Alien: Romulus has the darkness and tension of the alien and its spawn crawling around the station that is the last hope for an orphan crew! It is the bridge between the first two Alien films, Alien (1979) which established the haunted house spaceship horror, and the sci fi military action of Aliens (1986). The movies are most beloved by fans, but the series continued with Alien 3 (1992), Alien Resurrection (1997), and crossover with Alien vs. Predator. Director Ridley Scott who launched the fanchise with Alien brought two prequels, Prometheus (2012) that dealt with the ancient Engineers and Alien: Covenant (2017). What may have unraveled the Alien films is that it isn’t the Alien itself or the world, but the trapped, innocent survivors.
The writer and director, Fede Alvarez, is able to accomplish that feat, develop the Alien story, and give respectful nods to the entire series! Alvarez is also the director and writer of the thriller, Don’t Breathe (2016). The film’s co-writer is Rodo Sayagues who also worked with Alvarez on the horror “re-imagining”, Evil Dead (2013). The beginning has the darkness of space with stars and a ship comes out of it. We peer into the window of the ship, Echo Probe 203, and the ship's computer flashes awake, MU/TH/UR-0001. The Nostromo's computer was referred to as "Mother." It locates that it is in the Zeti Reticuli system, the locastion of the first Alien. The simple graphics and bulky technology look like it is out of the first movie.
The ship moves into the ghostly wreckage of what looks like the Nostromo. A large fragment is taken into the bay of the ship. Only the strings of Benjamin Wallfisch's score is heard. I recall that he co-composed Blade Runner 2049 (2017). The probe silently returns on its course. The black, obsidian-like object is lowered on chains to a platform lit by red. Lasers cut into the fragment and it is raised by chains. A crew with face-less , shielded helmets and yellow unfiroms bring in the fragment. A strange Frankenstein-like discovery. Underneath the mass is an almost familiar bio-mechanical shape! A haunting chorus is heard from Wallisch's score like in 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968). It is of the Xenomorph almost curled in a fetal position. The last we saw of the Xenomorph, spoiler!, was that it was sent off into space by Ripley.
Next, we get an orange, setting sun and a mountainous landscape, a woman, Rain (Cailee Spaeny) sits with her eyes closed. This year, Spaeny was also brillant as the war time photographer, Jessie, in the dystopia drama, Civil War. She awakens from her dream in a bunk lit by red lights with a loudspeaker alerting owrkers. The constant rain falling outside the window blinds. Rain joins her childhood companion, Andy (David Jonsson), makes dad jokes about a claustrophobic astronaut. Andy sees Rain is troubled so he shares some jokes and he says she laughed at them when she was 12. He is simple like a child. Jonsson was in the financial dramatic series, Industry. They join the crowd of miners moving through the rain-soaked, night streets of the colony.
The visuals are incredible. The cinematographer is Galo Olivares who also worked on the horror movie, Gretel & Hansel (2020). A setting notes that it is Jackson's Star Mining Colony, 65 Light Years from Earth, with no daylight. Rain has Andy stay outside as she enters the Office of Colony Affairs. She tells the Wayland Yutani Officer (Rosie Ede) that her parents had did and she only has her brother. Her request to transfer to the planet Yvaga is seen on the screen as quota met, and the officer asks about her parents. Rain says they died from lung disease. The officer denies her transfer and Rain’s mining contract is extended five to six years! She turns to see a group of 10-year old punks beating up Andy! He drips milk-like fluid from his battered mouth, an android like the Synthetic Ash in Alien!
Rain checks the memory slot on the Andy’s neck. Then, Rain gets a message on her wrist device, a meeting with her ex-boyfriend Tyler (Archie Renaux). Malyen Oretsv was played by Renaux in the fantasy show, Shadow and Bone. They meet some young miners working in a shipyard including Bjorn (Spike Fearn) is his cousin. Fearn starred in the teen drama, Tell Me Everything, as Louis. Also, Bjorn’s girlfriend, Navarro (Aileen Wu). This is Wu’s first film. Tyler calls to Andy from the ship, the Corbelan IV, making a joke about a blind miner. There is a photo of the group of friends. Rain sees Tyler's sister Kay (Isabela Merced). Also this year, Merced was Anya Corazon, in one of my favorites, the supernatural thriller, Madame Web. They have found a beacon from an abandoned ship. The plan is to find the cryo pods that will enable them to travel to Yvaga. I like the group of young people like the Lost Boys of Peter Pan, but also the teens entering the haunted house. The contrast of the innocent boy like Pinocchio is great with Andy in comparison with Ash from the first movie and the selfless Bishop in Aliens.
