this minor error in costume design. The Premise: It is nearly sixty years after the conclusion of "Alien," Ripley and Jonesy the cat are still quite happily sleeping away in their cryo-freeze compartment aboard the shuttle after sending the first alien out the airlock. The film opens with a salvage crew opening up the shuttle and finding her and the cat! After she's awoken, she learns that she's been floating around for fifty seven years and the company she works for is none to sympathetic to her cause, basically blackballing her. Unbeknownst to her, the "company" sends someone out to investigate her story and not too long thereafter nobody from the planetoid is heard from again. This of course prompts the company to send the space marines and Ripley as an advisor to find out what happened to the terraformers... What follows from there is one of the best and most intense Sci-Fi action/thrillers to have ever been made and I would highly recommend this film to any and all who are fans of films in this genre! This review is for the June of 99 DVD release. I found that the THX and 5.1 Surround worked quite well for this film. The seventeen minutes of the restored footage for this film is quite seamlessly added to film and serves extremely well in enhancing the experience of this movie. With reference to the latest release, I would definitely recommend that version if you don't already have a copy, especially if you're into a lot of the Special Features. While the version I'm reviewing today seems a bit sparse in the special features area, the new release appears to be replete with them, making it a very wise purchase. {ssintrepid} Special Features: -Behind the Scenes Footage
-Interview with James Cameron
-Still Photo Section
-Original Theatrical Trailer
Rating:
Summary: Aliens. Ready to rock the DVD generation
Review: My sons, who are now in the mid to later teens, have attached themselves to the Aliens thing due to this movie and the first original "Alien". They have brought them to school where the first reaction from this high school generation is, "Huh? What's Aliens about?" Well like we found out back in the day, they find out now in the 21st century and are hooked just the same. Awesome Sci-Fi flick in a class by itself that holds up to todays computer generated stuff in spades. Well done, well acted and action and tension filled. My kids only regrets are the same as mine, after Alien and Aliens the others in the series took a dive, what a shame. Buy the first two in the Alien series and hang onto your seats (and plasma rifles)!! "Semper Fi" Colonial Marines!
| 
