Alien: Romulus - Review - The Best Alien Movie Made in the 21st Century

[@knutraoulsamny7453]

The sound design is incredible. Proper loud! The pulse rifle firing is the best pulse rifle I've seen and heard in any Alien-movie. The scene where the mine hauler is ascending to Romulus is how you make tense space travel in movies :)

[@Don_Piscatella]

Yes loved that scene too! Wish we got more scenes with the pulse rifle in action!

[@jmil843]

It was made for 80 million and it was GORGEOUS!

[@thefilmeffect6089]

Except one element…de-aging. There were so many better ways to accomplish that scene. It was unnecessary altogether, but if you’re going to do it, I would much rather an animatronic or puppet.

[@jmil843]

@@thefilmeffect6089 yeah the CGI android was trash I agree

[@s.e.sportscards]

Any film that cost over 100 million dollars is money laundering at that point and anybody that wants to clap back on that or tell me I'm an idiot you need to understand that most people don't understand the concept of 1 million they don't they don't we're not conditioned for that especially as Americans your condition to understand about 100,000 is no more no less they don't want you to know no more but it's money laundering operation I would say anything about 90 million

[@hashvendetta7226]

There are so many bad shots in this movie its embarrassing. Corny camera movements and dutch angles. This movie is the equivalent of alien resurrection. People are smokin crack saying this is a great movie. In a year, nobody will remember this.

[@zbigniewiksinski]

@@hashvendetta7226 rotfl what are you on dude? there are tons of beautiful shots, lighting and setting, resurrection has nothing on romulus. it will be remembered as best alien since alien2.

[@tfcabral]

The estate of Ian Holm is thanked in the credits: his digital reconstruction was explicitly sanctioned by the family.

[@KrystleLovesHorror]

I was going to add comment as well! Heard that Fede reached out to Ian’s estate first and spoke to his wife about doing this in the movie. It was kinda sad because she said Ian felt like Hollywood blacklisted him after The Hobbit and would have LOVED to do this film. He supposedly showed his family the movie before it came out even, so he did his due diligence, and I’m sure his family really appreciated it. ☺️

[@alberto5147]

It's still wrong.

[@ziggy8253]

The best “Alien” sequel since “Aliens” (1986).

[@alberto5147]

Nope. You're wrong.

[@gothofalltrades9942]

My husband and I went yesterday. It is AMAZING , A perfect bridge to the story timeline ❤❤❤

[@branmuffin411]

I saw it last night. What an absolute dogsh*t of a movie. It was so bad I seriously wanted to kill myself right there in the theatre. I’m not joking. I will never watch another Alien movie.

[@perlitalaguna6622]

I just came out of the theatres with my son. We loved this movie! At first I thought: why a buch of young 20-years-old aboard this ship? The movie explains it. They are mine workers forced to accrue a number of hours (takes yeeeeaaaars and the corporation keeps moving the goal-post) before they can request a transfer to travel. They see the older, worn-out adults working their lives away....and they never seen the sun. So they do what most young adults do. Escape to an abandoned decommisioned ship. So they can fly away. Man, I absolutely enjoyed the dynamic of the lead female and her brother. I rooted for all characters except for the annoying, immature "cousin". We wanted him to die first. Maybe its bc he picked on the lead's brother. Anyway, it was a really good movie....there were two scenes where we all (audience) clapped and cheered out loud. My son hollered out: Gangster!

[@margaretwood152]

5:55 You're *_"Rooting ƒor"_*_ BURKE!?_ That typical *_Corporate SLlMEBALL (?)_* (* Most oƒ us were hoping Hicks & Hudson gave him the *_Bastård of Bølton_*_ treatment_ ) (** sTaR wArS is beyond broken now #SoloLostMoney )

[@margaretwood152]

Hmmmm...... 5:55 You're *_"Rooting ƒor"_*_ BURKE!?_ That typical *_Corporate SLlMEBALL (?)_* (* Most oƒ us were hoping Hicks & Hudson gave him the *_Bastård of Bølton_*_ treatment_ ) (** sTaR wArS is beyond broken now #SoloLostMoney )

[@sfyie]

I am gonna watch it next Friday as it is releasing in India. Thankyou for praising. Fede is my favourite director

[@cac1504]

The android Andy is great.

[@RobertWF42]

I also thought whoa, all the main characters are children getting murdered by aliens -- that's pretty messed up. Plus they stole a spaceship and flew into orbit and none of the adults on the planet gave a crap. I assumed they're all orphans living on their wits. Then again, most of the slasher films going back to the 70s feature a teenaged cast of characters. And movies like Goonies or E.T. from the 80s are about kids doing crazy, reckless shit. This is no different.

[@Crocheful]

Disagreed a lot with this review unfortunately. For me, the excitement of seeing callbacks are when they feel earned and not relied on. When they are present to aid the consistency of the world building I’m all for it. I also thought the premise was actually good. Gave you a sympathetic reason for all the characters to be in this position.

