Romulus is a Roller Coaster of Sci-Fi Carnage

Alien: Romulus final piece of fan art inspired by Alien franchise. If you think of each Alien film as paint color, with director Fede Alvarez as artist, Romulus all mixed together to create a completely new image. Each of the sequels and prequels exists in some way. They are usually visible. Sometimes they are a splatter on the side. But taken as a whole, the result is a unique, striking—and independent—work that’s strangely familiar yet still exciting and fresh. Fans will love it, but you don’t have to be a fan to enjoy it.

Set between the events of Ridley Scott’s 1979 original and James Cameron’s 1986 sequel (which has direct links to the former), Alien: Romulus centers on a young woman named Rain (Cailee Spaeny). Rain is an orphan working in a sunless world whose only family is his brother Andy (David Jonsson). Andy, however, is not his blood brother. In fact he is not biological at all. He is synthetic and programmed by his parents to keep him safe.

When Rain realizes there’s a chance he might never leave this dead planet, he, Andy, and a group of friends (played by Archie Renaux, Isabela Merced, Spike Fearn, and Aileen Wu) plan something big. They find an apparently undiscovered ship just above the planet, which they think holds the keys to escape. Unfortunately for them, it’s actually harboring a host of deadly aliens and all that comes with it, but they don’t know that yet.

This setup provides Alien: Romulus Interesting and mature blocks to build from. Friends talk about changing their fates. They do better than their parents who live and die in their world. Taking the opportunity to do something better with their life. From this, you expect Romulus continuing to explore characters who spread their wings. Instead, the only thing they do is spread their brains over the various parts of the mysterious ship. Which, of course, is exactly what you want in Alien the movie. You want action, movement, and horror. But Alien: Romulus it pivots so completely on its original ideas that it’s disappointing. This change also contributes to the fact that the film drags a bit in its first half as the characters go from people with hopes and dreams to people without a heartbeat.

That’s the only disappointment though. Once Alien: Romulus you get to cook, it’s built for pure Alien happiness. Alvarez is clearly a fan of this world and it shows that by taking everything you know about the franchise and taking it a little further. You get new wrinkles with Face Huggers. The Chest Burster episode has a twist, and the alien acid blood becomes the most important and terrifying part of the film. It takes everything you love and makes it better. If anything, the actual aliens themselves might be the scariest part.

As all this happens, those sprinklers are one Alien movies are always there. Maybe a set decoration piece. Maybe a turn of phrase. But everything is in a way that is rarely overwhelming or obvious. It’s only obvious if you’re someone who knows what the doors looked like Nostromo or all about the sentry guns on LV-426. Otherwise, everything passes unnoticed as you are wrapped up watching the characters fight, and often fail, for their lives.

There is, however, another great way to give a nod to the franchise what kind of work or what kind doesn’t work. It works because it makes perfect sense in this particular story, and it doesn’t because it depends entirely on visual effects. Still, the film is so full of surprises and excitement that even something obvious and out of place is forgivable. Especially if it raises a story, in this case, it does.

Entry Alien: Romulus It is also remarkable because everything always snowballs. After a heavy set-up, a slow second act leads into a final 30 minutes or so that is like a rocket with explosives on top. After one or two of the best scenes of all Alien franchise (no hyperbole), Alvarez gives the film a glorious finale. A big swing that feels inspired by a certain sequel where it didn’t work—but here, it fits better, giving the film a thrilling and memorable new ending.

At the end, Alien: Romulus it has its drawbacks. It lacks a few dashes of cohesion, lacks the funky theme sound at the start, and is a bit back-loaded. But it’s an incredibly entertaining sci-fi horror film that sets a new standard for what a legacy sequel can be. In space, no one can hear you scream, but in a theater, they can. And they will if you watch Alien: Romulus. It’s in theaters Friday.

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