The Problem With Alien: Covenant

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In this very special installment of Nightmare Masterclass, I rail against what I perceive as a flawed but entertaining movie, Alien: Covenant. I'd generally prefer not to use this platform as a means to shit on great artists, and I certainly don't intend to dismiss Ridley Scott as a director. His body of work speaks for itself. Blade Runner’s a classic, and Alien continues to be a genre defining work in the realm of sci-fi horror. Many films have used it as a template, but all have failed in really capturing the foreboding suspense of the original. Scott is not only a great director. His work is the bedrock of this genre. But in the case of Alien: Covenant, I personally feel that a discussion is merited via a vis where this thing went wrong. It's something that has been lingering in the back of my head since I saw the film last weekend. Don't get me wrong. It was an enjoyable movie going experience. But there's one major problem with this film that's really sticking in my craw.
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[@projecta]

I only cared about Walter.... Ridley keeps sending dummies into space.

[@rodster6campingprepper]

Characters with no depth or development, killing the xenomorphs within five minutes of them being born which makes them seem little threat. By far the worst problem though is that by over explaining and connecting everything in such silly and convoluted ways they are shrinking the universe and detracting from what made the original Alien so good.

[@stopthephilosophicalzombie9017]

Exactly. There appears to be a generational shift towards hyper-exposition where everything has to be explained and spoon fed to audiences. Just compare the way Prometheus and Covenant hammered you over the head with exposition, and the spare beauty and mystery of Alien and you'll see why these new films will be instantly forgotten. The whole point of science-fiction horror is to tap into our fear of the unknown and mysterious. Alien did that in a way that may never be possible on film again, due to the retarded way Hollywood does things now and how stupid audiences are not to demand better films.

[@rodster6campingprepper]

Just look at all the 'explained' videos on youtube that come out for every movie now. People do seem to need everything spooon fed to them.

[@darkridge]

Ridley Scott directs a genre-defining movie in the 70's which is beloved by fans. Then he decides to go back and make a series of terrible prequels many years later. I get the feeling that he's subscribed to the George Lucas method of career suicide.

[@mercenaryknight5419]

Bullshit on George Lucas, he kicked ass at the Prequels, better than this shit. Also, you clearly have not seen the Sequel Trilogy, doofus.

[@darkridge]

@@mercenaryknight5419 Just because the sequel trilogy is god-awful and unwatchable, doesn't mean the prequels are any less shitty.

[@diddoinarow8846]

The difference is that George Lucas was passionate about Star Wars and the prequel movies, and he had a flawed but clear vision to his projects, since he basically kickstarted the whole saga from his fantasy . Ridley Scott didn't really had a coherent tought or vision for the story, look at how disjointed Prometheus and Covenant are with each other and with the original movie. The first Alien was a fantastic movie, but It wasn't from Ridley's creativity, he just cooperated with other creative people

[@arjundexter309]

Pro trick: watch series at Flixzone. Me and my gf have been using them for watching loads of movies these days.

[@rubenbrixton620]

@Arjun Dexter Yea, I've been watching on flixzone for since november myself :D

[@numbers9to0]

Neutrino burst... "The neutrino is so named because it is electrically neutral ... neutrinos typically pass through normal matter unimpeded and undetected." :)

[@stopthephilosophicalzombie9017]

That shit bothered me also. Why in fuck couldn't they use the correct gamma-ray burst? It bothered me much more that Prometheus took a crap on 150 years of evolutionary science, so there wasn't much this film could do to undo that damage to the plot devices, but at least they could have gotten the rest of the science right. The first Alien film was almost perfect with respect to science, and that plausibility was part of what made it such a classic.

[@mikezbr]

ö. . , i know the neutrino thing grates on me everything I hear it!

[@neglesaks]

Yep. For a neutrino burst to harm a ship, you'd needto be quite near a supernova, since that the only thing (apart from a neuron star collision) that produces enough to knock out anything. Neutrinos are so weakly interacting that they (can) pass through the earth without touching any of the atoms in the planet. Thus you's need a monster wave of them to do anything to a ship - and if it can do that, it can fry the crew as well, of course. Also, a few hours later, the supernova blastwave itself will swat it away like a mosquito.

