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Alien III cover art

Alien III

By: William Gibson
Narrated by: Tom Alexander,Barbara Barnes,Michael Biehn,Lance Henriksen,Lorelei King,Laurel Lefkow,Keith Wickham
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"Every film fan has a mental list of the Greatest Movies Never Made. The greatest of these in the scifi genre has been William Gibson’s unmade script for ALIEN III. It’s by one of the giants of the literary genre, and takes the situation set up in ALIENS, moving forward into fresh regions of the Alien Universe and continuing the stories of our old friends from James Cameron’s movie. It’s been a privilege and honour to finally bring this story to life with this wonderful cast as an immersive audio movie." - Dirk Maggs, Director.

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Here’s a sneak peak of the terror to come….
  • Alien III
  • Here’s a sneak peak of the terror to come….

About the Director

Dirk Maggs is an innovator in the world of radio and audio production. A prolific writer and director, he is known for his cinematic approach to audio, utilizing scripts and fine-tuned sound effects layered with music to create a near visual effect. Maggs has previously worked on BBC Radio adaptations of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy and Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency. He also excels at adapting graphic novels for radio. His award-winning credits include Judge Dredd, Superman Lives, and Batman: Knightfall. At Audible, Maggs has proven to be a breakout star, directing the groundbreaking original Alien series and adapting The X-Files: Cold Cases and The X-Files: Stolen Lives.

What listeners say about Alien III

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

So, Alien 3 Could have been MUCH better!


Alien was one of my favourite films of all time, few films have had me riveted to the screen quite so absolutely. Aliens, while different in character, was a fine follow-up and since then I've lost count of the number of discussions I've had with friends about which is the better film with us being split fairly well down the middle. What happens if you add Alien 3 into the mix? Well, the answer is that we're still evenly split, half of us with Alien being the best and the other half with Aliens. No-one but no-one ever tries to make a case for Alien 3! It's hard to imagine what they were thinking of choosing the script that they did and now I think we have a definite answer to the big question, yes there were better options out there!

What's great about this is that it delivers another action flick like Aliens albeit only in audio. Maggs / Audible throw their considerable expertise and experience with the franchise at it. There is a lovely solidity to the sound effects, really crunchy, solid sound with the noises made by the aliens particularly impressive. I can't wait to try this again through quality headphones, it sounded great through the Bluetooth so when I put a real bit of oomph behind it I think it will rock! The acting is also extremely good for the most part.

On the other hand, it does rely heavily on repeating things that have been done before and I don't think the story quite hits the heights, nor does Gibson's script use all the surviving characters as well as he could have done. It's also of course quite short for an audiobook though that's not surprising - it is a film script after all!

So, no doubt in my mind that while this isn't perfect, it's a class above the story / script they used for Alien 3 the film. I can possibly see why they didn't plump for this one, what I can't see is why they chose the one they did above it. In any case, I'm more than happy to have spent a credit on it and I am going to enjoy listening to it again at home!

By the way, if you can't remember how Alien 2 finished up then don't worry there is a good reprise of how it panned out at the start of this.

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32 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars

disappointing

This sadly plays out like they're just reading the stage directions from the script and not an actual drama at all. It's not been very well adapted as an audio drama, and the script has some terrible clunking lines in it. The use of Bishop as a narrator doesn't work very well as he is too disapassionately removed. The story itself is also not terribly exciting or as interesting as it's been hyped up to be; certainly no better than the original Alien 3 film.

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18 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

He's coming in. I feel safer already........

As a 16 year old, my first experience of the Alien series came from watching Aliens on ye olde VHS at a friends house. I was entranced and have been in awe of it ever since. I have bored countless friends and family stupid, reciting lines and reiterating how good it is.

I then watched Alien and subsequently and most depressingly of all Alien 3. Alien 3 just left me feeling hollow. Dead. Apart from a few of Fiorina "Fury" 161’s finest inmates; they just killed everyone. Of the film itself, there were some good performances. I thought Charles Dance was very good. It was different film, some may argue it’s merits but for me, not in a way that either equalled or improved upon it’s predecessors.

