Alien: Romulus

A journey into famous waters that I never really wanted to take. I never believed Fede Alvarez had it in him to take on a legend of these dimensions, I didn't believe in the much-trumpeted genre setting of thoroughbred gore, but when critics, viewers, and box offices scoffed at Ridley Scott's misunderstood Alien: Covenant years ago, there was probably no other path left to go. And yet it works – and the combination of modern editing with dirty and oily technique is aggressive and beautiful from the very first minute. The aggressive creature is given enough space, the human crew makes mistakes that are understandable yet still manage clever and logical decisions at key moments. There is so much winking at the past that I was daydreaming, knowing that with a bit of exaggeration I could imagine I was watching Alien 1.5. Not to mention that finally, after years of waiting, the lines drawn from the classic tetralogy and the mythology of Prometheus have finally been combined, which is a gift that I never expected to receive. Thanks to this enrichment, Alien: Romulus is truly more than just a fun horror film, nor is it merely a side chapter the series could have done without. It's a reward for those who never completely gave up on Alien (and who can see beyond the first twist and don't mind that the script plays a bit subversively with them with iconic lines). I understand the arguments about the polarizing final chapter; without it, I would be happier than I am with it now. On the other hand, I must applaud the courage that even the brave and visually deconstructed genre film Alien: Resurrection was lacking almost thirty years ago. The fact that the result of such an experiment did not meet my expectations is my problem. Everyone who sees the saga as a whole and not just as a space for the eternal (and nowadays really endlessly tiresome) argument about which of the first two installments is better should also give it a try. (2024-08-17)

It is necessary to make full use of resources obtained at great cost, even if the result is only some kind of bastardised mutant. This is true for Weyland-Yutani and its real-life equivalent, The Walt Disney Company. The most surprising aspect of Alien: Romulus is its anti-originality. This time around, the Disneyfication of the franchise doesn’t have the feel of a refresh with new characters (as was the case with Star Wars: The Force Awakens), nor does it work as cultish fan-service along the lines of the serial clones from Marvel. Fede Alvarez and Rodo Sayagues wilfully turned out a CGI remix of the Alien franchise’s greatest hits, which lends itself to a game of bingo on the theme of “which cult scene, popular one-liner or iconic shot from the preceding films will be paraphrased in the next scene”. The charm (and uniqueness) of the original Alien tetralogy consists in the fact that it comprises diametrically different and stylishly and supremely distinctive films (I won’t even say anything bad about the fantastically crackpot fourth one. Alien: Romulus is only a derivative, or rather the film equivalent of an Alien-themed ride at Disneyworld – we passively pass by a series of well-known scenes that are impressively yet lifelessly rendered and something occasionally amuses or scares us, but we walk away completely unmoved at the end. Though Prometheus was silly nonsense and elicited exasperation and hatred, it is still better than this precisely crafted definition of the term “content” from the vocabulary of media corporations. (2024-08-16)

I must say that I feel a little disappointed. I had hight expectations for Alien: Romulus, as it was expected to be the horror film of the year and the experienced Fede Álvarez with his spectacular trailers had a promising start, but unfortunately it didn't deliver. Admittedly, if I let go of expectations, this is solid sci-fi horror, the likes of which hasn't been around for a while, with some very impressive elements. But there were a few things that bothered me. The actors didn't wow me all that much, David Jonsson as the Android is the most interesting character, but the vaunted Cailee Spaeny didn't grab my heart. The opening is quite slow and by the time the Alien appears half the film is gone. Audiovisually it's great, the ship looks awesome and the music is also very effective, the cramped atmosphere is good and the gravity/acid scene is a highlight for me. The final monster was a bit over the top for me, though, I could have done without it and the Alien was perfectly fine. But what I see as the biggest problem and disappointment is that we get almost no gore. Álvarez made one of the most brutal horror remakes with Evil Dead, so I was expecting a proper Alien carnage, but the body-count is too low for that and most of the deaths are out of frame or simply don't stick in the memory. I didn’t expect Ridley Scott's Alien: Covenant to have twice the carnage of Alvarez. Even compared to Prey, Alien: Romulus falls far short. That I would leave the cinema feeling that seeing it once was enough is something I really didn't hope for. Four stars it deserves without a doubt, but the expectations were simply elsewhere. 7/10. (2024-08-20)

I didn't expect a groundbreaking film from Fede Alvarez that would push the boundaries of the genre and elevate the Alien theme to a new level. However, I secretly hoped he could rely on solid craftsmanship and create a functional genre film that would pay homage to the original series and overcome the bitter taste left by Ridley Scott's ambitious yet unfortunate attempts. With several reservations, I believe that as a summer genre flick meant for entertainment, Alvarez's work holds up. His approach clearly targets a young audience that drives movie theater attendance, and this is reflected in his choice of characters. The actors certainly don't perform poorly, but their characters are bland, and the chemistry between them is lacking. Alvarez doesn't attempt to bring an original auteur style, but instead continually winks at the series' fans, trying to evoke everything that once worked on screen. He successfully builds horror tension, particularly during the phase where a group of desperate individuals infiltrates an abandoned base, navigating through debris and exploring the unknown spaces of a giant wreck. However, since Alvarez is making a film for teenagers, he needs to accelerate the plot, even at the expense of basic logic and the legacy of the first installment. Facehuggers gain the speed of a racing motorcycle, and a human mutant transforms from a newborn into a giant creature within two minutes. Nevertheless, as an adventurous action sci-fi with good production design, the film reliably works. If I were to measure the film by the standards I apply to smart, top-tier productions, my rating would drop. But for what Romulus aims to be, it fulfills its purpose. Since my initial expectations were low and, not least, because film fans have very few reasons to visit the movie theater nowadays, I raise my final verdict to four stars and a 70% overall impression. (2024-08-19)

Fede Álvarez, director of the best Evil Dead and Don't Breathe, one of the best original modern genre films, delivers for the third time (I’m ignoring the existence of The Girl in the Spider's Web). But flawless perfection it is not this time. He does well what he does best: offering an intense horror ride full of attractions that slowly makes it impossible to breathe. But what I have the biggest problem with regarding the new Alien is time and space. Once it gets going, it feels insanely fast-paced. For one thing, the development of the monsters is absurdly fast, and for another, I would have liked the human characters to have time to pause for a moment and let it sink in how much shit they've got themselves into. And the space, I found the action awkwardly cut at times in terms of orientation. Especially the elevator scene and its ending I didn't get at all, maybe a chunk of the film had to be missing there (?). The much criticised fanservice didn't bother me, or rather I didn't pay much attention to it and it didn't actively distract me – though I have the "advantage" in this that I very rarely watch films repeatedly, so I certainly don't know any of the Alien movies by heart and can't quote from them. I found all but one moment (at the end of the aforementioned elevator scene) unworthy. The criticised digicam is totally fine, I really don’t know what the problem is, it looks completely appropriate given the state "it" is in right now. The final ten minutes are easily the best part of the film; and the main pair of characters realistically have a lot more charisma than anyone who came after Ripley in the franchise. 8/10 (2024-08-16)