"Alien: Romulus" - a movie review-Dustin Dopps Contributor
Photo Use Courtesy of 20th Century Fox
What makes an Alien movie an Alien movie?
The question is simple, but kind of complex, since we have had so many not-great Alien movies over the years.
The first one was a simple "isolated in space with an alien we don't understand" movie. The second was a "shoot all the aliens and hope to survive" movie. The third was a "David Fincher directed this and it is odd, but still kinda good" movie about being stuck on a prison planet with Aliens. And the fourth was a weird, gross, wacko movie about a DNA-replicated Ripley with an alien in her that was made by the guy who made "The City of Lost Children" and "Amelie" which are strange, but engaging.
And that's just the mainstream movies. There have been several more.
I think modern director Fede Alvarez knows how to make an Alien movie. The new movie feels, down to the computer programs and technology, like a movie from the same universe.
The plot is not that important. Basically you have a group of five or six humans and a "synthetic person" stuck on a space station fighting aliens. And it is kind of terrifying and engaging and well-made. The android doesn't always behave like you'd want, and the humans aren't very smart, but the tech and the sets and the mood all feel like (as intended) they fit between the first two Alien movies.
If you know me, you know I care about logical consistency. And I had a few problems in that department. For example, if a space station turns on artificial gravity every few minutes (to avoid an explosion or something) then everything should be close to the "floor." The gravity turns on, the items fall to the floor, then when it turns back off there is no physical force that makes the items move away from the floor.
Yet when our characters arrive everything is floating in the air. Then gravity turns on and everything falls. Then it turns off and everything floats in the air again. That makes no sense.
But...
If you can look past the logic (which is hard for me, admittedly), it is a - dare I say it - great new Alien movie.
It has an R rating for a reason. There is death and destruction and swearing. And there are several scenes with weird "genitalia"-looking eggs and births. So if you don't like R-rated movies, this one isn't for you.
But if you like the original Alien movies, and if you like interesting concepts in sci-fi (for example, how would the ring around a planet affect a space station or ship?) then it is very engaging.
Expect death. Ignore the fact that the trailers literally show the fate of the Asian girl. The rest of the story is surprising and goes in fascinating directions. And it isn't boring at all.
It does go on a bit long at the end, with an Avatar-esque nod (if unintentional) to James Cameron. But still, I enjoyed my trip to space tonight.
Your mileage may vary. And nobody will hear you scream if you do...
