Honest opinions of Alien: Romulus by die-hard Alien fans
Chris
AdminEngineerAug-15-2024 8:33 AMThis topic will help organize the reviews and opinions for Alien: Romulus since the film officially debuts this week! I have attached a poll for voting. This topic is for honest opinions by fellow die-hard Alien fans. Unbiased and unfiltered.
Cast your votes and share your opinions below!
Neomorph
MemberChestbursterAug-15-2024 1:06 PMMediocre/good but I did enjoy it. It's beautiful, faithful to a lot of elements from the original films and the scenes are very well shot. Some scenes are really tense, the acting is good overall and the soundtrack was beautiful. What brings the score down mostly imo is the emphasis on fan-service. I'd rank it along Alien Resurrection (which I like) but under Alien 3 Assembly Cut.
Still give it a 7/10 and I'll happily rewatch it on streaming services later on. It's a feast to the eye and I sincerely hope we'll get an extended version.
MonsterZero
MemberXenomorphAug-15-2024 6:30 PMI Liked it. The fan service was a bit much and I wouldn't mind a fan edit where Rook is on the monitor only.
Popcorn movie. Felt like a Netflix production ( not really a bad thing ). I can see why it was headed to HULU. Budget seemed..Low? The must have saved a bundle on the actors salary. But the actors really knocked it out of the park.
I really want to see more of Rain and Andy. A comic or novel would be fine...but another movie would be cool. (David Jonsson as Andy was brilliant.) and a sequel on Yvaga would be fantastic! More of the DNA monsters.
Soundtrack was good...have to listen again.
Editing was great.
Plot was good. Loved that the station was used for something other than more xenos.
8/10
SuperAlien
MemberXenomorphAug-15-2024 9:05 PMDid not like it. Fede heats a leftovers soup that could only take the franchise in the worst direction since AVP. I think if you ask Fede, he would happily make another AVP too, he probably has the pitch already.
Not worthy of the 7 years wait since Covenant.
Super Dumb movie. Not even one original addition to the Alienverse.
Dumb script, probably the dumbest of all. Fede, you better let others do the script, you should probably resume to scripting those film where the characters do not speak, silence is wiser sometimes, nothing to be ashamed of.
I am not the kind of fan who likes everything that has xeno traces in it.
What has become of the perfect organism? Being humiliated by a bunch of kids and a retarded android the same way Andy (short from android, hey Fede, is this movie for kiddos only?) has his ass kicked by some bullies while Rain was trying to convince the WY emmigration clerk she is old enough to see the sun light.
Did not feel a second the outer space, just inside a poorly illuminated basement.
Why so many facehuggers and xenos, where did they come from? Strenght of the xeno does not lie in numbers unless tou dumbing it down. Did Fede never asked himself why Ridley used one xeno at a time? Probably not.
Overall this film was like a cheap dumb AI generated production, with bits and pieces from the quadrilogy and the prequels, an unnecessary mess from beginning to the end, that can probably please a popcorn munching, immature audience.
4/10
"He survived, he’s now in Disneyland in Orlando, and no way am I going back there. How did he end up in Disneyland? I saw him in Disneyland, Jesus Christ!"
MonsterZero
MemberXenomorphAug-16-2024 4:56 AMThe decline in space horror movies started with James Cameron's "Aliens." He made the xenomorphs mortal, easily killed with a pulse rifle. They went from being otherworldly, Lovecraftian space monsters to just dumb space bugs.
This removed the terror and scare factor. After 40 years of watching horror, violence, and sex on screen, I'm desensitized. "Alien" in 1979 set a high bar, and little shocks me now.
This makes movies incredibly difficult to produce. Most will fail in some way.
jdvyne
MemberOvomorphAug-16-2024 5:04 AMDidn't like it either. In a topic which I started a few days ago I summarize a few things that bothered me.
https://www.alien-covenant.com/topic/52059
MonsterZero
MemberXenomorphAug-16-2024 10:11 AMThis excessive fan service is exactly what many of us feared Neill Blomkamp would bring to his Alien movie, and we got it anyway!
Jonesy
MemberFacehuggerAug-16-2024 8:44 PMthere are lots of fans service but I saw there are also lots of new elements which we never seen before.
1. Alien Isolation vibe
2. Alien evolving from the chestbuster
3. Facehugger sensing of temperature
4. Gravity concept
5. Baby human-alien
This movie gives me All-you-can-eat vibe. Not exquisite for every dishes but everything is satisfying lol.
Svanya
AdminPraetorianAug-16-2024 9:28 PMIt was ok, I just thought there were too many callbacks to other Alien movies and media. It was a bit much, and what I was worried about when I saw the first trailer.
They really took from everything too. The Rook/Ash callbacks are from two stories that have come out in the past 10 years. One is a story with Ash uploading his consciousness into the escape pod Ripley used, the other is a backstory for Bishop, where he encounters another Bishop model named Rook. (I posted links to the stories if anyone wants to read them)
They had the boys crawling through the vents like Bishop did in Aliens, and using Alien:Isolation style distraction flares.
