#Alien Romulus Movie Review

[thedynamicuniverse]

Alien Romulus Movie Review + minor spoilers

Movie review for Alien Romulus

Announced Plot: While scavenging the deep ends of a derelict space station, a group of young space colonists come face to face with the most terrifying life form in the universe. The closer reality is: We have an “Alien” movie that combines all the memorable bits of the franchise into a loose homage- that’s actually pretty good. So, we have the classic 1979 Alien (directed by Ridley Scott)…

[superectojazzmage]

Just back from Alien Romulus and hoooo boy oh boy. Review/analysis.

Easily the best Alien movie since the first two, which isn't saying much, yeah, but it is legit a really cool and well-made movie, competing with Late Night With The Devil, Longlegs, and Cuckoo for title of my favorite horror movie this year.

In a lot of ways it's about harvesting the few good ideas from the post-2 movies that were squandered and doing them right, plus getting the series back to it's healthier roots, kinda the movie equivalent of someone doing physical therapy to get back in the saddle after an injury. This means it's not quite brand new ground like some may hope for and I've heard some people feel it gets a little derivative at points because of it. I can kinda agree and certainly understand that criticism, but I feel it does what it's aiming for really well and sets things up for future works to go in even crazier directions. Furthermore, it takes a lot of time to try and weld together the disparate post-2 movies in a way that brings the series back to a little coherency.

The atmosphere is really intense and cool, swinging between lovecraftian dread and build-up and high-energy chaos. The aesthetics and special effects are gorgeous, taking full advantage of the progress that technology has made since 2 plus really digging in to the used cassette future vibe of the older films. The characters are likable and actually intelligent (or at least understandable) in behavior like in the first two movies, so you care about what's happening to them instead of just waiting for them to get munched. The action and kills were really cool and creative, the cinematography in general was off-kilter in an awesome way - there's a definite attempt to make the movie feel claustrophobic and intimate. Fede Alvarez did a fantastic job in general, I'd love to see him do more with the series.

It REALLY cranks up the series' psychosexual, freudian, and sexual assault subtext, arguably to a point where it's just plain text. So if you're sensitive to stuff like that or if this is your first go at Alien, be warned for that.

More specific notes go under the header for spoilers. Highly recommend you go in as blind as you can.

Andy and Rain were wonderful leads, their dynamic was fantastic and Calie Spaeny and David Jonsson both turned in great performances. I direly hope they join the first two films' casts as "major" characters for the series going forward.

The effects to make Daniel Betts look like Ian Holms were quite possibly the one and only time the special effects failed. It looks very wonky, which is sad because Betts does a really good job copying Holms' mannerisms for Ash while still making Rook feel like a distinct character.

In addition to the usual themes of sexual unease, genetics, and parenthood, this movie adds in some really interesting themes of familial legacy, the rise of new generations, foundations, etc.. Andy and Rain are like Romulus and Remus of myth, orphaned and left to fend for themselves but growing into founders of a new age - both in-story with their carrying the XX121 substance and evidence of Weyland-Yutani's misdeeds to Yvaga and out-of-story with them being the protagonists of a new era for Alien. Likewise, the Offspring is the first example of an entirely new species, neither human nor alien but taking from the lineages of both through Kay and Big Chap, a Romulus-like founder of it's breed that will later bear fruit in Resurrection with the Ripley clone and Newborn.

I'm really not kidding when I say above that the psychosexual undercurrents are taken to the extreme here. This movie basically sees the ways the original film subtly pin-pricked at those themes, says "fuck that", and deliberately rubs it in your face in a way designed to make sure you can't ignore it. It wants you to be grossed out and to squirm in your chair and it knows exactly how to make it happen.

Alvarez noted in the lead-up to release that he took a lot of influence from Isolation and you can definitely see that in how he depicts the Xenomorphs and the general aura of the film. He further described it as a kind of halfway point between the first and second movies and you can also see that; it has the Lovecraft-style tension and horror of the first, balanced with the energy and action of the second, and it does a really good job finding a middle ground between Ridley Scott and James Cameron's styles while also doing it's own dance.

