If you had any doubts of the Disney/Fox merger hindering violent and frightening films such as the Alien franchise, this should set your mind at ease. Available now on Digital and upcoming physical release December 3rd.
“This truly terrifying sci-fi horror-thriller takes the phenomenally successful “Alien” franchise back to its iconic roots. While scavenging the deep ends of a derelict space station, a group of young colonizers come face-to-face with the most relentless and deadly life form in the universe. Starring Cailee Spaeny, David Jonsson, Archie Renaux, Isabela Merced, Spike Fearn and Aileen Wu, “Alien: Romulus” is directed by horror master Fede Alvarez from a screenplay by Alvarez and frequent collaborator Rodo Sayagues based on characters created by Dan O’Bannon and Ronald Shusett. Ridley Scott — who directed the original “Alien” and the series entries “Prometheus” and “Alien: Covenant” — produces with Michael Pruss and Walter Hill.”
The Alien franchise is one that has endured for decades, consistently surprising audiences with the new direction it has taken to ensure a fresh and exciting story. The Alien universe is definitely in the top tier when it comes to science fiction universes, especially those with a bleak and frightening element to them. Not dissimilar to the trajectory of our own civilization, with the future of mankind being led by a corporation instead of a nation or group of nations, only interested in the bottom line and profitability. The motto of “Building Better Worlds” doesn’t include that they were built on the backs of workers taken advantage of by unethical labor practices, but for this new group of people, that may be the least of their concerns.
The film follows Rain (Cailee Spaeny) and her ‘brother’ Andy (David Jonsson), a synthetic repaired and repurposed by Rain’s father to watch over and protect her. Thinking she’s finally met her mining quota in order to be released from her contract with The Company to start a new life on a more hospitable planet, she’s denied transport due to sudden and unannounced quota increases, forcibly extending her contract for another 6+ years. In despair and nowhere to turn, she reluctantly agrees to help some friends who have detected a ship in orbit around their planet. With the help of Rain and Andy’s Weyland Yutani access codes, they hope to find a hyper-sleep pod with enough fuel to allow them the ability to travel to their desired destination and away from the hardships of the mining colony. However, upon boarding, not all goes to plan.
Alien: Romulus puts the franchise back on track in terms of storylines involving the Xenomorph, and the best parts of the films. I do very much enjoy Ridley Scott’s foray into the exploration of the origins of the creature, and furthermore the origins of mankind as well in Prometheus, but I think there was an overall disappointment in the film, especially after such a long time in between films about the Xenomorph. Regardless, Alien: Romulus is able to incorporate certain aspects of those newer films as well and blend them seamlessly together. Fede Álvarez, an experienced horror director, brings a fresh take to the film, incorporating a lot of frightening sequences that will surely leave you squeamish, such as one of my favorites: the zero-g scene toward the end of the film. It’s moments such as this that make the film stand out in the franchise, and he was a solid choice to direct.
As much as the story does feel like a re-hash of the original, and admittedly some of the characters as well, it still has a different overall atmosphere and feel. Unfortunately, there are really only two characters that have much depth to them, Rain and Andy. The others are pure plot fodder, moving the story along and causing these two characters to react to different situations, whether it’s the blatant prejudice of synthetics by one of the group, the infection by a face-hugger by another, these characters don’t have enough backstory or depth to even really make you care about them or learn their names. Despite this, David Jonsson was the real stand-out for me, with his character going through a major change, which was one of the most interesting parts of the film I thought. However, one of the more controversial aspects of the film was the inclusion of an actor from a previous film that has unfortunately passed away. While this could be viewed to be in bad taste or distracting, I felt that overall, for me, it was an enjoyable call-back and the only distracting thing was the CG face not looking quite right at times. Still, that character plays a pretty significant part in the story and isn’t simply there for fan service. While the technology and more importantly the moral and legal ramifications of resurrecting dead actors are still progressing, this film and a few key others are important milestones in that exploration and can be gauges of what is and isn’t acceptable to audiences.
Alien: Romulus is now available on Digital and on 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray and DVD December 3. Also, get this, the film will also be available on VHS. Yes, you read that right. A fully functional copy of the film on Video Cassette. I personally am not one of those nostalgia media collectors, as I enjoy my top-quality stuff, but nevertheless this is such a cool addition that will undoubtedly make a lot of people excited. This is said to be a limited edition, so act fast if you’re interested.
We were given a digital code to review this film. While it’s hard to review the technical aspects of streaming, I will say I was very disappointed with the audio levels of the digital copy. I for one will be picking up the 4k physical copy on day one, and if you’re looking for the best possible quality, I suggest you do the same.