[@ronthorn3]

I mean I agree, but man, at the end of the day, it’s a fuckin movie man, it’s not real life. I feel like people forget sometimes that movies are meant for entertainment.

[@Crocheful]

@@ronthorn3 yeah I totally 100% agree. This movie entertained the shit out of me. As does alien resurrection which I think I wayyyyyyy worse.

[@xain86k70]

Callbacks, by their very definition, are not earned lol. It's fine if you enjoyed it, but an easter egg cheapens any movie and openly acknowledges that the film is in fact, not reality. Which kinda sucks if you're looking for immersion.

[@Crocheful]

@@xain86k70 I can understand some the more on the nose callbacks (like a certain one liner towards the end of the film) being moments that take you out of the film, even if there aren’t a lot of them. But I still disagree heavily and the reason why is the film doesn’t rely on stuff like that every step of the way. The film stands alone well enough on its story, characters, effects and tension alone. Also most of the callbacks I noticed were subtle and related to the environment that the characters were in, actually enhancing the immersiveness by maintaining the consistency of the world building that was so masterfully done in the first 2 alien films.

[@bsmith6646]

​@@ronthorn3this response seems to be wheeled out by many. I think most realise that it's a movie. We go because we hope to be entertained and if it's not, it's fine for people to say

[@kaycuz9402]

god damn people are being hard on this movie. ive been waiting years to see aliens tearing shit up in gruesome fashion again. this blows prometheus and that other one away. i thought it was a thrilling and tense ride. it delivered on all fronts and is easily the best since the first 2

[@robertwilson9528]

Xenos didn't do much. They were cannon fodder again

[@Fiorwestcoast]

@@robertwilson9528 exactly the xenos didn't do much. And then we had the black goo and engineer/resurrection ending. Huge yikes

[@BloodDjimon614]

It's a pretty good film, but when you're comparing it to arguably 2 of the top 5 science fiction films of all time, it doesn't stand out enough, has has a few to may flaws to be spoken about in the same breath.

[@curiositytax9360]

It just sounds like fan service for dork people

[@kaycuz9402]

@@robertwilson9528 sorry were they supposed to fold thier laundry or something?

[@Pupeyes]

What I loved the most was the big swing in the final act. That was actually surprising and awesome. I’ll add, I didn’t like how they reused the b!tch line. Sigourney improvised that line

[@sfyie]

It is releasing here in india next Friday. Thankyou for liking it. Fede is my favourite director

[@robertwilson9528]

I disagree. It was a horrible ending. Almost shot for shot copied from another bad sequel in the series. It didn't work in that one, didn't work in this one

[@Pupeyes]

@@robertwilson9528 speak for yourself

[@BloodDjimon614]

​@@robertwilson9528 although I don't agree that it was a miss, I do agree that it was a bit to similar composition wise with what you're referring to. The design and body horror elements work, but the execution felt a bit copy paste as well as rushed. Honestly, the design was so off putting, on a good way, that itself would have worked for its own film.

[@Fiorwestcoast]

It wasn't a big swing. It was Ridley forcing the goo Prometheus nonsense again.

[@russeljimmies3899]

What a treat - I just walked out of the theater and saw this video was uploaded 9 minutes ago! I agree this film was carried by the visuals, but God DAMN were they spectacular. Watching this in a packed Dolby Atmos theater was just a jaw dropping spectable and that’s what cinema is all about. Although I think you’re reaching too hard with the hate for Bjorn (a villain you hate is a good villain in my opinion and there are plenty of douchebags like Bjorn walking about the real world), I do dearly wish the characters were built up better so the awe-inspiring visuals would be punctuated harder with some type of emotional investment. 7/10 would watch again

[@sfyie]

I love fede! It is releasing next Friday here in india. Can't wait! Thankyou for liking it!

[@brendankane1190]

I just got out the theater, i liked the Orphan of Kos at the end, but Andy the Android's transformation reminded me too much of Homer Simpson having the crayon removed from his nose and becoming clever. Agree with you James on the lack of emotional connection between audience and characters, although my thought while watching was that Tatyana Maslani in the lead could have won the audience over more (despite the disaster crap-fest that was She-Hulk)

[@jacketernity4609]

I won't get to see this for a couple more days so I thank you good sir for the spoiler free section. Great review as always!

[@franklinrogers6388]

I'm not sure if it's better than Prometheus, that's what I've been struggling with. I think I need more watches and time but it was fantastic. I will say it took years and multiple watches to fully appreciate the brilliance of Prometheus but I was immediately wowed with Romulus.

[@xain86k70]

Even though at the time, i didn't realise that the "Bitch" line was taken from Aliens, it still felt goofy and a bit cringy in Romulus, like what are we even doing here?