[@INMATE2468]

The Triggerati gamma ray bursts are extremely rare. It would have been even less believable.

[@stopthephilosophicalzombie9017]

They are rare, but no more rare than or as utterly inconsequential as a neutrino burst would be. Besides, science fiction runs on rare events, but to be plausible there should be some basis in reality. Neutrino bursts would not work the way they are portrayed in the film.

[@snakeenjoyingacanofbeans5219]

There are so many problems with this movie it should be part of a class on how to ruin things

[@ryangettig274]

And how to evoke Jason X by accident:)

[@jwsmith53]

Ridley Scott just made his first slasher film. The Aliens are now just Jason Vorhees with acid blood.

[@edsmith1757]

Ridley Scott 's cardinal sin is listening to Prometheus reviews and in effort to placate us he abandons what I thought was a fantastic concept if flawed story . think of all the great movies and their directors and they had one thing in common Fearlessness knowing it might not hit straight away but it will be remembered . 2001 a space Odyssey and his own blade runner are classic examples of being hard to understand but multiple viewings reveal a masterpiece could Alien covenant be uttered in the same breath, no because Scott abandoned his fear , and instead of continuing on in around the Cape Horn he takes the easy route on the Mississipi. Ridley Scott reminds me of the prize fighter who got the fright of his life and just wants the easy way out of his career.

[@hwoarangthedoorbell]

For all of Ridley Scott's transcendent talent in set design and striking visuals, he's shown absurdly poor taste in screenplays in the last decade: Robin Hood, The Counselor, Exodus: Gods and Kings, etc. I think the reason Alien: Covenant repeats most of the mistakes of Prometheus is because Scott just does not know a genuinely good script from a piece of garbage. It's no accident that his only generally well-received movie in the '10s , The Martian, is a movie written by Drew Goddard. Ridley Scott needs to be paired with a reliable screenwriter. Otherwise, he's basically the Ron Burgundy of directors: shooting literally anything that's on the script without regard for if it's good for his film or makes any sense whatsoever.

[@NightmareMasterclass]

I essentially agree with you. Though I wonder if there are other factors at play. I'd like to think after all these years, Scott knows a good script when he reads one.

[@stevenirizarry1304]

Nightmare Masterclass disagree...film critics know a good script when they see one...ridley Scott knows a functional script when he sees one...there is a difference film criticism and filmmaking...one studies the script and one sees what he can do with it

[@stevehirjak7824]

The Martian was also boring and predictable. It felt like readers of the book liked it best because your mind filled in all of the difficulties and cleverness of the main character. As someone coming in clean, I was bored as the story jumped to each new milestone with no feeling of suspense.

[@kris6038]

Scott also didn't write Alien. An important detail.

[@narutov4]

I think he basically did a Activision process where they quickly start developing the next product before they let the first to plateau out and know where to go from there. People started to realize and appreciate Prometheus after they understood that Prometheus was a different story hence the title. But he decided to go with what fans were saying right after Prometheus came out. Didn't look at what fans were saying about the movie 2 yrs later and covenant is what we got. This is the problem that we have today, the next product is rushed into without giving a break to see how it plays out.

[@Nemesis_T_Type]

Ridley Scott destroyed the Alien lore. I can't believe AvP has more respect on the Alien lore than the original creator.

[@adamduffield7782]

But Scott wasnt the original creator, he was purely a director, the story and script was the work of Dan O'bannon and the xenomorph was created by HR Giger. Dont get me wrong Scott did a great job of directing the 1st film. But to say it's his idea is wrong

[@steampunker7]