Even the "vagina/vulva" Xenomorph cocoon/birth concept isn't original, it's similar to Sil's cocoon from the movie Species. So, probably a callback to that as well given Giger was heavily involved in creating the creature effects for the movie.
The nostalgia bait isn't a bad thing per se, there's just way too much of it, in my opinion.
Things I really enjoyed were the first part of the film, when they were on the planet/star mining colony, I thought it was the strongest and most interesting part of the whole movie. I loved Andy and Rain's relationship, would 110% watch a movie just about them. I also really liked how we finally got an answer as to what Weyland-Yutani was after with the Goo and Xenos. And I honestly loved seeing Ash again, even though it technically wasn't him.
What I really didn't like is the Xenos were so underpowered, case in point when Andy goes up against one, he should have been burned by all the acid, yet he wasn't. I also did not really like the "Baby" at the end, it was jarring and felt out of place.
As is tradition, the Android was the best part of the movie, lol. I'd watch it again, it was a decent "popcorn" movie. I give it a generous 7/10.
Jonesy
MemberFacehuggerAug-17-2024 12:52 AMnever seen Species before. The clip looks interesting lol. I am definitely going to watch it.
Chris
AdminEngineerAug-17-2024 9:59 AMFinally saw it and... I have to say, I've got some reservations. I'm going to have to mull over my opinion and give it another watch before diving deeply into it. But I will say this - Prometheus did it better.
Sullaco
MemberOvomorphAug-18-2024 10:40 AMI think we can all agree, without David 8... there is no story.
Xenotaris
MemberPraetorianAug-18-2024 10:58 AMWhat about Ripley and her journey before David 8?
Sullaco
MemberOvomorphAug-18-2024 2:29 PMExactly. The original film was about a havoc wreaking organism. Not Ripley. The story is where this thing came from. The concept of David 8 was delivering on this mystery.
Darthgator1217
MemberOvomorphAug-19-2024 9:10 AMHere is my short review here. Some context.
I am an older "Gen X" fan. So I bring that perspective to the table, to a certain extent. I went to an IMAX showing with two of my sons on Sunday. They are not particularly familiar with these movies, which actually helped increase their enjoyment of the movie.
I found myself realizing that I was possibly the oldest person in the theater. There seemed to be many 30 somethings in there, which is consistent with what I believe is the target demographic. Apparently, the powers that be in the movies think that these folks want to experience a past they never had. This constant looking back is problematic, I think. There are many examples, e.g. The Force Awakens comes to mind. Perhaps younger viewers desperately want that iconic movie experience that was far more common in the 70's and 80's? But that has put these film makers in a catch 22. They are afraid to try new things and are consequently slaves to the past. So does it deliver that "iconic experience"? No, it misses the mark.
So
The good:
1) Great direction, set design, cinematography, and visual effects (for the most part). Fede has a gift for framing shots and he does provide some "spooky" moments here. If I am not mistaken some the "old timers" from older Alien movies were brought back to do visual effects and set design. Anyhow, outstanding work here.
2) Its bloody and deserves the R rating.
3) The movie moves along at a brisk pace, sometimes too brisk. Still, enjoyable.
The average
1) The cast. Sorry, they were just boring. I liked David Johnson as Andy the android. We have another "mini Ripley" in the lead (Reeboks and all). Her, like the rest of the cast, gets the job the done, but not much more. To be fair, the screenplay, does not do them any favors here. The pedestrian dialogue simply works to keep things moving.
3) The bad
There are simply too many references and simple cutting and pasting from the previous movies. This was to the point of being distracting (the corn bread, really?). If you are new this series, this is not a problem. That is, until you actually watch the other films.
This phenomenon of constantly showing stuff from the past in so many films and TV shows, is very tiresome. Back in the 70s and 80s we were looking to the future. Lets try something different. This is where I think Prometheus, for all of its problems, is a least different and quite good in many ways.
When Andy says "the bitch line", people actually clapped. I rolled my eyes.
I am glad that the movie is doing well. If it gets people interested in the Alien movies and sci fi, that's great. I am looking forward to watching it again.
I hope that we get a sequel to Covenant and wrap that story line up. Doubt it though.
Chris
AdminEngineerAug-19-2024 10:07 AMApparently, the powers that be in the movies think that these folks want to experience a past they never had.
I think this is a major point we forget to overlook. I agree wholeheartedly with this assertion. I myself am only 31, but I too rolled my eyes at the "bitch" line and other callbacks that seemed too forced. I don't belong to the camp of my peers who wish to experience a past qe never had, I'm of the group eager to expand and explore uncharted territory the past originated. I'm not sure what the obsession is with rehashing existing tropes and capitalizing so heavily on nostalgia - there's good ways to do it and there's bad ways and I feel like the trend currently is to try and maximize more on that nostalgic "feeling" rather than giving audiences something NEW for future generations to look back on for their inspiration. We're stuck in a cyclical repeating of tried and true concepts that offer very little to no serious impact.
