Written by Alvarez and collaborator Rodo Sayagues, Alien: Romulus tells a story set between the first two films, beginning with the wreckage of the Nostromo floating through space as a crew we don’t know investigates the area, eventually finding the creature expelled from the shuttle by Ripley at the end of the first film, making the mistake of bringing it aboard. From there, we move to a colony inhabited by Weyland-Yutani workers and meet Rain (Spaeny), a young woman whose parents died from mining-related illnesses, and whose only companion is the synthetic Andy (Jonsson), reprogrammed to always prioritise her well-being. Believing her contract with the corporation is about to end, allowing her to leave the colony, Rain is shocked to learn that the agreement has been extended, meaning she must stay for several more years.
It’s then that her ex-boyfriend Tyler (Renaux) reveals the existence of an old, decommissioned ship in orbit around the planet, with cryogenic chambers that could enable the escape of a group that also includes his sister Kay (Merced), his cousin Bjorn (Fearn), and Bjorn’s girlfriend Navarro (Wu).
Production designer Naaman Marshall crafts a landscape that looks like absolute hell, all whilst maintaining the aesthetic of the originals. Every piece of equipment has large, buttons and systems that load user photos slowly. Ships, tools, and weapons display dirty, old, and irregular surfaces. The colony-planet is depicted as an industrial nightmare, where life is cheap and the workers live in darkness, and exhaustion, under constant threat of illness or death.
Alvarez and cinematographer Galo Olivares have learned from the originals that horror is often heightened by what we don’t see, plunging parts of the sets into heavy shadows. The filmmaker also brings new ideas to the franchise, such as the terrifying X-ray image and the zero-gravity sequence. The sound design is also flawless, opting for silence at key moments.
If I have any criticisms, it’s that apart from Rain and Andy, the rest of the group feels a bit one-dimensional, though an extended cut on Blu-Ray could potentially address this. Despite this, every actor delivers an outstanding performance, with special mention to David Jonsson, who masterfully adjusts Andy’s character throughout the film without losing its essence.
This is the best Alien instalment in nearly 40 years, although your enjoyment may hinge on how you feel about the use of CGI to resurrect a dead actor. However, it is worth noting they had full permission from his widow, who loved and thought her husband would be happy with the result.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️