[@Crocheful]

Resurrection over Romulus is wild

[@hashvendetta7226]

It's 100% correct

[@Crocheful]

@@hashvendetta7226 resurrection is quite ass

[@hashvendetta7226]

@@Crocheful yes it is

[@salomaonplanetsaturn]

Just left the movie theatre. 5 minutes ago. I LOVED everything till the second ending. Whoever seen it , knows what I mean. 👻 Loved the Android character and main lady Rain ,+ her "boyfriend" Movie looks gorgeous. Right now it's my third favourite aliens movie. Maybe it's Recency bias. But when Android said THE LINE. I loved it. I know it was a key jungling. But it was done perfectly , especially after such a badass moment. But the second ending .... I don't know , I think it was a mistake. 8/10 strong. Once again , thank you for review. You are my only movie "friend". With whom I compare my movie opinions. My wife and circle of friends , are more into serious drama and history. Thank you again 🦾 Set pieces with a silent walk around facehuggers , pulse rifle making a mess, floating acid, elevator shaft action. All were superb in my opinion. The birth of an alien and acid kill was great. Ian Holm 🫠 CGI was bad.

[@salomaonplanetsaturn]

Yes. I hated "baby" in resurrection and here. Although in Romulus, after the main lady (Rain) killed it. There was a beautiful open space sequence near the asteroid belt. I think... I hated design of a "baby" in both movies 😔

[@ryanzod6986]

This felt like a Dead Space movie with Xenomorphs. All it was missing was Issac Clark. I loved it.

[@nevskislake]

Excellent review, James! Thank you. Have a great weekend.

[@buzzfunk]

I like it but didnt love it. I maybe too old tho. Grew up with the original Alien. Hard to top that. One critic: The xenos seemed so small. What was up with that? Not tall enough. I didn't think they were threatening at all. And after all that talk about using practical effects they *spoiler*........F**** up the deepfake of you know who. I mean dont they see the cross eyes? People were lol in my screening. I also felt that Fede held back. Gore wise it was so so. I felt they couldve gone further....

[@robertwilson9528]

​@@TomBegemanit was the worst cgi I've ever seen

[@miki_ross]

Don’t worry at all, sport. For sure you are going to get multiple standard and luxury 8k Blu-ray deepfake restoration/rebuild versions, so you can enjoy this lack of creativity movie. I liked it, but the same way I like $500 job after 2 years of unemployment

[@miki_ross]

@@robertwilson9528it’s amazing how they waste millions in tech and they still did this

[@cac1504]

Those who swear by the Alien and Aliens must understand that the current generation of movie goers down not give a damn shit about the original two. No offence.

[@robertwilson9528]

@@miki_ross yeah, this shit was trash

[@he-tiny-man]

It’s clear that Alvarez is a good director and delivers when the material is good, however the script here is not very good, and yes all the call-backs and familiar beats made me furious. They made the movie feel very risk-averse and middle-of-the-road. I thought the characters Rain and especially Andy were the best thing in the film, but even their relationship felt under-cooked. When at one point one of them returns to save the other, I did not believe that character decision at all. On the plus-side, production design and the overall look of the film is very good, and whenever Alvarez dares to do something original that doesn’t feel like ”playing the hits” the film briefly soars. A missed opportunity for sure. However, if Alvarez gets to do another one, I will be there to see it, hoping he’s pushed, storywise, into genuinely original territory there.

[@blacktoad28]

This is by far the most in line with the tone, writing, and atmosphere set by the first two. The rest of the films don't even compare, and most of those are just bad. This easily makes top 3 for me

[@geekinwithJamesHancock]

My ranking: Alien, Aliens, Alien: Resurrection, Alien 3, Alien: Romulus, Prometheus, Alien: Covenant, Alien vs. Predator, Alien vs. Predator: Requiem

[@sarahharris2729]

the only right answer.

[@ziggy8253]

the only wrong answer.

[@Sayerservante]

Mine is #1 Aliens; #2 Alien; #3 Alien: Romulus; #4 a tie between Prometheus and Alien: Resurrection; #5 Alien: Covenant; #6 AvP; #7 Alien 3; #8 AvP: Requiem

[@travisspazz1624]

Alien Aliens Covenant Prometheus Alien3 AVP AVPR Haven't seen Resurrection LOL

[@themtgdude486]

Really enjoyed it. 8/10 for me.

[@JacobCorenthose]

The cinematographic style of this film, as well as the marriage of practical effects with CGI (a rarity in modern cinema) are the reasons to see this. Obviously it doesn't touch the OG film when it comes to atmosphere, but it's the most atmospheric Alien flick in over 20 years. I was fine with the risk it took in the third act. If anything, it should have taken *more* risks. There's a moment in an elevator shaft towards the end where a small part of me thought it might do something risky, but it didn't. This was fine. A little too Force Awakens/Halloween 2018/Jurassic World for my taste. Still, it's an improvement over Alien: Covenant

[@TheHomefront32]

How could AvP be so low on your list is beyond me.

