-Written by John Cajio.
Alien: Romulus is a film that does not suck. Set between the events of 1979’s Alien and 1986’s Aliens, Alien: Romulus returns to the foundations of what makes an Alien film an Alien film; namely, dark claustrophobic corridors and the ever present potential for heart pounding terror around every corner. Strong performances by the two leads, terrific space vistas, an unexpected antagonist, and a truly horrifying moment make this a film that’s worth watching in spite of a few significant flaws.
Rain Carradine (Cailee Spaeny) is a young woman working for the Weyland-Yutani Corporation on the mining colony planet Jackson’s Star. Jackson’s Star is a bleak planet that experiences no daylight whatsoever. Rain wants offworld and has finished the 12,000 hours of work needed to transfer to a more hospitable environment. Her request, however, is denied. Desperate for a way off the planet for her and her adoptive synthetic brother, Andy (David Jonsson), she links up with ex-boyfriend Tyler (Archie Renaux) who thinks he has a way to obtain the cryostasis chambers necessary for interstellar travel: a derelict space station just offworld. The risk is supposed to be minimal. Unfortunately for them, there’s more than they bargained for when they arrive.
Director Fede Álvarez, who also co-wrote with Rodo Sayagues, decided to return the franchise to its roots. It’s a smart choice. The film is strongest while the team of overwhelmed protagonists are cautiously exploring the darkened halls of the space station wondering whether a facehugger or xenomorph lies in wait for them. The moments when the movie plays by the established rules of the franchise, or the new rules this film attempts to establish, lead to great payoffs. But there are moments when the film eschews its own established ruleset to get the surviving protagonists from Point A to Point B, or a moment where the writers didn’t fully consider the ramifications of the actions the protagonists take (or they thought the audience wouldn’t notice), and those moments are quite frustrating. There aren’t too many of those moments, but there are a few and they are distracting.
Both Spaeny and Jonsson give incredibly strong performances. Spaeny’s star has been rising in recent years. Her recent turn in Alex Garland’s Civil War garnered her plenty of praise, and justifiably so. She crafts another outstanding performance here in Alien: Romulus. She gives a nuanced performance here that is reminiscent of Sigourney Weaver’s performance in the original 1979 Alien. Rain is someone that is absolutely terrified, always worried about Andy, and yet also possessed of a strong will to survive against overwhelming odds. Rain may not have the imposing physical presence that Weaver’s Ripley has, but there’s no question that Rain is a badass.
Jonsson’s performance as Andy is outstanding. Andy is a synthetic human created by the Weyland-Yutani Corporation that was broken and fixed offscreen by Rain’s father, and given the directive to do what’s best for Rain. Andy presents as awkward and unsure of anything not related to Rain. As part of the story, Andy receives what is best described as an upgrade. The immediate turnaround is stark, obvious, and apparent. Jonsson does an amazing job of portraying both sides of Andy. In a lot of ways, he is the most human of the bunch.
There are a few flaws in this otherwise excellent film. As mentioned earlier, sometimes the movie does not play by its own rules. It seems the rules become too inconvenient at times for the writers and, so, the rules are temporarily suspended. The first act is definitely on the sluggish side. There is also a throwback cameo to the 1979 Alien that enters uncanny valley territory too frequently to be truly believable, as cool as it attempts to be.
Alien: Romulus is a return to form for the franchise. A few significant flaws hold it back from reaching the same legendary heights that the first two films reached, but one is bound to have an entertaining experience nonetheless.
Directed by Fede Álvarez.
Written by Fede Álvarez and Rodo Sayagues.
Starring: Cailee Spaeny, David Jonsson, Archie Renaux, Isabela Merced, Spike Fearn, Aileen Wu, etc.
7/10 = WATCH IT FOR FREE (IT DOES NOT SUCK)
Comments