*BEWARE SPOILERS* Alien: Romulus

[Mondragon]

I'd be fine if Alvarez simply gives us one more film, ....

So twins, where'd the other one end up (other side of the station)?

 

[wormlander]

Well this was super disapointing. Not only did Romulus show that the Xenomorph is long since obsolete, but also that this tired "isolated in space" trope will never come close to challenging what we got in Alien and Aliens. Ridley was wise to take the Prometheus route and leave the carbon copying to lesser writers/directors. The future of this franchise lies in the continuing expansion of the lore and exploraton of the mythology/creationist themes. The new additions made in this installment unfortunately felt closer to what we got in Alien Resurrection (Awful), as opposed to in Prometheus (Excellent). I mean, a wall mounted Alien snatch!? Give me a break...

The Earth setting and corporate shenanigans of the upcoming Alien series may temporarily breathe some new life into this, but only if they manage to write some truly interesting characters. A flock of derelict kids on a space field trip is such a boring concept it would require a cast on the level of "Stand By Me" to make it work. Not even the crucial CGI of the "Ash" model robot was given the attention needed for it to work. This was Henry Cavill's missing mustache level bad and it's totally mind blowing how that garbage even made it into the movie. Next up better be a direct sequel to Alien Covenant or don't even bother...

 

[Mandible]

Can someone explain the logic of the first 20 minutes to me:

She's served her time and all she wants to do is get off world... 5 minutes later they all grab a ship and go off world - couldn't they have just done that at any point and ****** off to wherever they wanted to? Do they have proximity detonators in their heads or something? I'm completely baffled.

And I'm hoping there's a reason why an android is acting like he has a mental disability? Has he been programmed that way to be more sympathetic - or is he just written that way for audience sympathy?

Turned it off, and hoping for some clarity before bothering to continue.

 

[Nick D]

I watched it recently also.

Not a fan.

The characters aren’t interesting,
annoying actually.
The Xenomorph grows far too quickly
and barely did much at all.
The child / Xenomorph abomination has to be the worst creation in the franchise,
I’d take the Predalien over this any day.
Why does this film need a Ripley ripoff.
Why is the Ripley ripoff the only remotely likable character in this?

All in all, this reads like a fan film covering no new ground. If you want a fix, watch Alien & Aliens,
forget the rest.

 

[ironwez20]

Correct me if I’m wrong but don’t the chestbursters rapidly shed there skin as they grow ? Like in alien and alien 3 they pick up shedded skin from it

 

[Mr. Awesome]

I liked it. Didn't love it. It was OK.

There was way too much fan service in the final act that I rolled my eyes at. Because of that, I feel like the film doesn't stand on it's own.

I do think it was very well filmed and the effects were nice for the most part. The acting was fine, characters didn't make me wanna punch my screen.

But the absurd amount of fan service really dropped my estimation of the film. It was lazy and embarrassing to watch those scenes. I went from giving it a solid 7.5 to 6 by the end of it.

I don't regret watching it. Enjoyed it for the most part. But it could have been better.

 

[MeatHookGekko]

Ridley was wise to take the Prometheus route and leave the carbon copying to lesser writers/directors.

I disagree.

Ridley Scott and Tony Scott have always wanted to do a series of films centered around The Book Of Enoch. Except many would feel that kind of storyline would carry too much of an anti-Christian sentiment. The Scott brothers were told to leave it alone. They persisted. Then Tony Scott "committed suicide". If you do a high level complex prestige version of the Book Of Enoch story, you won't find someone to distribute it. Now that the current industry is splitting into major separate camps over Israel/Palestine, I don't see how it has any future pathway period.

Ridley Scott should have written Prometheus himself. It's his story, his lore, his universe, he should have written it so it was a story done his way. Instead his abuse of Jon Spaihts created a lot of private backlash towards him. Talented people don't want to deal with that kind of chaos and drama, even if it's to work with a legendary director. He didn't just burn out one good writer, he created a situation where other skilled writers would just avoid him. And if Scott wants to make a film that says God doesn't exist and those that still believe are foolish and sheepish, he should just have made that film and not tried to mix it into the Alien lore.