[@JordansMortalKombatAdven-xn3qo]

I loved this movie, is it as great as alien and aliens, hell no it isn’t however, I think it’s greatly superior to just about anything else in the franchise and comes in 3rd in my personal alien franchise ranking.

[@drawnhere]

The sound was amazing throughout. Saw it in IMAX.

[@Calinks]

Star Trek after seeing the end of this video: "What am I? Chopped liver?"

[@curtmega]

I checked out the moment you said “unlikable characters”. Absolutely lazy critique. That’s purely a subjective perspective, and really has no merit on whether or not the actual film delivers on the promise of its premise.

[@TheAerovons]

No comparison between the crew of this film and aliens or alien… it’s like the adults let kids make a film

[@meckleemu]

Not lazy critique, just accurate.

[@bsmith6646]

Come on, they were terrible

[@cac1504]

Alien Romulus is better than any of the 2024 movies so far. Worth the ticket price. Go watch it in cinema.

[@TJ_ax]

Dune Part 2??

[@lighthousefilms5530]

Yeah no, Dune Part Two is the king

[@travisspazz1624]

Disappointment of the year for me. Both Zendaya movies blow this out of the water LOL.

[@mrrictus]

That hybrid looked to be inspired by SCP-096 LOL

[@ziggy8253]

James, I reject any “Alien: Romulus” slander. Look, I got three reasons why the movie is truly great: 1) It’s a remarkably well-made film from start to finish. 2) Cailee Spaeny 3) Cailee Spaeny

[@whoknew2273]

Why watch this film when you can watch the original

[@ghostwolf1435]

1. Meh 2. Meh 3. Meh

[@jimbob8992]

Seeing this morning. I knew full well it probably wouldn't reach the heights of the first films. But I'm glad it's good, if not great.

[@edudario1974]

I watched Romulus a couple hours ago. Loved it, although I think a couple things didn't look good at all. Which is a shame, because the rest of the movie looks beautiful to me. I understand the ending ( and that creature) but it' s very controversial. I was comoletely sucked into the movie. It succeeded completely in immersing me into thet word. And that is one of the reasons why movies exist. I'm not disappointed.

[@scallywag0088]

Let's face it just a good alien movie is a massive achievement at this point. The franchise was on life support.

[@ThwipThwipBoom]

For real. The last time anything about Alien made me excited was the xenomorph being added to Dead By Daylight lol

[@Fiorwestcoast]

And the black goo and the engineer at the end officially ended it

[@VHBEngines]

Everything that exploded in movies back then was done the same way visually because the lack of special effects. It's super plausible to have large chunks of wreckage. Also this movie is clearly targeting young adults. Ya know ppl in their 20's. Most of which haven't watched the og that came out thirty years before their birth. And while finding the xeno in the wreckage tweaks the story a bit I still think it's the best possible way to explain how the alien got into this story. Also seems like it was in some kind of cacoon, not rock. no doubt the company was specifically looking for the xeno which also helps explain how they managed to find something that small floatin about

[@DenkyManner]

Cripes, hadn't considered Disney now own Alien. Break Disney up! The post-mortem cameo is vile, it should be illegal. And I agree 1000% about the easter egg call backs. I instantly lose all faith and respect for a project that does that. I know I'm not watching a sincere piece of art any more, but a cynical product. It's what they call in wrestling a cheap pop, the marks cheer when something they recognise is mentioned.

[@baraka99]

All style no substance. As a alien fan I rate this movie quite low. High rating for practical effects and set design and sound engineering and direction of photography.

[@fullcircleessentials]

Thanku so much for your review. The Ash/Bishop/Rook synthetic was crazy and off. They should've had a totally different synthetic. Leave it to Disney. The Andy parts were good. Kay turned out to be hard head/stubborn. Kay's baby hybrid engineer was off😂🤣. The room of face huggers was funny. Reminded me of a ride at Disneyland (the movements) lol. Yes they tried to take pieces from the originals and put it in this movie. ALIEN original/Sigourney Weaver all time best.

[@thewatcheruatu5491]

Your weird. Your the first person i heard that puts Alien Resurrection at 3rd place. How could you!?! You need to make a review video that can help me understand you.

[@b.a.carroll2111]

James I caught a screening of Cuckoo this weekend and though it wasn’t entirely original either it helped me get over the problems of Romulus

[@charlescumming9019]

I only watched the non spoiler section. But James you are on fire in this video! So good.