I mentioned way back at the start how the movie basically harvests the good ideas from 3, Resurrection, Prometheus, and Covenant and gives them the room they deserve while dumping the bad. It does that in both terms of themes/style and continuity/lore. Concepts that those movies bungled like xeno-human hybridism, the black goo, genetic engineering as a focus, and so on are done here more creatively and competently. Themes that those films tried and failed to tackle are handled with significantly more grace. It has the atmosphere and characterization of 3 but none of it's baggage and needlessly depressive tone. It has the body horror and weirdness of Resurrection without taking it to the zany, embarrassing areas that movie went. The effects and creativity of Prometheus and Covenant without any of their awful writing and clumsy messages. Alvarez takes on kind of an Al Ewing-esque "repairman" writing style here.

The Xenomorphs are absolutely deranged in behavior compared to most portrayals, attacking like either cruel sadists or raging chimps and rarely bothering to take hosts. I'm not sure if such a reading was intended, but I got the vibe that the idea is Xenos raised without a queen or hive grow to be basically sociopathic like how real world predatory animals grown without parental figures become feral and dysfunctional. Which would also explain a lot about how the Xeno in the original movie, Big Chap, acts there.

The Offspring's design is fucking wicked and I love it.

One of my few major criticisms is that Big Chap died off-screen instead of getting more to do. What was the point of having him be alive at the start if he wasn't gonna be used beyond a backstory point to set up the main story?

All in all, a very impressive effort and a great return to form for the series that I recommend highly.

[giveamadeuschohisownmovie]

Finished watching “Alien Romulus”. I’ll work on a full length review later but my immediate thoughts are:

1) Fede Alvarez should make a Resident Evil movie, the same way Ari Aster needs to make a Silent Hill movie.

2) It’s the 3rd best Alien movie I’ve seen. Aliens 1986 is still king, followed by Alien 1979.

3) While I respect the effort…it felt like a reskinned, updated version of the first movie. The two complainers, the captain, the synthetic, the person who cries all the time, the Ripley. It’s like how Evil Dead 2013 felt like a reskinned, updated version of the 1st Evil Dead (also another Fede Alvarez effort).

4) I feel like they tried so hard to make Cailee Spaeny’s character the new Ripley, but forgot the part that Ellen Ripley was a 3-dimensional character who could be both fun and serious. Cailee did fine, but her character’s writing felt pretty flat and dull. She was the least interesting character in the cast, especially since everyone else got more distinct personalities.

5) Andy was the true protagonist. He actually had an arc and he had the most interesting character development. And honestly, I think Fede Alvarez recognized that Andy would be more liked than Rain. He gave Andy the big hero moment, as well as Ellen Ripley’s, “Get away from her you bitch!” line. Andy, the MVP of the movie.

Overall…solid 7/10. It’s nice to actually enjoy an Alien movie, especially considering the state of the franchise.

[alarming-prism]

she xeno on my morph til i caustic pussy juice

[kat-movies]

Alien: Romulus

I am a gigantic fan of the Alien franchise, and something about me is that I am actually a giant fan of Prometheus (which got a lot of unnecessary hate in my opinion). Anyway, when I was watching this movie, I absolutely fell in love with it. I thought it was a great addition to the Alien franchise that added a lot to the universe, while also keeping the classic "Alien movie vibe" that everyone loves.

First of all, it had some great moments individually, but I loved the references to each and every one of the alien movies. I love when a franchise realizes that they should probably try and cater to the fans when they are creating something new. Adding those moments just makes the movie way more enjoyable to die-hard fans like me. It also adds a lot to the franchise because you can start to think about how this might connect to the other movies, since they referenced those movies in it.

