Alien Vs. Predator: Extreme Edition (2004) DVD Review – UK

During a remarkable archaeological dig in Antarctica, a team of archaeologists find themselves caught up in a deadly battle between two sci-fi legends, and the humans are the catalyst for the awaiting battle.

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9 Aug 2026 (4 days ago)

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Runtime

1 Hour 38 Minutes

BBFC rating

Region

Region 2

Sound

Dolby Digital 5.1

Aspect

2.35:1

Release year

2004

Details

Since the beginning of time, the Predators have come to Earth for one simple reason - to engage in a coming-of-age ritual. To enter manhood, the teenage Predators must hunt down a hive of Alien warriors and successfully defeat them, claiming their skulls as trophies. However, during one particular hunting session the easily aggravated Aliens fought back with a vengeance. Staring defeat and death in the face, the Predators unleashed a force so deadly that it led to the destruction of both species as well as the Aztec people who worshipped the Predators as gods and willingly gave themselves as sacrifices to their deadly prey.

Now two thousand years later, whilst using a satellite to scan for mineral deposits over Antarctica, billionaire industrialist Charles Bishop Weyland has managed to discover a massive ancient pyramid structure buried thousands of feet under the ice. Not only does this discovery prove that man once inhabited Antarctica, but what makes it even more interesting is the fact that the temple is in the process of warming up. Knowing that he has uncovered something extremely significant, Weyland recruits a team of experts led by Alexa Woods and heads down to the Antarctic to uncover the pyramid and leave a legacy for all mankind.

But as the group arrive at the site they discover that a tunnel has already been dug down to the pyramid. Has someone else beaten them to the site? As the group go deeper into the buried temple they become trapped and encounter some strange eggs which have started to hatch. And one thing is for sure - the hatchlings are not the friendly kind, although they do like a nice tight hug. To make matters worse, the new hunting clan of teenage Predators have arrived and are ready to hunt down both the Aliens and the trapped humans. The humans have just stumbled into the middle of a centuries-old war between Alien and Predator and they are the bait!

Picture & Sound

As the film takes place in dark and gloomy locations or driving snow blizzards, the picture transfer is going to be a serious challenge to the DVD encoding process. On the whole it does its job extremely well, holding up to the most challenging scenes with relative ease. Although a little muted at times, the colours are rich and vibrant whilst images remain sharp with a high level of detail throughout. The transfer also exhibits no problems with dust specks or other picture imperfections. But, to be honest, with such a recent film the image shouldn't have been anything but clean. However, the picture is not perfect and there are a few scenes where grain and pixelisation are evident. Nevertheless, this is finding fault for fault's sake and, given the complicated images on show, the end results are very commendable indeed.

Given that the film is accompanied by not one but two audio commentaries, it is all the more surprising to find both a Dolby Digital 5.1 384 Kbps and DTS 5.1 768 Kbps soundtrack. Although the Dolby Digital soundtrack has a lower bit rate than normal it still manages to produce a dynamic and involving soundtrack, proving that a lower bit rate doesn't necessarily equate to a poorer sounding soundtrack. However, given the extra spatial dimension offered by the DTS soundtrack, action junkies should ensure that their surround system is set up for the superb DTS mix.

Still, both soundtracks offer some cracking surround effects, with gunfire and the sound of both sets of alien creatures scuttling about providing the highlights. The dialogue is crisp and clear in the centre channel whilst there's some good stereo steerage in the front channels. Even the LFE channel is not neglected and whenever the action is on screen the bass channel rattles the floorboards, although its starring moment does not arrive until the closing minutes when a Predator finally gets cheesed off with the Alien eggs and decides enough is enough.

There once was a time when Twentieth Century Fox led the way with its innovative menu systems such as those seen on The Abyss and X-Men releases, and then for some reason they took their foot off the accelerator and reverted to the standard and boring menu systems seen on most discs. However, this release sees Fox return to something we haven't seen from them in a while - innovatively animated menus. Whilst the main menu introduction drags on for way too long, with a camera zooming into the pyramid and then waiting for a couple of eggs to appear, once the introduction is complete the main menu is displayed. Although static, the various options and menus are easy to navigate through and by playing the film via my PC I did actually manage to find a different menu introduction, but for the life of me I can't work out how to reproduce it.

Menu & Extras

Extras wise, it's a good package with a couple of audio commentaries and detailed featurettes into the filming process. The bulk of the extras are supplied on the second disc, with numerous featurettes created during the pre and post-production process. Fortunately, Twentieth Century Fox have again added the option of purchasing the single or double disc set so fans of the on-screen action can be catered for just as much as fans of the background details.

Apart from the extended cut of the film, the main extras on the first disc are the two audio commentaries, of which the major commentary is from director Paul WS Anderson and actors Lance Henriksen and Sanaa Lathan. Director Anderson talks enthusiastically throughout, discussing his influences and providing references to the earlier films in the franchises.

The second commentary track is provided by the Special Effects Team of Alec Gillis, Tom Woodruff and John Bruno. Technophobes will probably want to avoid this one, but those who are more interested in the technical feats behind the special effects used in the film will be more than happy with the chatter on offer here.

The second disc is packed with featurettes and documentaries covering the pre-production, production and post-production stages of the film. The hour-long Making of AVP documentary is particularly worthwhile, featuring extensive behind-the-scenes footage and interviews with the cast and crew.

The disc also includes several smaller featurettes covering subjects such as the miniature whaling station set, animatronic Facehuggers and Eggs, and the various visual effects techniques used to bring the creatures to life.

Rounding things off are deleted scenes with optional commentary, a featurette on the Dark Horse comic book origins of the story, a look at the licensed merchandise and models, an HBO special and the teaser and theatrical trailers. All in all, it's quite a generous selection of extras.

Overall

Alien Vs. Predator is directed by Paul WS Anderson, the same director behind the rather poor Resident Evil and Event Horizon films. As a result, whilst expectations for these two franchises colliding were high, the end result is somewhat disappointing. After the media hype and the expectations of fans of both the Alien and Predator films - not to mention the comic books and video games which inspired the project - the final result feels like a missed opportunity.

However, it isn't all bad. The special effects are certainly worthy of note, particularly the animatronics and traditional creature effects which often look far better than the more obvious CGI. In fact, the film demonstrates just how effective practical effects can still be when used correctly.

There are also some nice touches for fans of the wider franchise, such as billionaire Charles Bishop Weyland bearing more than a passing resemblance to the android Bishop. Fans will also recognise the significance of the name Weyland, which later becomes part of the infamous Weyland-Yutani Corporation.

Although Twentieth Century Fox made an incomprehensible mint at the box office with Alien Vs. Predator, the question of long-term appeal remains. Fortunately the Extreme Edition DVD helps soften the blow by including a wealth of extras. If you plan on purchasing the film then the two-disc version reviewed here is definitely the one to go for, as the second disc greatly boosts the overall value. One thing is certain though - for fans of the original franchises, this is no Alien or Predator.