[@Fiorwestcoast]

Yeah I don't think the film will age well

[@SeekingGodsWill]

I finished Romulus. Pros: Cailee Spaeny is incredible in this. The Robot does a nice job, every call back they do works for me, from reused lines to neat little dialogue to visuals on the screen. Incredible and good Ending for my taste. After seeing Prometheus, It's as if Fede had the same thought as me. And brought those thoughts to life in the ending. Awesome ending I cannot overstate that. Cons: Not enough Science and tech. All the science and industry stuff is dumbed down. You know moments in a movie where you're like It sounds smart but you don't fully understand it. Like Interstellar or Star Trek or Oppenheimer. They don't even attempt to sound smart here, which I thought was bad. None of the deaths were good or shocking or in most cases earned. Possibly the worst deaths of any Alien movie. Paper Thin Story, I was like what is the bigger picture here. It all happened for zero reason and doesn't connect to any of the other movies in regard to plot of moving the Alien Universe story along or taking it anywhere. Overall, the movie is worth watching, as there are some moments than genuinely had me on the edge of my seat. It is well made and a good movie. My Favorite parts of any Alien Movie are the quiet moments learning about the setting and scene where everything is hunky dory and no threat. I like when the focus is on the people and the mission and the mission itself. In Romulus it does some of what I like, but not very well. Literally every single other Alien movie got that part better for my taste. Prometheus and Alien 1, and in the David Moments Covenant and Aliens specifically are exactly what I mean. I want that or more. This movie doesn't satiate my thirst to know more about any aspect of the Alien Universe from the Aliens or the Weyland Yutani perspective. Extremely Forgettable. The story also is baffling at least 2 times. I had that Damn that's so dumb and convenient feeling. Moments that happen only because someone wrote it on paper, not real or believable. I am not at all disappointed with the movie. I thought it was well done, and a decent movie. Strong 7.7/10 from me. Certain things that either happened or did not happen held it back from being scored higher. Would Recommend for Alien Fans or for Slasher fans or Space Horror fans. Some cool space stuff in this one. Watching your review now James. Thank you for making this Video. I am still thinking about the movie and want to see it again!

[@sfyie]

I love fede! It is releasing next Friday here in India. Can't wait!Thankyou for liking it!

[@91lifetime23]

“Get away from her … you bitch” worst line in the movie, whoever green lit this quote should be fired

[@CounterT007]

I liked it a lot. Alvarez did the franchise right! Well done

[@sfyie]

I love fede! It is releasing next Friday here in India. Can't wait. Thankyou for liking it!

[@travisspazz1624]

I don't like any Fede Alvarez movies at this point LOL.

[@CounterT007]

@@travisspazz1624 well, lucky for us it’s a free country

[@SirMillz]

Ian Homes' family granted permission.

[@YnotNomis]

Very much a tribute to the first 4 Alien movie and I loved it. And It the closest of any of the Alien sequels that look like Ridley Scott (circa 1979) actually directed it.

[@adriandenton6637]

Sorry James, just got back. It's a terrible movie, not one original idea, not scary and scenes straight out of video games. I was actually bored. It was clearly made for 15 year olds that have never seen an Alien film in the style of The Force Awakens. I genuinly can't wait to forget it. I'd give it 3/10 for the Bladerunner style beginning and the visuals.

[@wenzer2001]

I prefer Calvin to the Zenomorph by far. I would love to see a sequel or two to Life.

[@xtomvideo]

I agree the characters were not likeable enough to the point where you cared if they made it out or not and there were a few not so great moments. I think the hybrid thing just stole time that could have been spent on more Alien tension/scares but I suppose they want to make a mark with something new. It was decent but I would rank the the first 3 movies better.

[@krsj5124]

I'm like 90% with you. Def a greatest hits set piece frankenstein. I enjoyed the on planet stuff because it was more original. As soon as we blast off its just Alien: Homage

[@samfrito]

Its probably as efficient as a movie can be these days. The idea of pieces of the Nostromo being intact does scream convenient, but i guess if you have to build out from that idea thats a little easier than the engineer. I loved it for delivering tension and quality editing. Kay should not have been on this mission, but thats a gripe i can shake until i watch it again.

[@strangetenderness]

i agree, i support the risk he took with the hybrid. i loved the scene in the lab where the rat was morphed with the alien, kinda looked like it was inspired by the Thing. but the execution of it really bummed me out. maybe i would have liked it more if they kept it lurking in the shadows a bit more and didn’t show so much of it. i just fuckin hated its head shape and face. we couldn’t get a cool looking skull? we just got slender man? i’m not ok.

[@DrDetfink]

Visually stunning. The 2 lead protagonists had chemistry and that’s something Covenant never had. However the constant self referencing made me think 1/4th of the dialogue was written by Ash’s “twitchy” ancestor chatGPT. Apparently the studio doesn’t want to pay HR Giger’s family more royalties because the “final form” took me out of the film. It just didn’t fit. I did like the zero G scene. Rain actually outsmarted the Xenomorphs While no one can top Ellen Ripley, Rain was a pretty decent character and there were stakes. Ummmm….maybe 5th place in the Alien franchise ranking. The self referencing dialogue prevented it from being higher.