Since Andy is made by Weyland Yutani, they can get access to the cryo units. Rain doesn't want to send her brother by himself. Bjorn says Andy was found in the trash and Rain leaves with Andy. Tyler runs out to apologize and says that it is their only chance. Rain sees the miners bring in cages of birds. He promieses that she can stay on the ship. Navarro stars up the ship. Rain buckles in Andy. The Corbelan IV's engines blast them skywards. It is a rough ride to break atmo, rain lashes the ship, there are wipers on Navarro's cockpit window, and then they hurtles into space. Jackson's Star Colony is a dark world covered by sooty clouds with red, volanic veins, a ring around the planet and a orange glow of the star. Rain holds up her hand as the blinding light fills the ship. She closes her eyes and then says Yuvaga has an incredible sunset. Andy says, "I can't wait to see it with you."
The crew talks about Yuvaga and then the sun's light fades. It is blocked by what Rain is not a ship. A station like a child's spinning toy is on their approach. Navarro sets the Corbelan IV to match the station's roll. They have 36 hours before the station crashes! Rain checks on Andy who says, "I have just one directive, do what's best for Rain." She hugs him. Andy is lowered to the by and walks into a corridor with Tyler and Bjorn who suit up in miner's masks and jackets. The ship docks with the station. Tyler opens the hatch and Andy puts his finger into a security access port on a panel. They have cameras to relay their feed back to the ship. An iris hatch opens and they crawl in through a narrow hatch. A dead rat hangs in the zero-g. They reach a room of floating debris, Tyler tosses a red flare into the eeriely room of floating debris. He floats into the room and Bjorn follows spinning.
Tyler has found the cyro pods. Then, the gravity generators activate and Bjorn falls. Tyler activates the system, MU/TH/UR 9000, and activates the power. The gravity generators acxtivate and then a cryo pod rises up. Bjorn takes off his mask with the restored gravity and oxygen. He discovers that the cryo pod has only has fuel for 3.20 years. Travel to Yuvaga takes 9 years. Bjorn uses his scanner to find what might be a cryo depot on the station. He is angry at Andy and pushes him back and on board the ship, Rain wonders at his behavior. Navarro explains last cycle, Bjorn lost his mother when a Synthetic sealed off a mine with a gas leak. She is busy moving the ship so that the cryo pods can be ejected into the hangar. Similar to what we saw with the Xenomorph. Kay runs to the toilet to vomit, Rain runs over to her, as Navarro goes to check the cryo pods.
Asteroid with Xenomorph prop, El Capitan Theater, author’s photo.
Rain realizes that Kay is pregnant, but Kay doesn't want her brother to know. Navarro has her hands on the cryo pods and has her eyes closed almost blissful. Tyler announces to Navarro the airlock to rendevous with the ship. The corridor they walk down activates a recording for the Renaissance Space Station. It is explained that it is divided into two parts, Romulus and Remus, there is a bronze plaque that shows the legendary founders of Rome. Bjorn confronts Andy and he says he likes the term, “artificial person.” Closeup of Rain watching the conversation. Tyler talks to Andy and says that the company will eventually decommission him. Kay points out that Rain didn’t tell Andy what would happen to him. She has tears in her eyes. This is the fascinating point of what is “real” in terms of AI and artificial persons like Andy.
Andy holds up his hand as the Corbelan IV’s lights fill the window as the ship comes into dock. The others reach a lab, the flashlight goes past a nasty tendril hanging out of a beaker. Bjorn finds a cattle prod which he shows a threat to Andy. Suddenly, Andy grabs his arm and pulls him forward! He had almost stepped back into a hole in the floor! Then, they see a fallen android with its lower half ripped apart. The Synthetic has a blue jumpsuit just like Ash in the first Alien. The trio continue on to a cryo chamber. Andy again uses his finger to unlock the door. The chamber is half filled with water and Tyler manages to find cryo pods that has five days of fuel. Bjorn walks over to help Tyler pull the cyro pods free. The door suddenly closes, the room is flooded by red lights, and a blaring alarm with the emergency lock down! Andy tries to open the door, but it reads, “Contact Science Officer.” The three try to force open the door.
On a console in the lab there is a diagram of a Facehugger! The station doors open for Navarro and Rain. They enter the Genetics Lab and Rain checks on the synthetic. She explains to Navarro that she wants to try to transfer its credentials to Andy. Inside the Cryo Chamber, a console reads, Specimens Collected: 36! Andy examines the specimens that are suspended in large plates. Rain is working to get to the Synthetic’s access port and Navarro says it is getting hotter. The temperature on the specimens is going up!, they are wakening! Navarro picks up an X-Ray Torch device. She presses it against her arm to see her bones revealed. Rain’s arm is grabbed! Navarro runs out to pull the chip free from it! Rain shows the chip to Tyler and hands it through the narrow crack in the door. He puts the chip into Andy who suddenly seizes up and his eyes go white! He is frozen while rebooting and then the Facehugger Aliens drop into the water!
Five+ Cryo Pods out of Five!
#AlienRomulus, #FedeAlvarez, #RodoSayagues, #CaileeSpaeny, #DavidJonsson, #IsabelaMerced, #ArchieRenaux, #SpikeFearn, #AileenWu, #RosieEde
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