Alien Romulus Review
The Alien film series is one of my favorites, if not the favorite, in cinema. Alien, by Ridley Scott, and Aliens, by James Cameron, are obviously my favorite entries in the franchise, and they also stand at the very top of their respective genres: horror and action.
When Alien: Romulus came out, I couldn’t let it pass, so of course I watched it in a movie theatre. I’ll avoid major spoilers, but be aware that some details are discussed. That said, this came out a while ago, so I’m not even sure a spoiler warning is still relevant.
Being one of my favorite universes, and with a mix of both great and not-so-great films in the franchise, my expectations were moderate, but open. Still, knowing a bit about Federico Álvarez’s previous work, I had some hope this could turn out to be a decent entry. So, let’s do a quick recap.
In short, the story follows a group of young colonists trying to escape their harsh mining colony by hijacking equipment linked to a Weyland-Yutani operation connected to the salvaging of the Nostromo. As you might expect, things go wrong, alien creatures are involved, and it quickly turns into a fight for survival. I won’t retell the entire movie here. You can fill in the blanks, or just check the Wikipedia summary if you want the full plot.
For Alien fans, the movie is definitely worth watching. Álvarez connects Romulus to the classic films while telling a parallel story that is mostly detached from the main saga. We get new ships, new androids, new characters, and even a familiar face from the past. The atmosphere initially feels very close to the original Alien, especially in its pacing and tension.
As the film progresses, however, it starts leaning heavily into nostalgia. We move from slow exploration to waves of facehuggers, then to a classic Xenomorph hunt, followed by action-heavy sequences that strongly echo Aliens. Eventually, things escalate into territory that recalls Alien: Resurrection. At least no Predators show up, I guess.
Taste is subjective, but after the nostalgia-heavy direction of Star Wars episodes VII and IX, I tend to appreciate directors who aren’t afraid to take risks. Álvarez seemed to be heading that way, but around the middle of the film it felt like we were suddenly speedrunning through the entire Alien franchise. I would have preferred a more focused direction. At times, the movie tries to be everything at once, and that leads to a bit too much fan service.
That said, some of it is well executed, particularly the return of a familiar type of android, the different (upgraded?) version of the standard-issue M41A Pulse Rifle, and the visual resemblances between LV-410 and LV-426.
None of this makes the film unwatchable. In fact, Romulus does innovate in several interesting ways. The gravity mechanics, especially the use of acid in zero gravity, were clever and visually striking. The new android and its “AI update” arc were also well done, and the planetary ring sequence had a very Interstellar-like vibe.
Add to that the polished visual and sound design, and you get a movie that’s definitely worth watching, especially in a cinema setting. It won’t blow your mind like the original Alien or Aliens, and it won’t leave you in awe the way Prometheus did, but I’d still place it above most of the other installments in the franchise. That was more than enough to leave me satisfied with the final result.
In case you haven’t watched it yet, here’s the trailer:
I’ll be using the holiday break to catch up on Alien: Earth and will write about that soon.