Blu Ray vs DVD

Thanks Sparky (may I call you sparky?) You have totally sold it to me. Now which version do I go for? There are 3 that I am aware of, the one with the egg, the one with the alien head or bog standard? Gonna start saving up for a Blu ray player now. OT, will also have to get the Star Wars Blu ray box set.

DVD... all you really get with any Blu-Ray is HD. DVD's are cheaper, easier to come across and don't fund the greed that is sony.

"Snorky", Luv ya man but not in this case. Here ya go "E.P.M.G" IGN has the scoop on the release date and details for the Alien Anthology, This six-disc set contains about 60 hours of special features and over 12,000 images, including material from the legendary early 1990s LaserDisc release, the "Legacy" release and the Quadrilogy DVDs. 20th Century Fox claims that the four Alien films have been "reinvigorated for an intense Blu-ray high-definition viewing experience." New, previously unreleased content includes original screen tests of Sigourney Weaver prior to filming the original Alien, unseen deleted scenes, and the previously unseen original cut of "Wreckage and Rage: The Making of Alien3" (previously only available in truncated form). This edition will incorporate the "MU-TH-UR Mode," an interactive feature that lets you access the special features on all six discs and provides an index of all available content. The Anthology offers nearly five hours of additional video Enhancement Pods created exclusively for this collection, presenting behind-the-scenes footage, raw dailies and interview outtakes from all four films. At relevant points in the documentaries, you may access these pods to enhance your experience – or watch them on their own from the separate Enhancement Pod index. As previously reported the Anthology will initially be available in a limited edition with alien-egg packaging. Disc contents and special features include: Disc One: Alien * 1979 Theatrical Version * 2003 Director's Cut with Ridley Scott Introduction * Audio commentaries: o Director Ridley Scott, writer Dan O'Bannon, executive producer Ronald Shusett, editor Terry Rawlings, and actors Sigourney Weaver, Tom Skerritt, Veronica Cartwright, Harry Dean Stanton and John Hurt o Ridley Scott (on theatrical cut only) * Final theatrical isolated score by Jerry Goldsmith * Composer's original isolated score by Jerry Goldsmith * Deleted and extended scenes * MU-TH-UR Mode interactive experience with Weyland-Yutani Datastream Disc Two: Aliens * 1986 Theatrical Version * 1991 Special Edition with James Cameron introduction * Audio commentary by director James Cameron, producer Gale Anne Hurd, alien effects creator Stan Winston, visual effects supervisors Robert Skotak and Dennis Skotak, miniature effects supervisor Pat McClung, and actors Michael Biehn, Bill Paxton, Lance Henriksen, Jenette Goldstein, Carrie Henn and Christopher Henn * Final theatrical isolated score by James Horner * Composer's original isolated score by James Horner * Deleted and extended scenes * MU-TH-UR Mode interactive experience with Weyland-Yutani Datastream Disc Three: Alien3 * 1992 Theatrical Version * 2003 Special Edition (Restored Workprint Version) * Audio commentary by cinematographer Alex Thomson, B.S.C., editor Terry Rawlings, alien effects designers Alec Gillis and Tom Woodruff, Jr., visual effects producer Richard Edlund, A.S.C., and actors Paul McGann and Lance Henriksen * Final theatrical isolated score by Elliot Goldenthal * Deleted and extended scenes * MU-TH-UR Mode interactive experience with Weyland-Yutani Datastream Disc Four: Alien Resurrection * 1997 Theatrical Version * 2003 Special Edition with Jean-Pierre Jeunet introduction * Audio commentary by director Jean-Pierre Jeunet, editor Herve Schneid, A.C.E., alien effects creators Alec Gillis and Tom Woodruff, Jr., visual effects supervisor Pitof, conceptual artist Sylvain Despretz, and actors Ron Perlman, Dominique Pinon and Leland Orser * Final theatrical isolated score by John Frizzell * Deleted and extended scenes * MU-TH-UR Mode Interactive Experience with Weyland-Yutani Datastream Disc Five: Making the Anthology * The Beast Within: Making Alien o Star Beast: Developing the Story o The Visualists: Direction and Design o Truckers in Space: Casting o Fear of the Unknown: Shepperton Studios, 1978 o The Darkest Reaches: Nostromo and Alien Planet o The Eighth Passenger: Creature Design o Future Tense: Editing and Music o Outward Bound: Visual Effects o A Nightmare Fulfilled: Reaction to the Film o Enhancement Pods * Superior Firepower: Making Aliens o 57 Years Later: Continuing the Story o Building Better Worlds: From Concept to Construction o Preparing for Battle: Casting and Characterization o This Time It's War: Pinewood Studios, 1985 o The Risk Always Lives: Weapons and Action o Bug Hunt: Creature Design o Beauty and the Bitch: Power Loader vs. Queen