Alien Romulus Review

Alien Romulus is a film that had significant expectations attached to it, being the latest installment in the iconic “Alien” franchise.

The Alien franchise, one of my personal favorites, has long been a cornerstone of science fiction horror. Its iconic blend of atmospheric tension, grotesque creature designs, and intense survival narratives has captivated audiences for decades. Each new installment serves as an opportunity to explore uncharted aspects of its universe while showcasing the unique vision and style of the director at the helm, enriching the series in distinctive ways.

With Alien: Romulus, the franchise seeks to revisit these classic elements while infusing fresh ideas, aiming to keep the narrative dynamic and relevant for a modern audience.

The Directors

This time, the director’s chair for Alien: Romulus has been entrusted to Fede Alvarez, a filmmaker renowned for his ability to craft taut, nerve-wracking narratives. Best known for his work on the suspenseful Don’t Breathe series and the visceral Evil Dead remake, Alvarez is no stranger to pushing audiences to the edge of their seats. However, stepping into the Alien franchise is an entirely different challenge, one steeped in cinematic history and fan expectations.

Alvarez follows in the formidable footsteps of a roster of legendary filmmakers. Ridley Scott laid the foundation with the original Alien(1979), a masterpiece of atmospheric horror and science fiction. James Cameron raised the stakes with Aliens (1986), transforming the series into an action-packed thriller with groundbreaking effects. David Fincher brought a darker, more introspective tone with Alien 3(1992), while Jean-Pierre Jeunet added a surreal, visually inventive twist with Alien: Resurrection (1997). Each director left a distinct imprint, making the franchise not just a saga, but a showcase of auteur-driven storytelling.

Plot and Storyline

The plot of “Alien Romulus” follows a new group of characters stranded on an isolated planet or colony, where they are essentially enslaved laborers under the control of the Weyland Corporation, now merged with Yutani, likely after the founder’s death in Prometheus.

The story is set between the first and second films, taking place after the Alien from the original 1979 movie has been ejected into space. This alien has been retrieve by the Weyland-Yutani Corporation for experiments.

I particularly enjoyed the first part of the film, which introduces a wealth of details about the universe and these new characters. It’s always a treat to learn more about how the broader universe and other planets operate, especially since the movie also touches on universal themes like capitalism and modern-day slavery.

The main plot revolves around a group of young workers, who are essentially slaves, attempting to escape to another planet by using an abandoned ship orbiting their own.

The story attempts to balance between being a homage to the original 1979 “Alien” film’s as well as the sequels with tons of nods.

We can’t reveal much more about the plot without giving away spoilers, but while the story is rich and well-crafted, it feels like something more original could have added a stronger sense of identity to this installment.

Characters

The characters in “Alien Romulus” feature a blend of fresh faces and actors. The lead is a new Mary Sue or Rain, a character who combines compassion, competence, and a lovely face.

To be fair, Cailee Spaeny did a commendable job stepping into the role once held by Sigourney Weaver’s Ellen Ripley, who may be considered one of the best female protagonists in film history.

She had already gained attention in her previous role as a war photographer apprentice during the Civil War.

This time, the film delves deeper into the relationship between humans and androids—a theme touched on in previous installments but given more focus here.

I was somewhat surprised to see that most of the characters are very young, yet still competent enough to pilot a spaceship. It gives the film a bit of a “Goonies” vibe set in the “Alien” universe. Perhaps it’s the signature of Fede Alvarez to create some sort high stake within an horror movie.

The supporting characters are mostly there to meet their demise, though a few are given some backstory. The archetypes are familiar: Tyler plays the role of the White Knight, willing to sacrifice himself to save others, while Bjorn is the jerk who turns out to be decent, carrying psychological scars from his past.

Navarro, the Asian girl and the pilot, primarily serves to introduce the Chestburster in a visually fresh way. Then there’s the pregnant woman, providing a nod to the Newborn from Alien Resurrection, and the Android, who is reminiscent of previous installments but with some twists.

Overall, the characters, though fairly traditional in their archetypes, effectively serve their purpose, especially for a horror movie.

The Visuals

Visually, “Alien Romulus” is a stunning film. They’ve used the new Arri 35 which is honestly stunning both in colors and dynamic range.

I was actually quite surprised that they used spherical lenses and shot very close to the actors’ faces with a fairly wide angle, yet managed to avoid much distortion.

The production design is impeccable, evoking the style of the game Alien: Isolation but even more strongly recalling the atmosphere of the original film. The interior of the spaceship provides some of the most visually stunning light displays.

A particularly memorable scene is when the smaller ship drifts away and crashes into the station, followed by the station colliding with the planet’s satellite ring—a moment that strongly echoes Interstellar.

I would absolutely watch this movie again just to appreciate its cinematography. That said, I still feel that the first half of the film stands out as being more refined and cohesive.