For me the major failing of Covenant, and the one that ultimately did kill it for me, was the stupidity of the characters. Every choice they make, every action they undertook, seemed to fly in the face of the very mission they seemed to have signed up for. To wit, Covenant is a colony ship. It is packed to the gills with thousands of lives, helpless in hyper sleep, all of whom only agreed to do so because they were expecting to wake up on a new world that had been properly surveyed and checked out and build a new society. ANYTHING that threatened, delayed, or otherwise put that into jeopardy should have been at the top of the crew's list to avoid. This includes: - Stopping at another planet they know little about. - Going down to said planet they know little about without protective gear. - Putting the ship into any form of danger while around said planet (Looking at you Tennessee.) - Bringing anything back from said planet (including themselves) without full quarantine and decontamination procedures enforced. Why? Because these aren't Space Truckers or Marines. They aren't going to get a second chance at just running home if things go tits up. Space is dangerous. New worlds are dangerous. Absolutely EVERYTHING out there is trying to kill you. One rogue microbe can literally wipe out your entire operation and if anyone should be keenly aware of that and keeping it in the back of their heads for every decision they make it should be the people making a one way trip to a new colony world. If the ship had been damaged in some way and couldn't continue it might have provided some justification for them choosing to set up shop on that stopover world. If the crew was just a single survey or scout team I could have bought their more cavalier attitude. Hell, if the film had been set on the Covenant itself, maybe finding Shaw's ship adrift with Doctor Davidstein on board then having a Xenomorph get loose, that could of worked because now the crew can't fall back on the "blow up the ship" plan from the first Alien movie. Now the colonists become something they have to protect and any mistakes they make in desperation or fear carry some actual weight. As it stands though all the events of Covenant could have been avoided by one person piping up saying "Huh. That mysterious signal is kind of weird and I know everyone's kind of twitchy about going back into hypersleep after what happened. But considering we have the lives of an entire population in our hands its probably best if we just send a message back home to let someone else deal with that then suck it up and get back in the tubes so we can deliver these colonists to the planet we know has been checked out and cleared for settlement." Even Captain "Let me stick my face over this weird pod thing the android I have no reason to trust at this point wants me to" would have had a hard time arguing that point. But nope. The crew of the Covenant just bumbles along they are a bunch of weekend vacationers with nothing more important in their trunk than a case of beer deciding that the hotel they were heading to is just too far away and they'll stop at a closer hotel that just happens to be near a family run meatpacking plant. The protomorphs I can forgive. The stilted dialog I can forgive. David's delusions of godhood, him creating the Xenomorphs and the absolutely telegraphed "twist" at the end I can forgive. But when your entire plot runs on your characters making bad decisions they should know better than to? Sorry Ridley but I think it might be time to take a refresher course in basic screenwriting.

[@jneilson7568]

You gave this film far more thought than the people with millions of dollars to waste did. Excellent ways to fix it 🙂! If only...

[@happyspaceinvader508]

For me, the major problem is that this is a science fiction movie based entirely on pseudoscience. Creationism, von Däniken-ism, the complete misrepresentation of Evolutionary Biology theory, portraying scientists as panicky, reckless, bumbling idiots. That's what broke the 4th wall and wrenched me out of the movie, right from the very first scene.

[@ourevilone]

Prometheus was better and I really blame the Alien fans who needed a remake of Aliens or something, then Scott took this too much to heart and we lost the wonder and mystery that Prometheus succeeded at. THANKS Alien fans >.>

[@ourevilone]

so many people bitched we didnt see xenomorphs in Prometheus. That really annoyed me because I enjoyed more of the themes on how man was created.

[@hyper-thermal]

I liked the movie, but the criticism here is spot on. The only really tense parts of the movie were, for me, the sequence involving the first person being "infected", and a lot of the more subtle, character driven scenes in regards to David. His character is the personality equivalent of the "uncanny valley", where he has motivations, logic, and emotions like a human, but there's something very off about these aspects that makes it clear he isn't human at all. This really helps make him a more compelling character, because you know he is up to something in every scene, you know he isn't giving the full picture in his dialogue, and it helps exude this sense of the characters being plotted against. The xenomorphs being the direct cause of his actions is really demystifying, and cheapens the iconic monster to feeling like part of a checklist, but there is merit to the idea of David continuing the cycle demonstrated by the Engineers making humans, and then humans making androids. Instead of directly breeding the xenomorphs, what I think would've worked better was if David put his efforts into "grooming" the byproducts of the virus into his own image, in a sense. This is where the fleshy xenomorphs could've come into play, and would make that scenes where he is trying to communicate with one feel less out of place and more like a parallel to the film's opening scene.