That being said Fede did expand the lore a bit by showing us an Alien birthing from its cocoon which I liked and showed the Aliens as more intelligent beings rather than Canon fodder bugs. I tip my hat to what was done right but it was a fairly even blending of eye roll inducing callbacks and engaging fan service.
The film is definitely a mixed bag. Repeat viewings might shift my perspective but as it stands, I place the film below Prometheus and Covenant, personally.
Svanya
AdminPraetorianAug-20-2024 2:19 PMNow that the movie has been out a few days I want to mention the thing that bugged me the most about the movie. How is Rook functioning? Rain gave Andy Rook's chip, shouldn't he not be able to function at all, or at least not follow his company programming? I dunno, it just bothers me, lol.
One little detail I absolutely loved was the miners bringing birds into the mines, this used to be done back in the day to detect poison gas pockets, if the bird died you were in trouble.
And then there's Andy, he was just adorable and I felt so, so bad for him when he got attacked in the beginning of the movie on the planet and wanted to just give him a big hug. David Jonsson did an incredible job and honestly stole every scene he was in.
Gonna add a couple of shots of Sil from the movie Species, emerging from her cocoon. As I mentioned in my other comment, even the seemingly original concept of a "Vagina" wall-cocoon to gestate, then birth the Xeno, was obviously taken from another movie in the Alien universe (one that Giger worked on anyways). I put a clip of the full scene in my earlier comment for those that want to watch it.
Neomorph
MemberChestbursterAug-20-2024 3:43 PMIf I'm not mistaken, the chip was an additional piece placed in the neck device, kind of like a USB device with new data to a computer.
I forgot about the birds! Reminded me if those Order Soldiers in Christophe Gans Silent Hill film from 2006. Dressed in coal miner suits and holding a cage with a lil birdie (miner to the left in the picture below)
Yeah I wanted Andy to go semi-Terminator on those kids and give em a good ass whooping for what they did. David Johnson stole the show, incredible acting switching from too kind to ice cold and intimidating in such convincing way.
Xenotaris
MemberPraetorianAug-20-2024 7:47 PMI'm just happy we finally got an ALIEN movie that is closer to the iconic ALIENS/Cameron era.
MonsterZero
MemberXenomorphAug-21-2024 6:29 AMI'd definitely be up for another movie with Andy and Rain. However, I'm not sure how they'd encounter another Xenomorph. Perhaps they could create more Offspring using the accelerant. "Prometheus" managed to avoid a Xenomorph encounter, but I doubt they could pull that off again. Unless, of course, the newer fans wouldn't mind a movie focused on the Offspring. (After all, the franchise is called "Alien," not "Xenomorph," LOL) It could feature Colonial Marines battling a horde of Offspring.
Xenotaris
MemberPraetorianAug-21-2024 9:06 PMUmmm to make more Offspring you would need the accelerant to fall into enemy hands and inject it into more pregnant women. I don't feel comfortable in putting anymore pregnant women into harms way. I was horrified when they did it to poor Kay in this movie.
No I would rather they inject the pathogen into either a man or a non-pregnant woman. I want to see some hybrids but more on the lines of the deleted scene Fifield.
Also original ALIEN was the name of the xenomorph, just like PREADTOR was the original name for the Yaut'ja. So a complete replacement of the xenomorph seems like replacing Godzilla with Zilla.
MonsterZero
MemberXenomorphAug-22-2024 6:37 AMYeah, Now that it's been done, I wouldn't use the birthing aspect. Instead, I'd explore the super soldier route or something similar. Which might involve bringing back Colonial Marines for the sequel (and that could spark cries of the ultimate fan service!).
Xenotaris
MemberPraetorianAug-22-2024 11:08 PMColonial Marines are a stable of the franchise. Why would people be upset by bringing them back?
That would be like fans getting angry at Star Wars for bringing back the Stormtroopers.
goutzizizi
MemberOvomorphSep-15-2024 4:09 AMAs a long-time Alien fan, I really enjoyed Alien: Romulus. It brought back the classic horror and suspense from the original 1979 film, with gritty, practical effects and a dark atmosphere. Fede Álvarez did a great job of focusing on what made the first Alien so terrifying. While some choices in the third act felt a bit off, overall, it was a solid addition to the franchise. Cailee Spaeny’s performance was intense and fit perfectly within the Alien universe.
damiendada
MemberOvomorphSep-16-2024 1:16 PMThe Alien 3 has a stunning design that exudes a brutal and primal nature, making it one of the most terrifying in the series. I like to imagine that this version, along with the original, has a closer connection to the Engineers, reflecting their bio-mechanical influence in its more savage and streamlined form.