Rain and her android pal Andy who she sort of pretends is her brother. They’re both stuck on this boring mining colony, but they’ve got big dreams of getting out and heading to a sunny planet somewhere. Just when they’re ready to make a move, bam! The shady company Weyland-Yutani comes along with a bogus offer that totally kills their plans.
With no better options, they go along with a wild idea from their buddy Tyler: snag some cryo-pods from an old Weyland-Yutani space station so they can get away. This station’s seen better days—it’s falling apart and dangerously close to smashing into a planet’s ring. Inside this wreck, they find pieces of an old android and creepy signs that those infamous alien creatures have wiped out the crew.
In “Alien: Romulus,” Disney dips its toes into this legendary saga for the first time. Director Fede Álvarez wants to bring back that gritty B-movie charm but spends too much time paying homage to the original Alien flicks; kind of like listening to a cover band instead of seeing the real thing in concert.
Álvarez has some cool ideas here and there, though he just can’t stop referencing past classics. Still, there’s something fresh about how everyone deals with Android Andy—David Jonsson does an awesome job playing him. It’s his first big leap after making waves in “Industry.” As for Rain… she’s got her own story going on!
Andy’s like family since he’s pretty much all Rain’s dad left her—a true companion like a big bro. So you can bet she’s not eager to let on any secrets if heading down this funky path ends up ruffling more feathers!
So, there’s this crew heading to some new planet, right? And Andy, who’s an android with some high-tech Weyland-Yutani security access, is part of the team. But one guy really doesn’t like Andy because he blames the company—Andy’s “people”—for his mom’s troubles. Still, they kinda need Andy since he can get into spots on the space station they can’t.
Things get messy when some sneaky corporate software takes over Andy. It powers him up but also messes up his plans a little. This story shares vibes with other movies like Prometheus and Alien: Covenant by putting an android in the spotlight and exploring how humans react to him, all while showcasing that shady big business theme we recognize from those movies.
What’s cool—and maybe a bit eerie—is how they digitally brought back Ian Holm’s image for another android onboard. Now normally that’s kind of eyebrow-raising stuff but it works here ’cause this android doesn’t have to act super human-like; it just has this weird look going on which is perfect for the movie.
And then boom! Halfway through, things shift gears big time. Our main characters stumble upon an alien nest and it’s all action-packed like something James Cameron would do. They mix in that good-old genetic experiment stuff from Prometheus too. Plus, for kicks, there are elements reminiscent of both Alien: Resurrection and even some video game nods from “Alien: Isolation.” So yeah, it’s quite a ride!
Alright, so this movie is about some crazy stuff that happens thanks to phones on a big spaceship. At first, the plot is tight and keeps you hooked. But then it gets into one big showdown that’s kind of like a stretched-out version of an intense scene from another movie about Scott’s escape. Honestly, they could’ve saved that moment for another sequel or something.
“Alien: Romulus” really rocks when it’s simple and not dragging things out too much. There are tons of showdowns with aliens, which means lots of teeth-baring and goo spraying everywhere. It kinda slows the story down since the characters always manage to beat those creepy xenomorphs somehow.
In the end, though, it’s kinda refreshing after some previous sequels tried to do too much or those boring Predator crossovers. This flick tries to go back to what made these movies awesome in the first place. It doesn’t change everything totally—but think of it like getting better air conditioning in your car; not revolutionary but welcome! The way “Prey” brought new life into the Predator series was cool, so here’s hoping this does something similar for Alien!
And oh man, Álvarez has a fresh style with his direction here—it really works! Plus, there’s Cailee Spaeny. She’s no Ripley (I mean who can really be Ripley?), but she totally holds her ground and does a stellar job in her role. I’d say give it a watch—it’s worth your time!
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