Not only did this movie cater to the fans by adding all these references, but they also added something new that we haven't really seen before. This might be a spoiler so be prepared if you still haven't seen it, but the humanoid alien at the end of the movie (similar to the alien in Alien: Resurrection) was probably one of the scariest designs I've seen in this franchise in years. Now the xenomorphs have never really freaked me out, and when you watch all the movies you sort of get used to them, but this weird freaky thing was FREAKY. I did not want to look at it any longer, and it had one of the craziest jump scares that I just wasn't prepared for. Anyway, I loved this movie, and I wouldn't mind seeing more Alien movies with this storyline.

-kat <3

[granitefilmreviews]

[atxsubpunk]

A Quiet Place: Day One

I've seen all three of the "Quiet Place" films, and while I don't remember much of the first two my instinct is to say that "Day One" is the best of the lot. It's certainly the bleakest. I appreciate post-apocalyptic films that focus on characters managing the new world order (Nausicaä / Mad Max) instead of showing characters trying to put the world to rights (I Am Legend). The two leads are great. I expected that from Lupita Nyong'o but Joseph Quinn was very much her equal. It was actually his character that had my attention as the movie progressed. Can he be trusted? Why is he doing the things he's doing? What does it say about me that when I see simple kindness and decency in a stranger that my suspicions rise and I start surveying the landscape for a melee weapon? Joseph Quinn's traumatized facial expressions made for some of the most memorable images of the film. It's rare to see a man terrified without screaming, demolished but still functioning. It reminded me of David Johnson's performance in "Alien: Romulus." Not because Johnson's character was terrified, but because 99% of said performance came entirely from his face and communicated more any amount of dialog could. I also want to give props for the 99 minute runtime. That may sound like a backhanded compliment but it isn't. The secret to making a good movie is knowing exactly what kind of movie you should be making, and these filmmakers understood that. That's an accomplishment.

[kanefromalien]

i’m in the middle of watching right now, but would you all believe me if i told you i just burst into tears of excitement about this 🫣 I WAS ONLY HOPING HE WOULD BE MENTIONED I DIDNT ACTUALLY KNOW THEY WERE GONNA

[mx-piggy]

Happy Halloween!

So, over the past month, I've been working pretty hard on writing reviews for my website. In particular, I've been writing about movies that are horror-based or otherwise Halloween-appropriate. If you like movies, then you might like the stuff I write. And, if you like horror movies, you might like the stuff I've written this month.

This morning, I published a review of The Substance, and it's a piece I'm really proud of and that I would love for people to read. I'll be honest, it's not actually so much a review as it is an analytical piece about the movie. If you like The Substance, please consider giving it a read!

If you haven't seen The Substance, then I have reviewed some other movies, too. If you like any of the movies listed below or if you would be interested in reading my thoughts about them, please consider giving them a read.

Alien: Romulus

Coraline

Beetlejuice Beetlejuice

Speak No Evil

Never Let Go

The First Omen

Imaginary

If you're not that into horror, I've got reviews of other movies, too.

If movies aren't your thing, there's still stuff on there that might be of interest to you. I've got a decent amount of original poetry for you to read. I'll link my favourites below!

Nocturnal

There's A Man in the Window

One of Many Afternoons at Spoons

Earlsway

If you end up reading any of my work (thank you!) then please consider reblogging this post so that I could potentially get more eyes on my site. Don't get me wrong- I love to write regardless of whether anyone reads my stuff. But, it sure is nice when people engage with something I've worked hard on. And, if you like my work enough to want to keep up with what I post, please consider subscribing (it's free!)

[eddiescorner]

Alien: Romulus Review

It's ok.

A decent thriller set in the Alien universe. Which make it WAY better than bad films like "Prometheus" or the pile of hot garbage that was "Alien: Covenant".

If you have seen the movie "Don't Breathe" from the same director, this is basically the same plot, only in space and with a xenomorph as the antagonist.