Scott fumbled the bag. This is all on him. He's lost the Alien franchise, it's been effectively taken out of his hands, he's only around in name only, because he kept losing money trying to fulfill his vision. What happened on Prometheus was unforgivable down the line. It wasn't just Scott's career at stake with that film. Many other people worked on that film and had to carry that anchor around their neck, against their career potential, to eat Scott's failures.

Will I say it? OK, I will. Ridley Scott has to come to terms that the films he really wants to make will alienate a large share of the American movie going audience. You can't just keep prodding poor white rural Christian America. Even if you don't agree with them. Even if you look down on them.

 

[BeefEaster]

Can someone explain the logic of the first 20 minutes to me:

She's served her time and all she wants to do is get off world... 5 minutes later they all grab a ship and go off world - couldn't they have just done that at any point and ****** off to wherever they wanted to? Do they have proximity detonators in their heads or something? I'm completely baffled.

And I'm hoping there's a reason why an android is acting like he has a mental disability? Has he been programmed that way to be more sympathetic - or is he just written that way for audience sympathy?

Turned it off, and hoping for some clarity before bothering to continue.

The way I understand it is that there's nowhere to go unless you have the ability to go into cryo sleep. The nearest inhabitable planet is 9 years away. The android is damaged.

 

[Khev]

I disagree.

Ridley Scott and Tony Scott have always wanted to do a series of films centered around The Book Of Enoch. Except many would feel that kind of storyline would carry too much of an anti-Christian sentiment. The Scott brothers were told to leave it alone. They persisted. Then Tony Scott "committed suicide". If you do a high level complex prestige version of the Book Of Enoch story, you won't find someone to distribute it. Now that the current industry is splitting into major separate camps over Israel/Palestine, I don't see how it has any future pathway period.

Ridley Scott should have written Prometheus himself. It's his story, his lore, his universe, he should have written it so it was a story done his way. Instead his abuse of Jon Spaihts created a lot of private backlash towards him. Talented people don't want to deal with that kind of chaos and drama, even if it's to work with a legendary director. He didn't just burn out one good writer, he created a situation where other skilled writers would just avoid him. And if Scott wants to make a film that says God doesn't exist and those that still believe are foolish and sheepish, he should just have made that film and not tried to mix it into the Alien lore.

Scott fumbled the bag. This is all on him. He's lost the Alien franchise, it's been effectively taken out of his hands, he's only around in name only, because he kept losing money trying to fulfill his vision. What happened on Prometheus was unforgivable down the line. It wasn't just Scott's career at stake with that film. Many other people worked on that film and had to carry that anchor around their neck, against their career potential, to eat Scott's failures.

Will I say it? OK, I will. Ridley Scott has to come to terms that the films he really wants to make will alienate a large share of the American movie going audience. You can't just keep prodding poor white rural Christian America. Even if you don't agree with them. Even if you look down on them.

A lot of truth in this post. IMO Ridley really tainted the lore with his nonsense take on Creationism which had no business ever appearing on screen in this series. One of the main reasons I don't take Prometheus and Covenant as canon.

 

[MeatHookGekko]

I watched it recently also. Not a fan....All in all, this reads like a fan film covering no new ground. If you want a fix, watch Alien & Aliens,...forget the rest.

Romulus made over four times it's budget. It set up a possible prequel story on that space station. It creates a new opportunity to look at adapting Alien Isolation into a legitimate tentpole type film in the future. It's "proof of life" that the franchise is still bankable. It's not the best film in the entire world. It's not the worst. But it drove a foothold into creating potential Alien films in the near future that you might actually like.

There are a decent number of people out there who are a little iffy on the first Mad Max film. They don't hate it, but they don't see it as a juggernaut classic film. But I've met very few people who did not absolutely love The Road Warrior. Maybe the next Alien film will be your new The Road Warrior for you. When Robocop 1 was made, no one expected it to be a beloved classic. The people making it just wanted to tell a good story and give the audience a good time. That's all Romulus was trying to do. Sometimes films like that turn into new classics, rarely, and most of the time it's just a fun way for lots of people to kill a couple of hours and be entertained.

