'Alien: Romulus' Review: A Gnarly Return To Form
The beloved sci-fi franchise returns to its blood-soaked horror roots with Alien: Romulus, a sequel that brings back the chills and thrills as it expands the lore of the series.
The Alien franchise has become a frustrating one since its inception, vacillating from great to good to okay and to downright awful from installment to installment. The series was in desperate need of a new approach and fortunately director Fede Alvarez was just what the doctor ordered. ‘Alien: Romulus’ focuses on a group of scavengers who board an abandoned vessel floating in space in the hopes of finding what they need in order to travel to a new, far more promising planet to find a better life for themselves. Unfortunately, they’ve boarded a space station littered with precarious threats, including face huggers and of course Xenomorphs ready to make their lives a living hell.
From the opening scene, the moody, claustrophobic atmosphere that helped cement Ridley Scott’s first Alien film as a bonafide sci-fi classic has finally returned, a palpable sense of dread and horror lingering in every frame. Once the crew board the space vessel, the practical sets and effects truly shine. The production design and practical effects not only make the environments feel tactile and lived-in, but help add a palpable sense of immersion for the audience. Especially when the face huggers and Xenomorphs start rearing their ugly heads, their authenticity and presence isn’t doubted even for an instant. Alvarez utilizes them wonderfully, staging terrific action sequences that are as exciting as they are visceral. Fans of the franchise will absolutely get what they paid for and then some, Alvarez delivering the hits while throwing in some new B-sides as well.
The cast is also quite strong here, Cailee Spaeny and David Jonsson becoming standouts early on. Their brother and sister dynamic is the beating heart of the film, their care for one another throughout becoming one of the film’s main highlights. As their mission becomes more and more horrifying, the strong chemistry and tenderness between them anchors the film emotionally, preventing it from ringing emotionally hollow. The two of them are certainly stars to keep an eye on, their performances seemingly showing just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to their respective versatility.
The way the film respects the lore of the previous entries in the series while building on it is also commendable, not overly relying on fan service to win over audiences. The film takes place between the first two films, Alien and Aliens, and serves as an effective bridge between the two while being able to stand on its own two feet and deliver an entry that isn’t reliant on another installment in order to be enjoyed. In fact, the last act of the film goes into some truly gnarly, unexplored territory for the series, delivering an extended sequence that is sure to make fans squirm and smile simultaneously. When Alvarez and company take big swings, that’s when the sequel works best.
Unfortunately, though the film is directed by Alvarez, who previously helmed the underrated Don’t Breathe and remake of Evil Dead, it often feels like its playing things safe, not pushing the boundaries of the franchise hard enough in order to carve out its own unique path. When Alvarez is let off the leash, that’s when the film truly soars, launching the story into thrilling and refreshing territory. While the action sequences and gore are highly effective and well-staged, there’s a feeling of been there, done that that permeates throughout, a bit of a bummer at this stage in the series. It also doesn’t help that the supporting characters, like in previous entries, are highly forgettable and disposable fodder when they could’ve been so much more with better writing and development.
Alien: Romulus may not be the best entry in the long-running sci-fi franchise, but it’s still able to deliver a considerable amount of entertainment value and blood-soaked carnage that fans have come to love and expect from the series. If anything, this entry confidently shows a franchise that still has plenty of gas left in the tank, filled with acidic blood that is.