Fans of the videogame "Alien: isolation" will be happy, the whole aesthetic of the game is crearly a huge influence in the set designs, the way the small corridors are iluminated and the camera angles. Even some elevators, ventilator shafts and control panels are exact copies from those in the game.

A highlight among the actors is David Jonsson, who is really good playing an android with two very different personalities

There are some very forced references to the rest of the franchise, including someone saying the famous "stay away from her, you bitch" line.

But at least the alien is scary again.

[ratleyland]

This movie was much better than I expected it to be.

It paid homage to the original movie... but keep things fresh, scary and exciting at the same time.

[melongrrrl]

I was a little disappointed by the new Alien, but one thing I can't complain about AT ALL was David Jonsson. Incredible performance, and now I need to go see everything this man has ever been in.

[grayrazor]

Alien: Romulus is an incredible movie that I’m not sure I want to watch again. Kind of a mix of the ultracaffinated pacing of Aliens with the more disturbing imagery of Resurrection or Prometheus. I was literally trembling when I left the theater.

There were a few references that I found a little excessively cute, but not to a Solo: A Star Wars Story level or anything. Was really surprised that they canonized the “Species XX-121” name for the Alien from the recent TTRPG.

Really nailed that retro sci-fi vibe, sometimes feeling as much like Blade Runner or Star Wars as Alien. Probably just felt that way to me because we haven’t seen much of colony life in this setting before, aside from the few glimpses of Hadley’s Hope in Aliens.

[giveamadeuschohisownmovie]

Okay, the more I think about it, I think the main reason why I wasn’t that impressed with “Alien Romulus” was how safe it felt. It didn’t hurt the franchise, but I felt like I could live without it. It doesn’t really add anything to the Alien series, apart from Xeno-Baby. Also, it felt like Fede Alvarez just redid the first movie but with better special effects. That’s technically not a bad thing, but I was definitely thinking to myself in the theater that the movie felt lacking in substance.

And sure, the scares may be well done, but it’s also nothing new. I’m pretty sure I’ve seen the, “We have to stay quiet or else the monsters will hear us” shtick in like 10 other horror movies. Also, lowering the temperature so that the monsters can’t see you is straight up Tremors 2. Once again, just because it’s cliched doesn’t mean it’s bad. But it does make you feel like you’ve seen this shit already.

If I had to make a comparison to a similar series, it’s the “Predators” (2010) of the Alien franchise. Not bad, not great, doesn’t really add much to the series…it’s just very safe and passable.

(EDIT: I take back what I said about Xeno-Baby. Even that’s not new since that’s just the Newborn from Alien Resurrection)

[kacic1]

A todos, boa noite! E hoje a noite é de arrepiar!

Convido vocês a visitarem Os Filmes do Kacic, para conferir minha nova crítica sobre este que é um dos filmes mais aguardados do ano, e que estreia nos cinemas brasileiros na próxima quinta-feira, dia 15 de agosto. Texto imperdível e sem spoilers!

Crítica: ALIEN: ROMULUS (2024)

[capsarcastica]

Alien: Romulus Review

The longer the movie goes on, the worse it gets. It has promise, and the trailers certainly sold it. But it reminds me of the two worst Alien movies. Like Alien Resurrection, it's technically well done and has all the elements that should work but don't. Like Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem, it's a collection of remade scenes from better Alien movies that comes across like a well-made fan film.

There is stuff to like. The visuals are amazing. The shots of space are the best in the series. There's a lot of extra attention paid to the ship drifting through space, the station, and the planetary rings. The sets are gorgeous, perfectly capturing the classic look and feel of the original film using old school tech. The practical alien effects mostly look good. It balances that fine line between audiences already knowing what they look like and keeping them mysterious and creepy.

