The Alien saga is one of the finest and most enduring film series’ out there, and certainly one of the finest science fiction series’ out there. The legendary Ellen Ripley provides us with one of the strongest female characters of all time and once again, definitely a stand out amongst science fiction. But it’s those awful, drooling xenomorphs which will endure in your memory, with their snarling jaws and truly alien shapes courtesy of eccentric artist H.R. Geiger; combined with the rest, providing something really special.

There’s been releases of the franchise before, on both VHS and DVD, but they’ve always been incredibly limited considering the scale of the film series. This nine disc set, containing all four films and a host of extras is certainly the finest release to date and it’s hard to imagine, beyond a polished blu-ray version, how such a collection might be topped.

The set delivers fairly across all four films, with similarly structured extras on each. There’s a version of the original film, a director’s cut and a forwarding introduction by each director. This not only allows us to see the films as they were once intended, but gives us a very personal insight courtesy of the men behind the camera. The third film in the franchise, doesn’t have either, but does offer an “Assembly Cut” as opposed to a director’s one, with missing footage reinstated and some supporting notes which make it a very worthwhile experience.

The director’s cuts of all films are worthy of your time. The differences are most subtle with Alien, but with such a perfect film, such minor changes are welcome. Ridley Scott is still very comprehensive in his introduction, and presents himself in a calm and sociable way which fans should love. Aliens boasts a much meatier director’s cut, with James Cameron rambling on in his introduction. There are big stretches of deleted material reintroduced into the director’s cut and while it’s a case of too much that isn’t needed, it slots in comfortably and is a welcome option. Alien 3’s assembly cut is certainly interesting, but for a film that polarizes such opinion its hard to comment on. Alien Resurrection provides a few new scenes (including an impressive new introduction) and an introduction by its director which should please.

The extra features are numerous, with lengthy documentaries for each film, split up into tidy segments. It’s a whole script to screen and beyond deal, with the entire pre-production covered on all films, with the development of the original movie particularly interesting. Casting is also comprehensively covered, with plenty of interviews with cast members providing a real insight and some nice notes on characters. The technical side of each production is given a lot of time, and the scoring of each film, art direction, actual shoot and so on are all given time in the limelight. The reception of each film is also observed, with Alien 3 and Alien Resurrection’s mixed receptions being discussed openly which is very surprising and refreshing.

There are plenty of other features on offer too. Photo galleries, trailers, other features and the like are all on offer, and a final disc originally released with the 5 disc set offers “Alien Evolution” an interesting documentary on the series that any fan will enjoy.

Certainly worth your buck, this set will not disappoint and will likely endure as one of the better collections on DVD out there.

Rating: 9