Following up two perfect sci-fi movies in “Alien” and its sequel “Aliens” was always going to be a thankless task. And as 1992’s “Alien 3” proved, hitting three home runs in a row was always highly unlikely. Suffering from a messy production cycle, intense studio meddling (so much so that director David Fincher has subsequently disowned the movie), and some hugely unpopular narrative decisions (R.I.P Newt and Hicks), “Alien 3” is a very divisive movie.
Flash forward to the present day, and HBO Max has just become the streaming home of the entire “Alien” saga from the 1979 original to the latest, and excellent, “Alien: Romulus.” This is great news for sci-fi horror fans. However, more significantly, the streaming service also offers “Director’s Cuts” of several movies in the franchise, including “Alien,” “Aliens,” and most importantly, HBO Max offers the fan-favorite “Alien 3: The Assembly Cut.”
