‘Alien: Romulus’ Review – An Exciting, Yet Hollow, Alien Reset

The film industry is littered with numerous franchise and IP properties that churn out a film every couple of years or so, with some leading to immense anticipation for each new offering and others leading to fatigue. After a seven-year break from the franchise, we have been gifted with another installment set in the world of Alien, this time in the form of Fede Alvarez’s Alien: Romulus. Originating from Ridley Scott’s masterpiece Alien (1979), this series has taken its time developing new films. It’s taken 45 years for the seventh canonized movie to be released, and there still seems to be a great deal of excitement for new stories set in this world with Romulus tracking around $75 million for its debut weekend.

The film follows a group of young workers on a mining planet who discover an abandoned ship in the atmosphere. They head out to explore it hoping to find enough equipment to ship off to a planet not controlled by the infamous Weyland-Yutani Corporation. Led by Rain (Cailee Spaeny) and her family’s android Andy (David Jonsson), the crew discovers more than just spare parts and gadgetry left behind. This iteration is most similar to the original and takes place between the events of Alien and Aliens (1986). 

This isn’t Fede Alvarez’s first pass at taking on a beloved franchise, having done the soft reboot/legacy sequel Evil Dead in 2013. That film combined with Don’t Breathe (2016) solidified Alvarez as a name to watch in the horror space, and he brings those skills to Romulus in full force. This is assuredly the scariest Alien film yet, leaning into the roots of Scott’s original film and taking it even further into the horror space. Alvarez’s combination of practical effects and impressive lighting and production design brings together the best of modern filmmaking techniques with homage to the past.

The film admittedly starts slow, taking a bit to get everyone together and find their way onto the space station. There’s a lot of effort to give each person an abridged characterization before the action gets moving, and while it makes sense it bogs down the opening momentum of the story. Even with this minuscule level of character development, none come close to the icon status of other characters we’ve seen in prior installments. Cailee Spaeny is positioned as the hero and spiritual successor to Sigourney Weaver’s Ripley from the first four films, and her performance is wonderful. However, as the credits roll, you come away from the movie thinking about David Jonsson’s portrayal of Andy. This is a different take on the android concept we’ve seen in prior films, with Andy being more dysfunctional and needing assistance from Rain to survive. Some other events happen to lead him to give a more nuanced performance that makes him the most impressive person coming out of the film. 

Alien: Romulus finds its footing in the third act once the horrific cat-and-mouse game is in full effect. This is the type of filmmaking Alvarez was born to create, and his expertise shines through as the film comes to a close. The xenomorph’s design is a welcome update and is truly terrifying to see. There is another creature later in the film that is even more unsettling and is perfectly designed to scare audiences in a new way. 

Despite the successes of several performances and the technical filmmaking, the story is where Romulus feels a bit hollow. The narrative feels more like a rehash of Alien than a furthering of the universe’s story or lore. There are still themes of corporate greed being prioritized over saving lives and exploring the emotional dimensions of androids in this world, but nothing new comes out of it. This is the first time we’ve gotten much fan service in an Alien film, a mistake that far too many franchises make in today’s landscape. Forced lines and parallels to other iconic moments lean more towards pandering than true homage. These choices distract more than anything else, and it’s easy to be taken out of the film by them.

Alien: Romulus is an exciting, horror-filled story that can’t overcome its constant need to call back to the past. There are amazing moments to be sure, and you’d be hard-pressed to find a big-budget film that looks better than this. The callbacks may entice big fans of the series but ultimately distract the film from becoming greater than a modern rework of the original.

Alien: Romulus is currently playing exclusively in theaters courtesy of 20th Century Studios.