Jordan Peterson was asked once how to help the homeless. He said first you need to give someone a place to live that's safe. That's reliable. Where the person can trust that they will have a clean safe place to sleep at night. Then you have to try to salvage the person's sense of dignity. Give them a schedule. Let them clean themselves up from a hygiene standpoint. Let them try to adapt to socializing again with larger society as a whole. Petersen said what you can't do is expect someone to immediately jump into a complex job/career right from sleeping on the streets. The last two Alien films lost big money. Romulus was not designed to break new ground. It was actually slated for streaming release instead of a theatrical release. Romulus was just the equivalent of giving a homeless guy some regular showers and clean sheets first.

Romulus upped the odds of an Alien Isolation film getting to the big screen. It's probably not the win you want, but it's the win you have right now.

 

[Nick D]

I don’t need more films from this franchise, the same way I don’t need more Terminator sequels or Predator.

If you’re to make an ALIEN film, you know going in, you’ll never match the quality of Ridley’s Classic or Cameron’s sequel.

So knowing that, go for broke.
Don’t recreate the first movie with your Ripley ripoff, because let’s face it, that’s what this new character was meant to be.
It will always pale in comparison.

If playing it safe grants more sequels,
what do you think those sequels will be?
More playing it safe, more of the same,
this franchise is a yawn fest after 2.

The AVP films may be trash, but at least they went for something fresh by pitting the two against each other. If anything, I’d welcome another attempt at that, given competent writers are involved.

I mean seriously, how many more Predator films in a jungle setting, how many more ALIEN films are to involve a small crew getting picked off one by one in the vacuum of space. It’s a tired concept.

 

[chrisstbh]

 

[Khev]

View attachment 733224

Watch that be the one with proper IMAX formatting, lol.

 

[MeatHookGekko]

If playing it safe grants more sequels,
what do you think those sequels will be?
More playing it safe, more of the same,
this franchise is a yawn fest after 2.

Lots of Alien Isolation fans out there. Probably some Alien Isolation fans in this thread even. I'm happy for them. If I see something that doesn't vibe for me, but others really enjoy it, I'm happy for them at least. Then I can recalibrate and decide to stop following a series. If you want out at this point, you want out, no one is stopping you dude.

Alvarez made Romulus for 80 million. Which in today's climate, is extremely lean for a sci fi/horror film coming from a legacy IP. Give him more budget, he'll make you a bigger more expansive movie.

But you've already decided you are out. Good luck to you with other franchises. Last thing, if you watch the next Alien film down the pipe in the near future, after you've said you are tired of the same old/same old, what does that say about your convictions? Do what you want dude.

 

[abake]

Can someone explain the logic of the first 20 minutes to me:

She's served her time and all she wants to do is get off world... 5 minutes later they all grab a ship and go off world - couldn't they have just done that at any point and ****** off to wherever they wanted to? Do they have proximity detonators in their heads or something? I'm completely baffled.

And I'm hoping there's a reason why an android is acting like he has a mental disability? Has he been programmed that way to be more sympathetic - or is he just written that way for audience sympathy?

Turned it off, and hoping for some clarity before bothering to continue.

Unless I'm not understanding you, I think you have to pay more attention...

She did her time, but the company screwed her and forced her to stay longer to complete her contract.
They can't just go to another planet, because they need cryo-tubes to make the long journey, That's why they go to the station, to get the cryo-tubes (or the fuel for them).
As for the Android, it was damaged and Rain's father fixed it the best he could, but it was still not 100% functional.
It's all explained with a minimum of exposition, actually.

 

[Johnny Utah]

Watched it again in 4K. Fantastic film, but I HATE that ****** Bjorn.

 

[abake]

I disagree.

Ridley Scott and Tony Scott have always wanted to do a series of films centered around The Book Of Enoch. Except many would feel that kind of storyline would carry too much of an anti-Christian sentiment. The Scott brothers were told to leave it alone. They persisted. Then Tony Scott "committed suicide". If you do a high level complex prestige version of the Book Of Enoch story, you won't find someone to distribute it. Now that the current industry is splitting into major separate camps over Israel/Palestine, I don't see how it has any future pathway period.