[@stopthephilosophicalzombie9017]

Movies these days don't give the audience any credit. The exposition is too heavy handed, too much nonsense is given time on screen to 'keep us busy' and really stupid characters always make mistakes that are just beyond belief for veteran professionals. The very notion of going into an alien environment without contamination concerns is too retarded for words, and could be easily remedied by a tear in a suit, or something plausible. In Alien, none of the characters were so offensively and obscenely dumb, and Sigourney Weaver was downright brilliant. In Prometheus and in Covenant I couldn't give a *shit* about any of the characters, let alone the leads. Daniels made a token protest to going to the planet, but that was her only redeeming plot point. Otherwise totally generic and unimpressive. Also not nearly as attractive as Sigourney Weaver or even Noomi Rapace.

[@OrbitZombie]

The biggest flaw of these 2 films is making humans central to all the events in the story. Engineers created humans, humans created David, David created Xenomorphs. By making the Space Jockeys into humanoids (instead grotesque cyborgs with living technology like it was implied in the very first film) and having them be responsible for all life on Earth you take away all the mystery and fear associated with them. The Space Jockey was fused to his chair, and his ship had bone-like structures and looked fossilized like the Jockey very biomechanical, classic Giger imagery and themes, come Prometheus they're just buff pale humans in flight suits.

[@stopthephilosophicalzombie9017]

+OrbitZombie Thanks for bringing up the mystery of the jockey from the first film. That was one of the great mysteries that lent atmosphere to Alien. I agree completely that Damon Lindelof ruined everything.

[@FrostedSeagull]

I like your Comment OrbitZombie, QUESTION - Who created the Predators? The Space Jockey - is a brilliant double-entende. You can use your imagination, or not, regarding the Space Jockey. the remaining question is WHO really made the Engineers .... and No . . . it was not David.

[@Timo_420]

Frosted i belive the Predators are a natual species

[@ionthegravity2]

A simple explanation for the origin of the Xenomorphs; the Predators paid the Engineers to create the ultimate lifeform for them to hunt. The Derelict ship from the first movie was seeding the planet to be a Predator hunting ground and crashed. Boom. Simple.

[@nickpeluso7511]

Should have tied Prometheus into Alien directly and case closed. Would have satisfied fans and done better box office. But they scrapped that idea and went off course. This movie negates the engineers in Prometheus and doesn't explain the eggs in the bomb ship in first Alien movie. Confuses things

[@syntaxed2]

I always thougth the "bomb ship" in Alien was some sort of...maternity ward. Like someone was trying to breed these things. Cuz there are better ways to kill than dropping eggs, so I assume the core reason is something else.

[@deadschooled]

Exactly

[@wilsonyap2619]

I totally agree with everything you said!! I was somewhat disappointed with the mvoie and how everything I loved to fear about this whole series is based one a crazy unhappy android. I would have been very happy not knowing too much about the origins of the Xenomorph. One of the most intriguing things about it is the mystery behind it's origins. That kept me going back and longing for more Ripley. Now I know it's all about David and how he just hated humans and the Xenomorph is just a GMO alien! Damn!! Just my opinion.

[@NightmareMasterclass]

Yet another reason to avoid GMO products! Lol, jk. I eat GMO shit all day.

[@Elitesolider1023]

Should have just been completely the engineers themselves that modified the xenomorph since a what they are not a f****** robot it completely destroys the foreign biomechanical mysterious feeling of the creatures so Ridley Scott can definitely have a heart attack and die for all I care what an asshole best franchises completely better off without him.

[@skylarkdemello6980]

It also throws off the fact that Xenomorph eggs are inside an engineer ship in Alien

[@LordPrometheous]

Every time I see a Neomorph, I can't help think of it as a giant raw chicken alien. "Run, everybody! It's the Salmonellamorph!"

[@thomassmart4088]

Dark Horse AVP comics are the true universe... Ridley Scott has pulled a 'Lucas' on everyone.