Alien o Two Orphans: Sigourney Weaver and Carrie Henn o The Final Countdown: Music, Editing and Sound o The Power of Real Tech: Visual Effects o Aliens Unleashed: Reaction to the Film o Enhancement Pods * Wreckage and Rage: Making Alien3 o Development Hell: Concluding the Story o Tales of the Wooden Planet: Vincent Ward's Vision o Stasis Interrupted: David Fincher's Vision o Xeno-Erotic: H.R. Giger's Redesign o The Color of Blood: Pinewood Studios, 1991 o Adaptive Organism: Creature Design o The Downward Spiral: Creative Differences o Where the Sun Burns Cold: Fox Studios, L.A. 1992 o Optical Fury: Visual Effects o Requiem for a Scream: Music, Editing and Sound o Post-Mortem: Reaction to the Film o Enhancement Pods * One Step Beyond: Making Alien Resurrection o From the Ashes: Reviving the Story o French Twist: Direction and Design o Under the Skin: Casting and Characterization o Death from Below: Fox Studios, Los Angeles, 1996 o In the Zone: The Basketball Scene o Unnatural Mutation: Creature Design o Genetic Composition: Music o Virtual Aliens: Computer Generated Imagery o A Matter of Scale: Miniature Photography o Critical Juncture: Reaction to the Film o Enhancement Pods o MU-TH-UR Mode Interactive Experience to Access and Control Enhancement Pods Disc Six: The Anthology Archives * Alien o Pre-Production + First Draft Screenplay by Dan O'Bannon + Ridleygrams: Original Thumbnails and Notes + Storyboard Archive + The Art of Alien: Conceptual Art Portfolio + Sigourney Weaver Screen Tests with Select Director Commentary + Cast Portrait Gallery o Production + The Chestbuster: Multi-Angle Sequence with Commentary + Video Graphics Gallery + Production Image Galleries + Continuity Polaroids + The Sets of Alien + H.R. Giger's Workshop Gallery o Post-Production and Aftermath + Additional Deleted Scenes + Image & Poster Galleries + Experience in Terror + Special Collector's Edition LaserDisc Archive + The Alien Legacy + American Cinematheque: Ridley Scott Q&A + Trailers & TV Spots * Aliens o Pre-Production + Original Treatment by James Cameron + Pre-Visualizations: Multi-Angle Videomatics with Commentary + Storyboard Archive + The Art of Aliens: Image Galleries + Cast Portrait Gallery o Production + Production Image Galleries + Continuity Polaroids + Weapons and Vehicles + Stan Winston's Workshop + Colonial Marine Helmet Cameras + Video Graphics Gallery + Weyland-Yutani Inquest: Nostromo Dossiers o Post-Production and Aftermath + Deleted Scene: Burke Cocooned + Deleted Scene Montage + Image Galleries + Special Collector's Edition LaserDisc Archive + Main Title Exploration + Aliens: Ride at the Speed of Fright + Trailers & TV Spots * Alien3 o Pre-Production + Storyboard Archive + The Art of Arceon + The Art of Fiorina o Production + Furnace Construction: Time-Lapse Sequence + EEV Bioscan: Multi-Angle Vignette with Commentary + Production Image Galleries + A.D.I.'s Workshop o Post-Production and Aftermath + Visual Effects Gallery + Special Shoot: Promotional Photo Archive o Alien3 Advance Featurette o The Making of Alien3 Promotional Featurette o Trailers & TV Spots * Alien Resurrection o Pre-Production + First Draft Screenplay by Joss Whedon + Test Footage: A.D.I. Creature Shop with Commentary + Test Footage: Costumes, Hair and Makeup + Pre-Visualizations: Multi-Angle Rehearsals + Storyboard Archive + The Marc Caro Portfolio: Character Designs + The Art of Resurrection: Image Galleries o Production + Production Image Galleries + A.D.I.'s Workshop o Post-Production and Aftermath + Visual Effects Gallery + Special Shoot: Promotional Photo Archive o HBO First Look: The Making of Alien Resurrection o Alien Resurrection Promotional Featurette o Trailers & TV Spots * Anthology o Two Versions of Alien Evolution o The Alien Saga o Patches and Logos Gallery o Aliens 3D Attraction Scripts and Gallery o Aliens in the Basement: The Bob Burns Collection o Parodies o Dark Horse Cover Gallery o Patches and Logos Gallery o MU-TH-UR Mode Interactive Experience The new extras are extensive and excellent. Within the first couple minutes of sampling the new enhancement pods on disc 5, I learned a couple of tidbits I had been unaware of before. These are a wonderful extension of the already superb making-of documentaries. The MU-TH-UR interactive mode is easy to use and will probably prove helpful to those who are only interested in seeing certain parts of the behind-the-scenes material, but I haven't used it much. I've only sampled a couple minutes of the trivia track portion of this feature (titled "Datastream"), but so far it appears as though it will mostly be a re-hash of material you can find in disc 5's documentaries. The set also includes ALL of the extras from EVERY previous release of these films, as promised (at least as far as I can tell), in addition to the extended Alien Evolution and Alien 3 documentaries. [UPDATE: The