[@tjk3430]

It exceeded my expectations. I was on the edge of my seat especially the last half hr. The space scenery was beautiful & I loved the sets. Spaeny was good, Jonsson stole the show. I only saw the first teaser trailer beforehand so went in mostly blind. (Spoilers) I also did not like the choice to use uncanny valley Ian Holm. Why not use a new actor & avoid risking our sense of immersion? They thanked the estate of Ian Holm in the credits. The "get away from her you bitch" also bothered me, unnecessary callback. Those are my only nitpicks worth mentioning. It was gorey & slimy as hell. Kay got the worst death out of anyone imo. Bring on Alien: Remus!

[@nickhtk6285]

Finally got to see it. The recycled dialogue drove me nuts so was thankful there was a fourth act because Id have been a bit pissed if that was how it ended. Thought the leads were excellent and the writers could easily have cut some action to spend time with them and more of the crew. Really enjoyed how the planet scenes were a heavy flavour of Blade Runner. Kind of like a hopeless off world colony. Also felt there was a lot of influence from Alien Isolation. How cool is that?

[@sarahharris2729]

I thought I saw a plastic origami figurines on the dash board of the ship they took to Romulus. They reminded me of blade runner which has a premise about androids and humanisation.

[@Tazradore]

I adored this movie its scenes absolutely breathtaking. The play on sound at the beginning and those middle and end scenes in space were amazing. And the ending of the movie was crazy and unexpected can’t wait to find out more about that thing and what’s to come next.

[@IuliusPsicofactum]

I am sure Fede Alvarez would have loved to make something extremelly new and creative. And the writers too. But the studio must have said: THIS NEEDS A MINIMUM OF 30% FAN SERVICE OR WE'LL KILL YOU AND YOU'LL END UP DOING EDGY COOL STUFF WITH BLOMKAMP

[@AaronBowley]

i liked this video immediately when you ranked it better than those avp films but became hesitant when approaching resurrection and 3, top tier video already i must say!

[@blair5plus1]

Totally onboard your starship with praises & criticisms. Mr Robservations had very similar concerns. One of my favourite scenes that was creepy as hell along the lines of ‘less is more’ was when you could see in the background 2 dead human bodies being dragged away down a corridor. The mere strength to do this and the grisly purpose/intent made me shiver…cinematic gold 🤓😍

[@dmolmalowski]

Aliens, alien and then romulus for me

[@Gorgutsforcongress]

You rate alien resurrection way too highly. I feel.

[@blackstacie_ibe]

Resurrection and Alien 3 are the best ones

[@musicmann1967]

I'm with you on the "call backs" to earlier films, but I think general audiences like that kind of thing. Not us film geeks. We're kinda picky! haha

[@ziggy8253]

“Civil War” is officially out of my Top Ten of 2024, kicked off my list by another Cailee Spaeny film: “Alien: Romulus.” 👑#1. Dune: Part Two 🥈#2. Alien: Romulus 🥉#3. Oddity Hitman Inside Out 2 Kill Love Lies Bleeding Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga Challengers Late Night with the Devil

[@hsd]

I am 100% sure the studio told him to put that line in there. It reminds me of the newer Halloween movies. I liked where they were going about the evil moving to another person, but the studio got scared and was like no, no, no. It has to end with Jason.

[@christ1904]

I did really enjoy it but when I left the cinema I couldn’t help think of that line from tropic thunder… Never go full resurrection. I really did not dig that ending!

[@zoap1050]

I've heard the wreckage complaint a lot from different reviewers, it's only there to be able to show the name of the ship to let the audience know what's going on, the movie wouldn't change if the wreckage wasn't there, it's a weird nitpick imo And the facehugger Tyler/Kay scene, would you really not talk to and help your sister if she said she was locked in an airlock with a monster? He does stuff for his sister in disregard for his own safety the entire movie.

[@WilliamtheWilliam718]

For $80M this movie was stunning. The premise was good but as stated in this review Im tired of people making poor choices in amoment that will get them killed(when he spoke to his baby mama while surrounded by Face huggers). The recycled lines to me say you dont trust your movie enough for it to stand on its own. The connection to Prometheus/Covenant was well played even though I never get why they never play up the "SCIENCE" in the Science fiction. Using the Macguffin that was in the aforementioned movies that makes a return in the fourth act was good on its face but too similar to Prometheus and Resurrection. All in all it was a 7 out of 10. I definitely would place it at 5 in the Alien movies as Ressurection was more entertaining for me and Alien 3 had too many good actors/performances.

[@cac1504]

Imagine those Marvel movies are so expensive yet very disappointing.