Imagine my interest then at Niell Blomkamp’s idea at an alternative Alien 3 – which unfortunately hasn’t gone anywhere – and then the Dark Horse and Audible interpretations of Gibson’s alternative Alien 3 screenplay.

For the Audible version, it’s great to have Hicks (Michael Biehn) and Bishop (Lance Heriksen) back. Since we last saw him; Bishop has developed something of a whistle when he speaks, probably something to do with being ripped asunder by an Alien Queen. Teeth not quite what they used to be. Ripley (Lauren Leftkow) is given little air time in this production by when she’s there, her Ripley is spot on as it is in the other Audible Alien titles.

The story is interesting, I’m glad Gibson introduced some new ideas both political and of the Alien’s adaptability amidst the ever present somewhat pantomime face of the villainous “company” and we all know what they are after.

My only disappointment is there isn’t more of it. It is woefully short and a shame the screenplay couldn’t have been given the novelisation treatment. I have geek-ely (not a word) been waiting 33 years for someone to finally bring this together; the alternative which should have been so thanks Audible but can we please have more.

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16 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars

I can see why this script ended up in the bin

Sorry to say it, but I was really disappointed with this Alien dramatisation. The previous ones were very good indeed, and I'm afraid to say this pales in comparison. It was great to hear Michael Biehn and Lance Henriksen reprise their roles from Aliens, but the story just didn't do them justice. Half the time I had no idea what was going on - where were the characters? Which spaceship or spacestation were they on? Who of the supporting cast were talking (they all sounded the same, except for the Russians and Chinese guys)? And, it is much too short. And the story was pretty pants to boot. Avoid.

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10 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars

Fox made the right choice

I read Gibson’s Alien3 script 20 or so years ago - it’s still widely available on the internet - and gave this a go for old times’ sake.

Sadly, I was reminded of what I thought back then. Gibson’s Alien3 is quite derivative and dull in comparison to the brave decisions made in the theatrical release. It just gives audiences a load more of the same. In fact it’s easy to spot which tired elements were reused in the truly awful Alien: Resurrection.

Far more interesting would be to hear an audio version of Vincent Ward’s original Alien3 script which was superbly challenging and gave life to many of the stronger elements in the released movie.

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10 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Retcon the alien franchise.

It’s easy to see why this ambitious unproduced screenplay was pushed aside in favour of more traditional and cheaper movie . The sets would have been bigger and the ships more detailed. The story moves towards the polictical and ethical implications of weaponising the Alien.
If you read this alongside the comic book (recently released under dark horse) it will truly bring the movie to life.
It takes the franchise in provocative and interesting directions. It’s great to have the characters back again and Hicks and Bishop take more of a lead role. I think they were unsure if sigourney would return or maybe fox wanted a male audience.
So let’s forget about Alien 3 and obviously Alien resurrection and cuddle up to some familiar friends and enemies.

Maybe next Audible could explore the wooden planet script and the religious iconography of Vincent Wards script.

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10 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars

Middling effort, way to short

A disappointing entry into the alien folklore. Basic storyline and way to short. Not worth the credit.

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8 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

The sequel Aliens deserved.

To hear Michael Biehn and Lance Henriksen reprise their roles as Cpl. Dwayne Hicks and Bishop respectively filled me with joy. Although a much shorter audible original compared to the others in the series, it was still very enjoyable from start to finish. I just hope that there is more to come.

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5 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Enjoyed, Albeit Short

Great to hear the return of Michael Biehn and lance Henrickson the Aliens universe and a worthy return. Sadly I do feel it was rather short, hope they continue the story line of the end of the audiobook with new material.

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5 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars

Awful

There’s a reason this was never made into a film and it’s even worse as a audio book.

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4 people found this helpful