extended Alien 3 documentary includes significantly more footage of Fincher directing on the set (lenghtier character discussions with the actors, etc.) and more detail on the schism between him and the studio that I don't remember seeing on the Quadrilogy DVD. At one point during filming you see Fincher get on a microphone and say, "I can't believe Fox is the number one studio because they're all such a bunch of morons." Interestingly, while some of the new footage does reflect poorly on the studio, I think it also makes it easier to understand why some people had trouble working with Fincher. I personally find this longer cut much more interesting, but it hardly feels like an entirely new, revelatory version. Still, if you love a good behind-the-scenes documentary, the extended cut of "Wreckage and Rage: The Making of Alien 3" may help justify the upgrade to bluray. By my estimate, disc 5 contains around 17 hours of documentaries, including an hour to an hour-and-a-half of new enhancement pods for each individual film (these are mostly extended interviews and production footage). I couldn't even tell you how many hours of content are on disc 6. So it's understandable, due to space limitations, that some of this material still appears to be in standard def. Although it's in SD, most of it has been enhanced so your bluray player will upconvert it (sometimes beautifully so) to fill a widescreen TV. I find the text slides on the still galleries of concept art on disc 6 (which ARE in FULL HD) much easier to read now. In disc 5's docs, most film clips, production artwork and photos, and many interviews will now fill the screen, while other interview clips appear pillarboxed with new imagery to the right and left instead of black bars (similar to the "Disneyview" feature on the Snow White and Pinocchio blurays, though mostly much less distracting than those were). It all looks good enough that I don't think many people will be too disappointed that some of these extras are still in SD. BOTTOM LINE: The extras, both new and old, are a substantial improvement over the Quadrilogy DVD set (at least IMHO, your mileage may vary). I doubt many people will feel shortchanged here.] [UPDATE 6: I've found more new extras on disc 6. There are some deleted scenes from Aliens, at least one of which - featuring Burke in a cocoon - I don't think I've seen before. The Patch and Logos image gallery will be appreciated by folks who love all the costuming/set dressing details. There's a video reproduction of a ride called "Aliens: Ride At The Speed of Fright" which is notable for two things: it's REALLY cheesy, and it features a very young Jeffrey Combs (I think this part is new - I don't remember seeing it on the DVD). The Parodies section is just some Alien-related clips from Spaceballs and Family Guy. You'll also want to keep an eye out for Easter Eggs on this disc.] The set has a couple of impressive surprises that weren't mentioned in any of the studio press releases I've seen. Disc Unbound is an automatic feature: when you eject any disc from this set, the Weyland-Yutani logo will pop up on screen. You can then insert any other disc from the set and you'll go straight to the main menu - it will skip over all the studio logos and FBI Warning screens, making an Alien marathon slightly faster and less annoying. I was aware that this set would include isolated score tracks for all four films (as well as alternate score tracks for the first two), but was unaware that you can also access each piece of music in any order from an index which includes even more unused music. I'm not certain, but I think I may have even spotted a couple of Bonus alternate tracks for Aliens that weren't even on the Deluxe Edition soundtrack CD. For those who are hard of hearing, all 4 films and even the extras on discs 5 and 6 include subtitles in around 15 languages, including English and Spanish. Even the audio commentaries have subtitles in multiple languages! Each film also has multiple language audio tracks, though it appears that only the English receives a lossless one. The packaging is the most elegantly beautiful I've ever seen for a bluray set. Inside the slipcase is a hardcover book with each disc held securely within its own page. These pages include photos from each film, as well as some basic info like plot synopses and director's credits. There's also a booklet and insert tucked in the back which explain how MU-TH-UR mode and Disc Unbound work, and list the content on each disc. It also has a note from Ridley Scott filled with tantalizing hints about what to expect in his upcoming prequel. Everyone will be happy to know that the package is very compact and will fit perfectly next to your other blurays. It's the same size as the Close Encounters of the Third Kind bluray, except that the spine is a little thicker since it holds more discs.