Ridley Scott should have written Prometheus himself. It's his story, his lore, his universe, he should have written it so it was a story done his way. Instead his abuse of Jon Spaihts created a lot of private backlash towards him. Talented people don't want to deal with that kind of chaos and drama, even if it's to work with a legendary director. He didn't just burn out one good writer, he created a situation where other skilled writers would just avoid him. And if Scott wants to make a film that says God doesn't exist and those that still believe are foolish and sheepish, he should just have made that film and not tried to mix it into the Alien lore.

Scott fumbled the bag. This is all on him. He's lost the Alien franchise, it's been effectively taken out of his hands, he's only around in name only, because he kept losing money trying to fulfill his vision. What happened on Prometheus was unforgivable down the line. It wasn't just Scott's career at stake with that film. Many other people worked on that film and had to carry that anchor around their neck, against their career potential, to eat Scott's failures.

Will I say it? OK, I will. Ridley Scott has to come to terms that the films he really wants to make will alienate a large share of the American movie going audience. You can't just keep prodding poor white rural Christian America. Even if you don't agree with them. Even if you look down on them.

Uhm... so, do you work in the industry? Or where do you get all this insider info from?
Just curious.
Are you implying that there was some foul play in Tony Scott's death? That he didn't commit suicide?

As for Prometheus, I really liked the new direction it was taking the franchise in, I thought it opened ground for some really interesting ideas. There were just small-ish things in the script that bothered me; like the fact that the immediately find the ruins they're looking for in such a vast planet, or the silly biologist who wants to pet an unknown alien creature, or how silly Vickers' death seemed. But none of that is unforgivable.
Covenant tried to make a course correction, and while I really enjoy the movie, the last third is a bit silly. I still can't get over the shower scene. Not having Noomi Rapace also hurt the movie, IMHO. Although David is a great antagonist/protagonist.

 

[chrisstbh]

Watched it again in 4K. Fantastic film, but I HATE that ****** Bjorn.

I don't think you're supposed to like him.

 

[Johnny Utah]

I don't think you're supposed to like him.

 

[Nick D]

Lots of Alien Isolation fans out there. Probably some Alien Isolation fans in this thread even. I'm happy for them. If I see something that doesn't vibe for me, but others really enjoy it, I'm happy for them at least. Then I can recalibrate and decide to stop following a series. If you want out at this point, you want out, no one is stopping you dude.

Alvarez made Romulus for 80 million. Which in today's climate, is extremely lean for a sci fi/horror film coming from a legacy IP. Give him more budget, he'll make you a bigger more expansive movie.

But you've already decided you are out. Good luck to you with other franchises. Last thing, if you watch the next Alien film down the pipe in the near future, after you've said you are tired of the same old/same old, what does that say about your convictions? Do what you want dude.

I didn’t even know this film was releasing,
I didn’t go to the cinema to view it.
I didn’t view a trailer for this, I went in as blind as possible.

I’ve never even seen Prometheus, Covenant or Resurrection because I tend to have the ability to spot bad films and direction from a mile away just from the trailer or actors cast.
A director doesn’t get me interested in a film, they can only do so much.

Of course I was going to watch the AVP films simply because it was two of some of my favorite creatures in science fiction going head to head. I watched Freddy vs Jason for the same reason yet I know the vast majority of those films are garbage in every conceivable way.

So therefore it isn’t like I set out to hate it before viewing, I knew nothing about it,
until I saw it.. and realized he just wanted to make a love letter to the original film and nothing more. What’s the point of this film?

I do however know Alien and Aliens, those are cinematic masterpieces and I’m forever grateful to at least have those, they’re all I need from the lore.
I’ve liked the Xenomorph and Predator since I was a child, so why exhaust that with redundancy?

The amount of bad Terminator films put me off of the IP for some time, until I eventually completely forgot those existed and only put fresh eyes on the original and its sequel.