Ripley continues to be stalked by a savage alien, after her escape pod crashes on a prison planet.
Fans were once again left waiting a long time for this third instalment (6 years in-fact) but unfortunately they wouldn’t be as pleased this time around. Every franchise has it’s low point and this is the one for this series but who would’ve imagined it would be so low?
The important factor for any film is not just the cast, it’s the crew and studio employees behind it and many people seem to forget that. If things aren’t going well behind the scenes then you can’t expect good things on screen and that is the huge problem with “Alien³”, there were BIG problems. A pile so big it’s hard to know where to start, well lets start with the script. There were MANY scripts wrote for this film, some versions of the script and design featured a giant rustic monastery with no alien appearing, One early draft of the script focused entirely on Hicks, Bishop and Newt from “Aliens”. The story would tie up loose ends from the preceding film with Newt returning to Earth to live with her grandparents, as well as Hicks and Bishop and a new team of Colonial Marines battling a rival faction of planets who use the Alien as a bio-weapon.
The list goes on, in the original drafts of the script there wasn’t even a Ripley, William Gibson also drafted a script in which Ripley spent most of the film in a coma. After the first draft was complete (in which the Alien attacks a monastery), construction work began on the sets. The construction shut down, leaving the crew in limbo, as the script was reworked. Although the location changed to a prison, it was decided that they would use the already half-built monastery sets. Multiple proposed scripts caused misleading advertising which implied that the movie would be set on Earth. The production even shut down for over three months while the script underwent re-writes during filming.
Script problems and concept problems weren’t the only things going wrong, this time it was very difficult to find some-one to direct it. Initially Renny Harlin was attached as director, but left to direct “Die Hard 2”, scriptwriter Walter Hill was considered to direct the film as well, but he rejected it too, past directors Ridley Scott and James Cameron didn’t want anything to do with it either and who can blame them with all the trouble going on. Then Vincent Ward came on board, but only lasted a few months before being fired after several disagreements with the producers, David Fincher was the guy who finally got the job, it would be his first time directing.
The after-math of the film wasn’t any better, Writer/Producer David Gile states he regrets writing this movie, as it eroded his authority as producer. Giler only committed to writing the film upon demands from Sigourney Weaver who, after Vincent Ward’s departure, would only sign on to the film if Giler and Walter Hill would pen the screenplay. Giler claims this later generated conflicts between himself, director David Fincher and Fox Studios executives, with Fox taking Fincher’s side over Giler’s. After one particularly heated disagreement, Giler walked off the set, leaving his duties to producer John Landau. Also director David Fincher disowned the film, citing constant studio interference and actually walked out of production before editing began, the film would even spend over a year in editing.
With all the backstage problems it’s no surprise that the movie didn’t live up-to everyone’s expectations, even though the film grossed nearly 3 times it’s $65 million budget. Viewing the film you can sense the tension of everything going wrong, I do give credit to the cast and crew for still trying to make the film. Sigourney Weaver threatened to not do any more “Alien” movies after seeing the movie’s final cut, I can just see her thinking “I shaved my head for this?!”
Miscellaneous facts about the film:
The concept by Vincent Ward based on which the movie was green-lighted involved a wooden planet and a group of monks who thought they were living in post-apocalyptic dark ages, and had a middle-ages lifestyle. The group refused all kinds of modern technology, and when Ripley and the alien crash-land on Earth they would blame Ripley for the alien attacks. Ripley was to be impregnated by the alien “the old-fashioned way” rather than through a face-hugger, and therefore being impregnated with a human-alien hybrid. According to the storyboards, she would dream of half human-half alien hybrids. Other storyboards included horse-alien and sheep-alien hybrids. Ward left the project after the producers insisted that he change the monks to prisoners and drop the wooden planet idea.
William Gibson wrote a very early script treatment for the film. As Sigourney Weaver’s involvement was in question, the main focus of this script was between Hicks and Bishop, two characters from Aliens. Many consider this to be a much superior script. The only carry-over from this original script, however, is the bar-codes on the back of the convicts’ necks.