Between this and 2022's Prey, it's disappointing that Disney's 20th Century Studios is just rehashing the original stories rather than give something new. Almost everything has a sense of been there, done that. The story is basically the same as the original. If it ain't broke, don't fix it. But this feels more like rehashing rather than homage. It's like a Greatest Hits collection by a cover band. It works, but why bother when the original stuff is so readily available and done so much better. They even threw in the "Get away from her…" line from Aliens. Throwbacks worked in the cheesy AvP movies but not in something trying to be serious.

There's really only two truly original moments worth noting. The first is when the characters try to get through a room full of facehuggers without being noticed. The reasoning behind this is dubious at best, but it is suspenseful. Except for the fact that the facehuggers look like the kind of animatronics that would appear in a Disneyland line queue. The other is the Zero-G sequence. I wish this had more than just the act one set up and third act pay off, since it's really an inventive idea. It throws the aliens off giving the characters an advantage, and getting through a tunnel filled with floating acid would be suspenseful. Except that the CGI in this one scene looks really fake.

I do like how they connected the events of Prometheus and Alien: Covenant to the original Alien. Given the lackluster reception to the last two, it would've been easy to just ignore them and move on. This at least provides some closure on Ridley Scott's last two for those who did like them. And it connects to why the company wants the alien beyond just a bioweapon.

There's only one character that's interesting, Andy the defective android. He starts off mentally handicapped who is nice but is upgraded with the local science officer's chip making him effective yet part of the corporate machine. It's an interesting dynamic having the characters decide between the good but broken and the evil but effective versions. Rain is the main character, but the blandest heroine this series has produced. She's literally only there cause the others need Andy. The rest are basically characters straight out of an 80s slasher film. The dull heroic type, the jerk who just makes things worse, the pregnant girl who has no personality, and the Asian cannon fodder girl. The first three did a good job developing the cast so it was shocking when one died. But here it's pretty obvious who isn't making it.

The biggest problem with the cast is that none of them are really believable. The series, aside from AVP:R, has always featured more mature characters who generally made smart decisions. It's hard to buy this cast as a bunch of grizzled miners who have worked 1400+ hours. And they make really dumb Friday the 13th level decisions. Like in the finale when Rain goes back into the alien nest just to save someone who should be dead when she was in the clear. It's trying to have its Aliens finale without understanding what went into it. The actors are serviceable, but never portray the sheer terror that's needed for this series.

The legacy character cameo is, like the movie, technically well done but a terrible bit of story. Resurrecting Ian Holm seems like an interesting idea, and would have if it had been just a cameo. But he becomes central to the plot and is featured far too much. Beyond nostalgia bait, there's no reason not to just use another actor to be an entirely new android. The animatronics used for the puppet looks really good, and Daniel Betts does a near perfect job recreating the voice. It's like the Dr. Loomis cameo in Halloween Kills.

Then there's the other legacy cameo, the original alien. This has the unfortunate side effect of rendering everything Ripley did pointless. It then raises a bunch of questions the movie doesn't bother to address. Why is the Nostromo still so intact? How did the alien go from being vaporized in the shuttle's engines to being cocooned? How did the station get eggs from a single drone? Why is there now a pupae stage? How long is the development cycle? Stuff like this makes it seem like the script was a collection of moments that where later tied together.

And finally there's the horrible ending. It's the ending that really makes or breaks a film. For all the grief fans give Alien 3, it's hard not to find the last scene poignant with Ripley giving her life to end the alien threat once and for all. Instead of doing anything interesting, this film goes for a nearly beat-for-beat remake of the finale to Alien Resurrection. The absolute worst of the series. The one that fans remember more for Sigourney Weaver making a basketball shot than anything else in the film. They could have stole an ending from literally anything. But they chose to give us another alien-human hybrid that is just as dumb and somehow looks even worse.

I was really looking forward to this. Fede Alvarez's Evil Dead is an amazing reboot and I was hoping this would follow suit. But like James Mangold's Indiana Jones, there's just something lost when a great director tries to make lightning strike twice under Disney's leadership.