Alien looks glorious on 1080p bluray just get a decent hdmi lead that helps to.

The new anthology is the absolute best film boxed set ever unleashed. I owned the Legacy and Quadrilogy sets and neither even compare to the quality, love and attention that this set has been given. Not to mention that every frame of the original Alien has been cleaned, optimized and restored for HD. This alone makes the purchase (now going rate of $40 all region version or the US which retails now for about $60) amazing.

I personally want the one with the Egg, it looks awesome man...here have yourself a "looksee" right here... [img]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v234/LT.HIGHTIMES/alien_anthology_2.jpg[/img][img]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v234/LT.HIGHTIMES/1a1aboxew21Q.jpg[/img]

[img]http://www.coverdude.com/covers/alien-anthology-2010-r1-front-cover-57568.jpg[/img] The Alien Anthology is AMAZING. The quality is well worth the price and the artwork and design of the Anthology boxset is well worth it. Blu-ray players are MUCH MUCH cheaper now then they were back then. You can easily get a blu ray player nowadays anywhere from 50-100 bucks and new blu-ray movies are about 20 to 25 bucks brand new. I have a 55 inch LED Samsung tv with a Samsung blu ray player. My GOD the Anthology is fucking awesome on blu-ray and especially on a 55 inch LED Samsung tv. If you can. Save up and get a blu-ray player if you don't already have one but you can't leave out a good quality tv like Samsung if you are going to get one. Also I have a Subwoofer which really adds that extra BOOM and BASE. If you truly want the hi-def experience your going to have to be willing to spend the money. Good quality doesn't come cheap and for the Alien Anthology..its DEFINITELY worth it!!

Cheers guys, I think i will get the Anthology box set, just seen the prices for the one with the egg and i cant really justify paying over £100 for it, considering a blu ray player is going to cost me about £70 and surround sound kit will be about £30. I have a 32" full HD tv and a gold plated HDMI cable that I use for my xbox 360 so I wont need to buy another. I'm also moving in may and will be upgrading to a 50 or 60" 3dtv when I get into my new place, doing an Alien marathon with that kinda set up will be 'effin awesome.

Its truly amazing. Yes, HDMI is the only cable input you should be using to achieve the greatest amount of High Definition. There's still a majority of people out there who will say, "But blu-ray is too expensive...oh and you can't even tell." Honestly thats just uneducated bull. You need the right equipment for blu-ray and one of the BIGGEST factors in getting your blu-ray quality to stand out is the quality of your tv set. 32" is not bad at all. Brand can also be a factor. As of right now Samsung offers the best quality televisions out there as far as durability, picture quality, sound quality and every other option above. I'm surrounded by friends and family who STILL don't own a blu ray player or even buy blu-ray movies. They are really missing out. And its funny because when we watch blu ray films on my 55" Samsung LED tv there just blown away by it. And so far i've convinced some of my friends to get a good tv and blu-ray going for themselves and they didn't regret the decision. Overall, Blu-ray is MUCH better than DVD. I own the Quadrilogy and the Anthology is by far the winner in every race. Not too far from now DVD's won't even be an option and the rest of this ignorant society will HAVE TO make the decision of buying blu-ray instead. Thank GOD!!

You do have to be careful though. Older films on Blu Ray tend to just be upscaled dvds. You have to look on the back and do a bit of reading to see if the film is just upscaled or fully in HD. A good way of finding this out is if you go to Best Buy and Wal-Mart and you see those cheap bins...like BDs for 7.99-10.99....9 times out of ten they are just glorified dvds in which case it is best not to replace what you may already have. No matter what anybody says, these glorified DVds do not match the quality of a true HD Blu Ray. They will look exactly the same as if you were playing the DVD in the player. So pretty much any film that was released in theaters since BDs were introduced will be fine. Anything older than say....2007, you want to make sure it is full HD. You will learn all about this after delving deeper into the format once you have it.

I guess it depends on how much disposable income you have but a decent tv and blu ray player is a lot more affordable than it was and prices are coming down all the time . I have got a Sony bluray that cost me 95 pounds over a year ago and i paid around 40 pounds for a ultra high speed hdmi monster cable. ( these are cheaper now on amazon). My tv is a Sony bravia led and it to looks great for the money i paid its only 40 inch but for me and the room i view it in its a perfect size.

Of all the blu ray discs i own my fav looking ones are as follows. Baraka. ( the best of the lot ) Kingdom of heaven.... directors cut Apocalypse now ..... amazing film alien anthology inception kick ass gladiator tron Casino Anything by pixar

I work in the AV industry and the dirty little secret is there is no difference between a high end HDMI cable and a average one costing far less.Monster ,gold plated ,oxygen free cables= rubbish to sell HDMI cables at obscene prices.

That is pretty much true Raven, Luckily my gold plated HDMI only cost me £5, i've seen Belkin HDMI cables that go for £50+. I'd say dont pay less than £5 or more than £10 for a decent HDMI cable, the cheap ones you get for a couple of quid really dont last long at all and will most likely fall apart. Could someone please suggest me a decent blu ray player to purchase? I've seen blu ray players going recently for about £80 so I dont really want to pay anymore than that, it must be Divx/Xvid/Avi compatable.

I picked up the Anthology blu-ray box set from HMV in the UK for £18 last week! Not watched it yet though. Don't have a blu-ray player but use my PS3 instead. Don't think you need any extra cables through that...