[@Nicholas_Chen_]

Isn't it crazy we had 5 Alien films made in the 21st century, which outnumbers the 4 in the 20th 😅

[@v.h.rodriguez7997]

BTW, just finished reading NECROTEK, a pulp Sci-Fi novel by Jonathan Maberry. The logline is AT THE MOUNTAINS OF MADNESS meets VOLTRON. The characters are scientists and soldiers on a space station in the near future. The bad news: It is the first book of a planned trilogy, and the other two aren't published yet. The good news: If you are looking for something that has the intensity and feel of ALIENS (without directly borrowing the ideas and dialog from ALIENS), this is for you. 8.5 out of 10.

[@vecna2502]

My guess is.. okay, if Im making a movie, and its an Alien movie, the world knows what to expect already. What they dont know, however, is what to expect from me. Fede Alvarez might thought of something like that. I mean, who wouldnt want to put his signature on the thing he made. Its his baby. Well, not entirely, of course. But you know what I mean.

[@kylejackson7913]

It annoys me so much that people put the original movies on such a high pedestal that they think stupid decision don't exist in those movies. Also since when are we judging how good a movie is by how many dumb decisions there are. With Alien Romulus it's a less enjoyable movie because there's dumb decisions that aren't even dumb if you put thought into it but for some reason the original movies aren't in the conversation? This is why I can't take the discourse within fandoms seriously.

[@lighthousefilms5530]

I haven't seen it, but I gotta say, this sounds like a very pretty but completely hollow experience.

[@guillemiami]

Hi man, just to note that the character that you hate so much (Bjorn) is a (SPOIL ALERT HERE, DON NOT READ IF YOU HAVEN'T SEEN THE MOVIE YET) traumatized kid/very young man, who suffered a tremendous loss because of a robot decision. That is explained very early in the film.

[@CB-qg3yh]

Just saw it. It was so close to glory. The "cameo" and the callbacks made me want to puke, but i very much enjoyed everything else. Solid 7/10 for me

[@tonylhs]

Bjorn 😂 was so annoying. I agree

[@TruculentRuminavi]

yikes it was impossible to satisfy you no matter what they did. Unless they purposely put characteristics you personally like in them.

[@gamedotfilm3929]

I gave it 3.5/5 to start but man I want to lower it. The cringe callbacks are too hard to ignore. Andy just shorts out to help the plot go along. And it's like the movie is telling us AI is saving the day

[@CZJames20]

Think you´re being too harsh on this film and have some really huge ass nostalgia goggles for Alien and Aliens. To the point where you´re trying to hunt for things to dislike here, just so nothing can touch your perfect 2 masterpieces.

[@kaycuz9402]

@@CZJames20 exactly. This reviewer came off hostile toward it like dude Relax. I'm a massive alien fan and after prometheus and covenant did nothing for me I have been waiting for an alien film just like this that goes back to its roots

[@talkingthetalk3640]

​@@kaycuz9402 omg dorks obsessed with Alien franchise are upset at a slightly negative review. Repeat to yourselves: It's only a movie.

[@kaycuz9402]

@@talkingthetalk3640 who's upset lol. Maybe take your own advice. Its only a comment. You're going to be okay

[@Fiorwestcoast]

@@kaycuz9402 Nothing in the film makes sense. Nostromo wreckage was vaporized because of the factory holding mineral ore. Big chap alien doesn't produce face huggers. The Droid is a dead actor that looks like shit. The woman injecting herself with a substance she doesn't know makes 0 sense. The ending is Ridley Scott forcing the black goo to retcon the Queen for the third time. The good is the xenos and acting. The rest is all aesthetics made to be the force awakens of the Alien franchise

[@kaycuz9402]

@@Fiorwestcoast you're right you convinced me. What was I thinking . I hate it now. Thanks

[@BloodDjimon614]

It was good, but it could have been great with a few tweaks. A better score, slightly less action and better dialog for the characters would have put it over the top. There wasn't any breathing room and it felt like a constant rush to the end. The 2 main characters were great but the entire rest of the cast felt even more expendable and less developed than Alien 3's. If you watch Alien or Aliens for the first time, you leave the theater and know the names of all the characters. I barely remember the names if the leads in Romulus.

[@amcaesar]

I’m gonna see it regardless of this mixed review, what does that say of my tastes?

[@cac1504]

Better than all the 2024 movies so far. Worth the ticket price.

[@CZJames20]

He´s being way too critical, it´s a great watch. Enjoy

[@travisspazz1624]

It felt like a hodgepodge of other, better Alien movies. Kills were underwhelming, resurrecting Ian Holm with horrible cgi felt icky, and none of the characters were remotely as interesting as David and Ripley. The prequels are messy but at least they tried something different. And the backburster in Covenant owns any kill in this movie. Romulus just felt very monotonous to me.

