The least successful film in this series was directed by stylemaster (and content-underachiever) David Fincher. Ripley, the only survivor of her past mission, awakens on a prison planet in the far corners of the solar system. As she tries to recover, she realizes that not only has an alien gotten loose on the planet, the alien has implanted one of its own within her. As she battles the prison authorities (and is aided by the prisoners) in trying to kill the alien, she must also cope with a distinctly shortened lifespan that awaits her. But the striking imagery makes for muddled action and the script confuses it further. The ending looks startling but it takes a long time--and a not particularly satisfying journey--to get there.

Review from Jamestown, NC.
I remember the long wait between the release of this movie and Aliens and the great amount of anticipation that was built up around this movie considering how extraordinary the first two films were and just imagining how great this one was going to be. Then its release date came and it received generally bad reviews and collectively, the majority of the fans were highly disappointed by it, including myself. That being said, I was quite reluctant to spend the money on this DVD but after reading some of the other positive reviews I decided to give this film one more chance and now, after having watched it again I would have to say I've completely changed my mind.

Alien 3 just wasn't as bad as I remembered it to be from that one time viewing in the theater so many years ago and in fact, stylistically, it's a movie that was ahead of its time. Ultimately, I think what turned so many people off of this film when it was released is that it was so dramatically different from the first two that it initially just didn't seem as though it belonged in the mythos that is the Alien legacy. The one thing about this film that does make it drag is its pacing. What the director appeared to be reaching for was the same feel that "Alien" engendered but in the end, in reaching for that intense atmosphere didn't always work and only resulted in the pace slowing down and too little suspense. As stated above though, thematically it was just years ahead of its time and I believe, were it a movie that were originally released more recently, with some minor changes, it might've garnered much more success in the theaters.

Performance wise, Sigourney Weaver does just as wonderful a job with this film as she did with the first two and, not to mention, she co-produced the film, further showing her support for the script and this addition to the Alien mythos. Charles S. Dutton's role in the film is over the top, as his acting usually is and it fits quite well with the character.

David Fincher, who took up the directing mantle for Alien 3 deserves a fair amount of credit for the thematic style of this film, bringing the original story and screenplay to fruition. Twelve years ago, I would've said don't ever let the man direct again, but this second viewing of "Alien 3" and after seeing some of the other films he's directed since, I would definitely have to say that he is a very good director!