Although the alien that hatched from the dog was a rod puppet, early filmed tests used an actual dog in an alien costume.
A series of Aliens comic books were published that were set after the events in Aliens, featuring an adult Newt returning to space with a shell-shocked Hicks to stop the retrieval of an alien specimen by Weyland-Yutani corporation. The books were re-published to accommodate Alien³, with Newt re-named Billy.
The creature that the alien impregnates was originally an ox, but was eventually changed because an ox was cumbersome and was seen as somewhat incongruous when placed in the film’s environment. This sequence was later restored for the extended “Assembly Cut.”
To create a convincing corpse of the character of Newt, the filmmakers created life size mannequins using the molds of Carrie Henn from Aliens.
One possible idea for the film included a chest-burster coming out of Michael Biehn’s character, Hicks. A replica of the actor with his chest torn open was created, but after Biehn discovered this, he threatened to sue the producers for using his likeness without his consent, and the idea was dropped. Later, the producers paid him to use his picture at the beginning of the film for the computer sequence. Apparently he received more money for use of this one image than for his role in Aliens.
On the set at Pinewood Studios, a giant lead foundry took 12 weeks to construct and put the production way behind. Even with 6 day weeks and 14 hour days, the crew were unable to keep up with the schedule.
The Rottweiler (from which the alien emerges) had to have part of his face shaved to indicate where the facehugger had gripped onto him.
Off-duty, Sigourney Weaver had to wear a wig as her then two-year-old daughter Charlotte didn’t like to see her mother bald.
The alien in this movie differs from its predecessors in that the organic pipes on its back are now missing and it now has a more pronounced set of lips.
When the powers-that-be decided on a new ending to be shot, Elliot Goldenthal had one night to come up with a new score.
To create some of the wet sounds that accompany the alien, the soundmen went to Asian markets and bought animal heads and stomach linings.
The crane that lifts the crashed EEV out of the water to dry land is a miniature built using the cannibalized parts from a Star Wars X-Wing fighter model kit.
A cross is briefly seen on the planet surface to suggest the religion that some of the inmates have turned to. The model department held a competition to see who could design the best one. Four different models were created, and then David Fincher chose the version he liked best.
In wide shots, most of the refinery is actually made of cardboard.
Because an early storyline of the movie involved aliens landing on Earth, an early trailer of the movie had the tagline “On Earth, everyone can hear you scream.”
An advanced type of facehugger, one that impregnates Ripley with a queen embryo, was designed and built, but was cut from the Theatrical Version. It does however make a brief appearance in the extended Assembly Cut.
Because of continuing troubles with the film, Fox halted production in Pinewood Studios in England in late 1991. The crew returned to LA, and an initial screening identified the missing parts of the film. A major part yet to be shot included killing of the alien in the lead pool. By the time of the new shots in LA, Sigourney Weaver’s hair grew back, and she had an agreement with the producers that if she would have to cut her hair she would be paid a $40,000 bonus. The producers therefore hired Greg Cannom to create a bald cap with very short hair on it. The make-up process cost $16,000 and was very difficult and time-consuming because the hairline required the cap to be placed very precisely on Weaver’s head.
Some of H.R. Giger’s design for the film involved a puma-like alien with claws. The producers also instructed him to do more sexy designs, so he created a drawing of an alien, which, in close view, had the lips of a woman. One of his ideas involved the alien kissing the victims and killing them that way (an idea that was later used in the movie Species where the main creature was also designed by Giger).
Dr. Clemens’ line about Fury-161 being one of ‘Weyland-Yutani’s backwater prison planets.’ was the first time the name Weyland-Yutani was spoken out loud. It had appeared on computer screens and props in the previous two films, Alien and Aliens, but characters always referred to it as ‘The Company’ in dialogue.
