“Alien: Romulus” is a solid standalone horror film but its reliance on callbacks makes it feel unoriginal and forgettable.
Released 45 years after the original on Aug. 16, Romulus marks the ninth film in the franchise. This sci-fi horror thriller film was directed by Fede Alvarez and has a runtime of 119 minutes (about 2 hours). It is rated R for bloody violent content and language.
The film follows a group of young space explorers as they search an abandoned space station for more cryofuel. The group hoped to retrieve the cryofuel in order to make the long journey to a distant planet and begin a new life. Despite many warning signs that something terrible has happened at the station, the group continues searching. Before long, the titular character is unleashed, and the group must fight to survive.
“Alien: Romulus” shines in terms of the technical aspects such as cinematography, practical effects, set design and sound. Director of photography, Galo Olivares, creates so much tension by using dramatic irony at times. Certain shots show the audience an incoming threat while the characters are clueless to it in another part of the room. Lighting is also used effectively in the sets. The aliens are often hidden in the dark to add to the suspense and horror. The practical effects also add to the horror. Practical creatures and miniature animatronics were used as much as possible in the movie. Visual effects or CGI were still used beneficially, but the practical effects were the most horrifying. A new alien creature was introduced in the film and was played by Robert Bobroczkyi, a 7-foot-7 basketball player. The body suit Bobroczkyi wore was the scariest part of the film, and the way he slowly stalked the characters could not have been replicated with visual effects. The set design is another strong point of the film. The spaceships, space stations and mining colonies are well designed and futuristic, adding to the sci-fi experience. As the aliens slowly infiltrate these sets, their environments completely change and give the film a new atmosphere. Lastly, the sound design adds to the immersion. The sounds of spaceships taking off and landing alongside the gunfire and explosions sound incredible, especially in a theater. Although the technical aspects in “Alien: Romulus” are great, the film falls short in character development, originality and narrative structure.
From the first act, the characters we followed were barely introduced. Their motives are not clearly outlined, which makes them hard to follow and cheer for throughout the film. Even as they are slowly picked off one by one, it’s hard to feel anything for them. For fans of the franchise, there are plenty of callbacks and fan service sprinkled in. This works because its similar structure is what made some of the other films beloved. However, it also comes off as unoriginal and forgettable when compared to the rest of the franchise. This is the same case for the plot. “Alien: Romulus” doesn’t take many risks, which leads to a predictable ending. The third act is the strongest part of the whole film, but still ends just like one would expect.
Overall, “Alien: Romulus” is still a good sci-fi and horror film respectively. Fans of the franchise will enjoy it for the callbacks and fan service, but its predictable plot structure and lack of character development make it seem forgettable in the long run.
