The Film (3.5/5)

A small girl in a lab base in the desert is being put to sleep. As tensions rise, the girl remarkably breaks away from her holding cell and makes a run for it. It turns out that the girl is an alien human hybrid named SIL, created by man after contacting an alien race. With the unpredictable SIL now fully grown (Natasha Henstridge) and lose in the great LA area, the scientist Fitch (Ben Kingsley) gathers a group of scientists and milartiy ops to help hunt her down before she can start mating.

Back in 2016 one of my first reviews was on the SPEICES sequels released by Shout! Factory. Being surprised by them (except for SPECIES 3, now that was a terrible mess), I was curious to revisit the first film. And luckily Shout! Not only rereleased it, but gave us a worthy upgrade with a new transfer that helps puts the film in a fresher light. Having only remembered the first film as a showcase for the stunning Henstridge and being borderline soft-core porn, I’m pleased to say my memories were all wrong. In fact, the movie until some of the problems with its third act is damn impressive.

Henstridge’s performance as SIL is a fantastic debut. Her body language, eye movement and line delivery is completely alien and realistic. Some of the simplest scenes having a higher weight thanks to her acting. The latter half of the film almost turns into a revenge film or slasher with her planning traps for the trap group. Also, her noir look with black hair as aids in some of the suspense.

Something else that surprised me was how well cast and game everyone was. For a bigger budgeted and well produced “B” movie, everyone is giving it their all, even when the script becomes lacking. Michael Madsen makes a likeable tough guy lead.  Marg Helgenberger, Forest Whitaker, Alfred Molina, and Ben Kingsley make up one of the best supporting casts, even if Molina and Helgenberger’s characters terribly underwritten. In an odd acting choice, Kingsley is also speaking in a muted American accent.

On a production level, the movie looks fantastic. The cinematography and scope are gigantic and grand. The action scenes are well choregraphed and nicely handled. The only big issue is the pace. By the third act the film quickly loses steam and pads out. A shock ending was hinted at but not really shown in the sequels.

Audio/ Video (5/5)

SPECIES comes with a 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio track. The track is smooth and yet bold with no noticeable errors or hiss. The score by Christopher Young especially sounds vivid and well produced. The 2.0 track is also here but slightly softer. English Subtitles are included.

The transfer comes from a new 4k Scan of the film, and the results are amazing. The colors and cinematography have never looked better with each scene having a new layer of texture. There’s no print damage and only some minor film grain. The only scenes that stand out as visually bad are some of the CGI creature effects. 

Extras (5/5)

The good folks at Shout! Factory have delivered another excellent slate of extras for this cult classic. On Disc 1 we get set of audio commentaries. First up is a track with actors Natasha Henstridge and Michael Madsen with Director Roger Donaldson. The second features Donaldson along with Make-up effects creator Steve Johnson, Visual Effects Supervisor Richard Edlund and Producer Frank Mancuso JR. Both tracks are packed with info on the film and funny insights. Wrapping up discs 1 is the theatrical Trailer.

Disc 2 is loaded with extras new and old. First up is a new set of interviews with Donaldson, Cinematographer Andrzej Bartkowiak, Production designer John Muto, Composer Christopher Young, Steve Johnson, Billy Bryan, and Norman Cabrera. Ported over from the Shout! Factory release of SPECIES 2 is From Sil to Eve an interview with Henstridge on the first two films. There is also a stills gallery. Wrapping up this loaded disc is a series of featurettes: “Engineering Life”, “H.R. Giger at Work”,” Making of Species”, “Designing a Hybrid”, and “Alternate Ending”. The Blu-ray case itself also comes with reseverable artwork.

Overall (4.5/5)

SPECIES still holds up as a fun and well produced Monster film with some erotic elements. This new Shout! Factory Blu-ray is a worthy upgrade for fans. Recommended.