[Canceled] Aliens TV Cut and Theatrical Regrade (Fox THX Laserdisc)

[CSchmidlapp]

Hi guys,

I was wondering if in addition to the TC and the DC, this release could also include the TV cut version (there is a copy of the broadcast on spleen), which is a hybrid of the TC & the DC.

Since this cut was official, but never released on any home-video, it would be great to have it archived along the rest.

However, I do not mean any censored scene, I just mean the cut as it was broadcast, but with all the violence intact.

He is.

Once it has been decided which is the best version, I also wanted to rebuild the ABC TV cut. That and remove the digital fixes (Bishop's hole/scratches on the window).

from the end of the 1st post in this thread.

[spoRv]

Stamper, welcome aboard!!!

[Booshman]

If the violence is put back in then wouldn't it then become another version? A hybrid of the TV cut and the regular edtions.

If the purpose is to rectreate it for archival purposes shouldn't they be the same? Otherwise I see it as more of a fanedit inspired by the TV cut.

It would be easy enough to do both versions though.

[Stamper]

Hi,

Yeah, seems like a cool forum.

Sorry I didn't catch that LOL. Yeah the ABC cut would be awesome.

However I'm not for removing the Bishop hole fix. It's a blunder that take you out of the movie.

I don't think the version is of interest because of the censorship, I think it's of interest because it's "hybrid" version.

I would love to experience it with Blu-ray quality, uncut. As it could appear as a hidden Blu-ray bonus (if someone at Fox was creative and bold enough to suggest it to Cameron)

---

I sometimes wonder if one of the reasons people complain about teal on modern transfers is because transfers from the 90s/00s sometimes pushed blues almost to indigo, and people tend to think the "blue" blues are correct.

Blue Blues were a byproduct of the video transfers.

There was always teal on the old films, not full on Blu except in some instances. Witness T2 Pan&Scan version, done in 1991, where teal is way visible, whereas it's fixed to Blue on the widescreen version due to the low res.

However, there was never a blanket green tint. I think this is due to the negatives deteriorating.

[spoRv]

Little off topic
the fact "Bishop in the hole" fix should or not be included in a preservation will be a strong point of discussion, not for the choice per se, but for the whole fan restoration world... should this kind of fix be included in a preservation or not? Personally I think it could be included, but I will not name it "purist edition" to avoid any purist indignation...
End off topic

[TServo2049]

The green tint on the Blu is likely mostly historical revisionism. Cameron signed off on it, not sure if it's his revisionism specifically? (see: Michael Mann, Ridley Scott, etc.)

It's hard to tell sometimes - years of home video transfers may have conditioned people to thinking "Cameron blues" are the blue-blue-blue blues of the pre-2010s home video transfers, when evidence seems to be pointing to them looking a bit different in theaters.

For example, here's what T2 looks like projected in a theater: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tnEACdAr1rk There's a whole range of different shades and hues to those "Cameron blues" on this theatrical print, both within a single scene, and from scene to scene - notice that some of the scenes have a lot of deep blue, while others have more cyan midtones/teal highlights. It's more nuanced than the basically single-hue "pure blue" look we're accustomed to. Though if/when the long-promised 4K remaster is ever actually done, it will probably go too far in the other direction and look really green-teal.

(Kind of like T1 - the old transfer seems like it doesn't have enough cyan/teal compared to the trailers and other things I've seen, but the new one is also incorrect by going too green. I'm pretty sure the sky in the ending scene should not be the color of packing peanuts.)

OK, enough of that Cameron color digression...

[PDB]

Booshman, you have a good point, that putting in the violence is not true to the source but you can say the same thing if I don't cut the movie down to 4:3 or but in the blank frame before commercials or even the commercials. Look at it this way the movie existed in this form at some point before cut and cropped for TV.

Frankly, there isn't a heck of a lot to cut out. I think the only scene that need to be looked at is the chestburster. Aliens is a violent film but was intentional made less graphic then Alien. Most of the violence is against the Aliens and not other people so if you watch the TV cut, it has all the action of the theatrical.

The reason I love the TV cut is that to me personally, it has all the strengths of the longer cut but none of the weaknesses. The weakness in question is the Hadley's Hope scenes on LV-426. That scene needed some special effects work and wasn't ready by the time Aliens aired on TV.

Think about how Aliens plays. Unlike Alien were your focus changes from character to character and you don't know who will survive, Aliens is completely from the ground up Ripley's story. Even when the Marines go into the station, a lot of time is focused on Ripley's reaction watching what transpires the video screens, being pushed into action. The Hadley's Hope is the only part that is totally divorced from Ripley. It basically breaks the narrative and tension. Its kind of like the Dallas egg scene in Alien, it stops the story mid-track. Worse of all all when you think of it, its not needed. When Ripley talks to Van Leuwen, he tells her about the colonist there are, Sigourney Weaver's acting sells the rest. We don't need to be told or shown anything else. It also works better seeing the colony for the first time through the eyes of Ripley and the Marines.

Color-wise this is still a learning experience. I'm definitely going to do one version as the 95 LD as a companion to the 95 Alien project (barring a better source, I still have to look at one or two LDs I have). I'm also def going to do another version. Should it be the DVD, the 35mm trailer, something else. I don't know.

As for the Bishop hole. I understand were you are coming from Stamper and it taking you out of the film but I hate little fixes like that. It just seem like petty revisionism. There was nothing wrong with for decades. Ah if only I could do seamless branch, then I could do both.

[Stamper]

I noted that in the TV cut, there are green screen windows in the opening hospital scenes.

In the final film, there is a corridor added behind these windows. Anyone noticed?

I think the 95 LD have awesome colors, and it would be great to own a HD version matching it. Don't mind the Bishop hole being there since it was LOL.

I think I will recut the h264 of the Blu-ray to the ABC cut (but with violence intact and not changing the colors) myself, to make it just as if it was a hidden cut on the Blu-ray, just like the T2 hidden cut.

[PDB]

I noted that in the TV cut, there are green screen windows in the opening hospital scenes.

In the final film, there is a corridor added behind these windows. Anyone noticed?

I think the 95 LD have awesome colors, and it would be great to own a HD version matching it. Don't mind the Bishop hole being there since it was LOL.

I think I will recut the h264 of the Blu-ray to the ABC cut (but with violence intact and not changing the colors) myself, to make it just as if it was a hidden cut on the Blu-ray, just like the T2 hidden cut.

I didn't notice that, intreseting, let me check my TV recording

Luckily, outside of those windows, violence, etc you only need one part from the theatrical cut to remake the TV cut. In the TC there is a dissolve for the conference room to the cigarette in Ripley's hand, whereas the longer cut, hard cuts from the conference room to LV-426.

[Stamper]

I haven't watched the TV cut completely yet, it looks to me they just added the daughter's scene and the sentry scenes? All the rest is the TC?