In space, no one can hear you scream. But in the quiet darkness of a cinema auditorium we can certainly hear you talking incessantly and messing about on your phone.
Bear this in mind if you’re off to see the latest entry in the Alien franchise this weekend, Alien: Romulus. The movie is now playing in cinemas, and it deserves some attention (including from you on your phone) because it is one of the better instalments in the Alien series.
High praise then, or merely something good in a bumpy bunch? Well, I’ll let you decide, but if you’re an Alien fan you’ll certainly enjoy aspects of it.
Alien: Romulus is good, let me say this now. At times it plays like a greatest hits tour of the Alien series, but if you’re OK with that you’ll have a good time.
Directed by Fede Álvarez, and starring Cailee Spaeny and David Jonsson, Alien: Romulus is the seventh movie in the main Alien series, or the ninth movie if we include those two awful Alien vs Predator films. In terms of its place in the timeline, the events of Alien: Romulus take place between Alien (1979) and Aliens (1986), and revolve around new lead player, Rain Carradine.
In the movie, Rain and her synthetic human brother Andy (ND-255) are working on the mining colony, Jackson’s Star, when they are offered the opportunity to travel to a derelict spacecraft to salvage stasis chambers. The plan is for the siblings and their friends to retrieve the chambers so they can use them to escape to the remote planet Yvaga, where conditions are much more favourable than they are on Jackson’s Star.
After travelling to the abandoned spacecraft they discover it is actually a research station, split into two structures: Romulus and Remus. Boarding the station the group come across a collection of frozen alien life forms which begin to thaw out… with devastating results.
And that’s all I’ll say about the plot of Alien: Romulus. If you’re a fan of the Alien movies you’ll pretty much know what comes next, as various humans flee in terror from Xenomorphs.
So, business as usual in terms of the story then? Mostly, yes, and it is fair to say the standard Alien plot of ‘Xenomorphs on a spaceship’ is dusted off and wheeled out yet again, but this time around it works fine.
And it largely works because director Fede Álvarez is calling the shots. Having helmed films including the gory Evil Dead (2013) and the suspenseful Don’t Breathe (2016), Álvarez is no stranger to delivering impactful horror-thrillers and he works his skills on the Alien franchise to good effect.
At times Alien: Romulus is unsettling and is not afraid to deliver some dark and disturbing moments. The film also takes things back to basics, without getting bogged down with crossovers (the AVP movies) or philosophical nonsense (the Prometheus prequels), and even if it does feel kind of unnecessary it’s largely enjoyable stuff.
Highlights include rampaging face huggers, an upgraded Andy, and some anti-gravity shenanigans. The film also makes good use of sound and lighting and looks the business.
There are some moments of dodgy CGI, including one in particular which is quite bad (you’ll know it when you see it), but the film’s use of practical effects is substantial and well utilised. The set design in particular is strong and this is a plus point.
Where the film struggles is in the constant need to retread what has come before. Alien: Romulus includes a number of callbacks to the past, one in particular which makes no sense in context, and this smacks of fan service.
Parts of it also play like one of those videos you see at a movie-based theme park ride. You know the sort – those videos that appear before a ride to set the scene, and essentially give you the highlights of the film series.
All this said, Alien: Romulus is fine, the good outweighs the not-so good, and certainly from a technical level it looks and acts like an Alien movie. If that’s what you’re after, that’s what you get.
While Alien: Romulus isn’t the second coming, it works and for the most part it works well. The lead cast (Spaeny and Jonsson) are strong, the film has many of the right components, and it’s suitably dark and creepy.
Is it amazing? Nope and it’s getting three-and-a-half stars out of five from me, but it’s a likeable three-and-a-half stars.
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Thank you for taking the time to read this review on It’s A Stampede!. For more reviews, check out the recommended reads below.
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