Alien: Romulus (2024)

Nov 2

The resurrection of the Alien franchise?

Presentation:

This modern installment is distinct from the more grand presentation of other Alien sequels like Prometheus in that it is more personal and intimate. This one follows the story of an all new cast of teenagers trying to escape a dystopian planet. It’s definitely marketed toward teenagers as opposed to long time fans of the franchise and I think it will be successful in drawing new fans in. The film is clearly a money grab as it still has Hollywood written all over it, but the direction of the film has an interesting focus. It has new thoughtful themes to expand upon the universe that make this film feel refreshing. However, this direction will probably offend long time fans that are clinging onto the glory of the first two films. For an alien film, which is essentially a monster/slasher movie, the deaths aren’t particularly interesting here, nor are the Xenomorphs. but the film does have some novel and clever sequences. The zero gravity scenes, new alien type, and theme of humanity and abandonment are seamlessly implemented.

Story:

The acid zero gravity scene is pretty cool but ultimately meaningless because Rain navigates through it while the android just stays there, which implies that she could have also just waited for the acid to pass. A weird loophole in the story. The body temperature scene was also kinda stupid but I did like the throwback to Rook, even if it was CGI. He was the best part of the original film. The first two deaths are forcibly satisfactory since those teens are presented as such cartoonish brats. Basically everyone but Rain and Andy are decently written characters. Get off her, you bitch!

Conclusion:

A new direction for Alien films that is worthwhile and has substance. The nods and fan service to old films are also really fun and brings back nostalgic memories. It’s still a shallow popcorn flick, but if you liked blockbuster elements of Aliens, I don’t see why you wouldn’t like this one. The characters apart from Andy are bland and Rain doesn’t live up to the same charisma as Ripley or even the protagonist in Prometheus, but maybe sequels will change my mind. If you don’t expect much and want a good time, this film could be a lot of fun.

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