Vincent Ward used his pay off from this film to finance his next, Map of the Human Heart.
The same “dipping bird” appears on the warden’s desk as was seen in the original Alien.
The original budget was $45 million which included Sigourney Weaver’s fee of $5.5 million. The budget soon spiraled however, with first Renny Harlin and then Vincent Ward both leaving the project before novice feature film director David Fincher came on board. Extensive last minute re-shoots – especially after the finale was deemed to be too similar to Terminator 2: Judgment Day – ultimately pushed the budget into the region of $65 million.
$7 million had been spent on sets that were never used thanks to the ever-changing script before filming had even started.
Gabriel Byrne was offered the role of Clemens.
Richard E. Grant turned down the role of Clemens. Director David Fincher offered him the role as he was a huge fan of Withnail & I and wanted to reunite Grant with co-stars Paul McGann and Ralph Brown.
Sigourney Weaver had a clause in her contract specifying that Walter Hill and David Giler would write the final shooting script. Weaver has said that she considers Ripley a very difficult character to write, and, with the exception of James Cameron, only Giler and Hill have really ever written the character correctly.
There are screenplay treatments by Eric Red, David Twohy, John Fasano and Rex Pickett all freely available on the Internet.
Director of photography Alex Thomson replaced Jordan Cronenweth three days into shooting. Cronenweth was succumbing to Parkinson’s disease. He died of it in 1996.
There was some question mark over whether the character of Ripley should actually feature in this film until the then president of 20th Century Fox, Joe Roth, insisted otherwise.
At one point, David Fincher was denied permission by the film’s producers to shoot a crucial scene in the prison understructure between Ripley and the alien. Against orders, Fincher grabbed Sigourney Weaver, a camera and shot the scene anyway. This scene appears in the final cut.
With the release of the definitive Alien Quadrilogy on DVD in 2004, 20th Century Fox proffered David Fincher the proverbial olive branch and asked him to assemble and comment on his own Director’s Cut. Fincher declined. He was the only one of the four Alien directors to refuse to have anything to do with the project.
This film is believed to be set just days or weeks after the events in Aliens, in 2179.
David Twohy contributed to the pile of abandoned scripts the movie’s pre-production generated. In his version, the only returning character is Ripley, who only briefly appears on a file card. As in previous scripts the story involves experiments in genetically-engineering aliens as bioweapons. This script introduced a high-security prison facility in space and its morally ambiguous inmates (one of which is an escape artist), themes which made it into both the finished product, and Twohy’s own Pitch Black.
When David Fincher asked Sigourney Weaver how she felt about going bald for the role, she jokingly replied “Its fine with me only as long as I get more money!”
The damages inflicted on Bishop were too severe to have Lance Henriksen work a prosthetic head while hiding under a table/chair/platform, so the filmmakers ended up having the android being played by… an android. A mechanical copy of Henriksen’s likeness was used in this movie for the portrayal of the Sulaco-Bishop.
Lance Henriksen only agreed to reprise his role as Bishop as a personal favour to Walter Hill. To this day, Henriksen has said he dislikes the film for its nihilistic themes.
This is the only film in the Alien Quadrilogy that does not feature an android character unique to that film. The only android that appears is Bishop (in a severely damaged state), and he had previously appeared in the film prior to this.
Novelist Alan Dean Foster who wrote the novelization of the film objected to the storyline, most specifically, the deaths of Newt and Hicks. His initial draft of the novel had Newt survive but the studio rejected this, forcing Foster to keep his adaptation consistent with the film. For this reason, the author declined to write any other adaptation of the franchise.
Costume Designer Bob Ringwood walked off the film early in production after finding Director David Fincher difficult and unpleasant to work with.
Original Alien Director Ridley Scott turned down the chance to direct. Scott, and later Renny Harlin both thought the third film should explore the origin of the Xenomorph species. This concept was deemed too expensive by David Giler and Walter Hill, so Scott declined to return and Harlin later quit the film.
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