The Direction

It’s clear that Fede Alvarez is well-versed in horror films, and I’ve even heard he’s a fan of the Alien: Isolation game.

There aren’t many negative points to mention about this space-set movie. In fact, he does an excellent job of utilizing sound—or the absence of it—to enhance the atmosphere.

The facehugger introduces a new method of implanting embryos into humans, resembling a phallic structure, which amplifies the fear of penetration.

This element is used impressively well, though the abundance of facehuggers—while effectively evoking a sense of phobia similar to the fear of spiders—can also somewhat diminish their perceived danger.

The same applies to the Xenomorphs. In the first and third films, the few entities depicted were incredibly menacing. However, in this installment, there are too many of them, and they don’t come across as particularly clever when faced with a human with a rifle, much like in Aliens and unlike the Fincher opus.

Adding auto-aim to a gun is never a good idea, even in video games, as it makes things far too easy for the humans, borderline boring. At that point, it’s the Aliens who should be running.

Finally, the new version of the New Born closely resembles the one from the fourth film. Though we appreciated the inclusion of real basketball player Robert Bobroczky, we knew from the start that he was born to die a few minutes later.

Ultimately, Fede Alvarez utilized familiar elements with some effective techniques to generate horror, which works well. However, we would have liked to see more originality, like the gravity purge scene.

Themes and Tone

“Alien Romulus” tries to tackle some heavy themes, particularly around creation, destruction, and the nature of humanity including in androids.

These themes are woven into the narrative, particularly through the exploration of the Engineers and their connection to the Xenomorphs.

However, the film’s tone can be inconsistent, occasionally veering too much into philosophical musings and detracting from the horror elements that franchise fans expect. For instance, the use of a digital version of Ian Holm came across as somewhat artificial and unnecessary. A little bit reminiscent of the Prometheus introduction.

(L-R): Cailee Spaeny as Rain Carradine and David Jonsson as Andy in 20th Century Studios’ ALIEN: ROMULUS. Photo by Murray Close. © 2024 20th Century Studios. All Rights Reserved.

On the other hand, we appreciated the theme of reprogramming robots with instructions, reminiscent of HAL in 2001: A Space Odyssey.

We also appreciated the universal theme of the outsider, particularly as it is depicted through these young characters. We might have wished for more depth in their stories and backgrounds, but to be fair, modern films tend to cater to the preferences of a broad audience.

A movie focusing on entertainment

I believe this movie doesn’t aim to revolutionize the genre or be strictly sci-fi. However, some elements are a bit puzzling:

Why would young adults be in charge of a ship that is likely to be extremely expensive?
Why would anyone let them go without checking if they truly are slaves ?
Why a planet with regular gravity and at atmosphere wouldn’t need large booster to escape the atmosphere ?
Why would gravity stop the acid blood from hitting the wall and instead cause it to spin around?
Why not run with tape over your mouth to avoid being impregnated by face huggers ?
How can a ship in manual mode and without a pilot can end up landing in the perfect spot without any damage ?
Why Aliens aren’t attacking quickly or with strategy when faced with a gun ?
Why wouldn’t anyone else, especially the Weyland-Yutani corporation, recover the ship if the cargo is so important?
How can a weapon track a target if it can only rotate horizontally?

These are just minor observations, but they highlight that this film didn’t aim to be particularly profound from the start. It brings to mind Mission Impossible directed by Coppola, which I found to be far more artistic and developed compared to other installments that leaned more towards pure entertainment.

My Alien Movie Ranking

Alien (1979) Directed by Ridley Scott
- The Original and Timeless Alien
Aliens (1986) Directed by James Cameron
- The Action and Entertaining Alien
ALIEN³ (1992) Directed by David Fincher
- The Nihilistic Alien
Alien Resurrection (1997) Directed by Jean-Pierre Jeunet
- The French Alien
Alien Romulus (2024) Directed by Fede Alvarez
- The Modern Horror Alien
Alien Convenant (2017) Directed by Ridley Scott
- The Entertaining Alien
Prometheus (2012) Directed by Ridley Scott
- The Alien Prequel

Verdict

8.0 out of 10.

In the end, Alien Romulus is a solid film with moments of brilliance, especially in its visual style and the expansion of the franchise’s mythology.

However, it struggles to strike the right balance between nodding to previous installments and introducing something new.

Fans of the “Alien” series might appreciate the film’s efforts to advance the story, but it may not fully satisfy those seeking an entirely original entry.

Overall, Alien Romulus is visually stunning but falls somewhat short thematically, though it delivers well on its horror elements. The story delivers a well-balanced blend of action, horror, and sci-fi, with standout performances from the cast, especially the beautiful Cailee Spaeny.

The only downside is that the film didn’t strive to establish itself as an iconic entry in the franchise. Unfortunately, it seems we’ll have to wait a few more years for the next installment, with the hope that it will fully showcase the director’s distinct creative vision.