[@MarvynSyn999]

New Sub here! The Ian Holm Android didn't bother me at all because (I think) he was supposed to be the same model as Ashe, therefore he would have looked just like Original Ashe. The same as in the end of Alien 3 when we don't know if that's Bishop's creator, or another Bishop Android (Bishop was a later "New and Improved" Android)...at least I THINK it's all supposed to fit that way...lol, it's the way I justified the whole thing. I was bothered more by the "Get away from her you BITCH" Call-Back TBH. The human/alien hybrid was terrifying to me. Especially when it was behind the smoke and you just caught glimpses of it. It did feel like it was a "THIS is how it should have looked in Resurrection" moment, but I didn't mind it. I also felt this one was the best Sequel since Aliens, and they finally gave the Xeno that "Big Chap" Look. Oh, and Cailee Spaeny was ridiculously HOT. The face of an Angel. Bright Future indeed!

[@Khultan]

Too much praise is given to actress Sigourney Weaver. Her luster fell off beginning with alien3 and alien: resurrection. There's no need to follow her example. Cailee Spaeny or any other female cast in a lead role doesn't need to have Sigourney Weaver as a model. She should have bowed out on that messy cash grab alien3 especially leaving behind Hicks and Newt. I agree with your criticism about uncalled for callbacks.

[@decimustv4257]

This movie took a lot from Alien Isolation, the computer game.

[@76063co2]

I agree. My only real complaint is how recycled this movie is. I was enjoying the 1st act, but once we met the uncanny valley CGI of a dead actor, it was just a constant beat-down of fan service with old lines and the re-purpose of the climax from "Resurrection", which I have hated for 26 yrs.. Be your own movie!! BTW, I really liked your rankings, aside from I would place Resurrection at the bottom of my list. It doesn't tonally fit with the franchise, and feels like a parody of Aliens to me. Feels like a cash grab and makes me mad to this day.

[@dannyfarr]

Saw it in IMAX. Rook drove me nuts too...😢

[@dmolmalowski]

Thought the two main characters are strong

[@gongal]

creativity is dead

[@Botothe.e]

Dune and Blade Runner franchises are both 2 for 2

[@gordoncutter9241]

Thanks for saving me the ticket price. I was pretty confident in knowing what this movie was going to be when I saw all the trailers. Good now to have confirmation. Fede Alvarez appears to want to become David Fincher, minus any of the actual, you know, talent and intellect. So the closest he can come to that actualization is by trying to recreate Fincher's entire filmography and career arc, albeit in shit form. Don't Breathe is an idiot's version of Panic Room. He basically killed the American Dragoon Tattoo franchise on the second hurdle, after Fincher's opener. And now he's doing his Alien film, like Fincher did obviously. Except, as much as I don't particularly like Alien 3, it is at least an interesting failure - and it now looks like an absolute masterpiece when compared to what sounds like this film.

[@Keifferbot]

It needed more aliens....didnt like that white alien at the end, but best movie ive seen on imax

[@Fiorwestcoast]

That ending was far too Prometheus and covenant. It isn't sitting well with me. That was all Ridley I guarantee you

[@rainmaker2338]

It was very Alien, it's fitting thematically for a project Weyland lied about the safety of was the ultimate final villain

[@cac1504]

​@@rainmaker2338it has to be that way. You cannot possibly kill all the aliens or the entire cast to leave no room for sequel - business consideration.

[@Fiorwestcoast]

@@rainmaker2338 nah plot wise yes. The creature itself and the black goo was all Ridley Scott putting his crap back into the franchise after almost ending it.

[@RobertWF42]

My problem with Bjorn wasn't so much his character but the way he delivered his lines -- I couldn't understand half the things he said. Too much mumbling. I guess it was his accent? There was a scene where Bjorn, Taylor, and Rain are talking about bringing Andy with them to the planet (or leaving him behind?), but I couldn't figure out what the hell they were saying.

[@ghostwolf1435]

Going early Saturday can’t wait I’ve been itching for a decent Alien movie 🍿 ** Edit ** Having just seen this my jaw hit the floor how much this film relies on Copy / Paste of Alien and Aliens The first Thirty Minutes were compelling then the whole thing goes off the rails Laughably Bad Memberberries doesn’t make a good film Love Fan Service when it’s done well this isn’t the one I’m seriously Disappointed by it

[@v.h.rodriguez7997]

Number nine... number nine... number nine.... I'm glad it wasn't terrible. I'm planning to see it tomorrow afternoon.

[@mr.jack0039]

I think James is in a very generous mood. or suffer like big fans of series do … of denial : > Movie is so baffling to me. So many unforced errors. I won’t spoil. Let me see movie unfortunately doesnt reach heights of weakest of the 4th installemtns in the 90s. Amazing how that work is beyond the reach.

[@barrettkeathley6985]

No sigourney weaver I thought she'd be back somhow

[@caroldoms4064]

The bar was pretty low for the best Alien movie in the 21st century. You had Prometheus (2012) and Alien: Covenant (2017). Honestly, I stopped watching after Alien 3....