[@NightmareMasterclass]

+Thomas Smart Never read the comics. What's a good starting point?

[@thomassmart4088]

ah its a mish-mash for a timeline ... some gems there though - personal favorite is 'Aliens - Genocide' ... new comic series 'Fire and Stone' and 'Life and Death' are pretty good too.

[@NightmareMasterclass]

+Thomas Smart Nice, thanks!

[@DreamwalkerFilms]

Correction: Ridley Scott has pulled a "Abrams/Kennedy" on everyone.

[@thomassmart4088]

@@DreamwalkerFilms more an update

[@bloodswarms]

I hated Alien Covenant. I loved Prometheus. So, that's where I come from. I wanted Elizabeth Shaw to be the next generation of Ripley. I wanted Shaw to be an entire story of her own. I wanted the Engineers. I wanted so much. What I got was a hollow movie. The 'sexy shower alien kill' scene in the end put the nail in the coffin for me. The franchise is done for me.

[@Kinghenhog39]

bloodswarms Exactly!! I would have loved a continuation of that great sci fi movie but he had to listen to the haters and completely back pedal away from that enthralling story. And yes Naomi Rapace was a GREAT lead and did her Ripley like character justice how are you just gonna shishkabob her off screen like nothing. Can u imagine if Aliens killed Ripley off screen. Shoulda listened to the fans and himself and follow his own vision for this new epic. But instead we got a run of the mill horror sci fi blend sprinkled with its former greatness.

[@deadschooled]

There's like 5 thing wrong with the shower scene. .. 😓

[@christofelmalik4240]

Exactly dude, the prometheus ending make me exciting and wondering what next?? And after i watch alien covenant, i deeply dissapoint, i am really angry at that time.

[@peterhall7230]

christofel malik Prometheus sucked. Alien covenant is way better because at least this one had xenomorphs or protomorphs or whatever

[@DraftOfTheology]

I totally agree. I watched the movie 3 times, and the only character I was ever able to develop any kind of emotional attachment to was Walter, mostly because his robotic tone and overall dryness made me laugh my ass off. The fact that Ridley Scott totally abandoned him to a shitty cliffhanger was very disappointing. If Scott doesn't bring him back in a later film, imma be pissed. Seriously, if the only characters in the film were Walter, Daniels, and like two others, this movie would have been so much better. Focus on character development. Make me wanna fucking cry when someone is killed off. Don't just shove a bunch of characters into a story, immediately kill them, and expect me to care about them. And the fact that Scott is trying to explain the origins of the xenomorph is the worst idea is the history of the saga. Look, it'd be one thing if he gave them a really cool and interesting origin story. It would still be a bad idea, but at least then it might add to the creature's lore in a interesting way. But no, he is literally choosing the worst possible origin story for them. Seriously, a pissed off and moody android plays with some black playdough and magically creates some eggs? He is even already contradicting his own flim Prometheus, a movie that is literally only a few years old, which clearly had a depiction of a xenomorph on the wall of the Engineer ship. If Scott seriously has to change his mind between every film as to where he wants the story to lead to, then maybe he shouldn't have even made the attempt in the first place.

[@tofuthebland]

David/Walter was not "thought-provoking" - robots turning against humanity because they don't think humans are worthy... this is not new ground in the sci-fi genre by any measure. The philosophy in this movie is pretentious and thinks it's being clever, but has been done so many times before and so much better.

[@blinkereye123]

I can't wait to get your take on Blade Runner: 2049 :).

[@NightmareMasterclass]

I can't wait to see it!

[@nyag1764]

There are a considerable number of horrific problems with this movie. As an avid lover of the Alien Franchise, I've been completely mortified by the terrible inconsistencies of both Prometheus and Alien Covenant. I'd break down all of the issues that most Alien lovers have with this movie but I'd be typing for days.

[@Praxidike100]

Thanks for so eloquently stating what's wrong with the whole idea of origins in the prequels. You're the only reviewer I've ever heard verbalize the value of Mystery in horror, and in Alien specifically.

[@BambooAcrobatVerte]

YMS said it best: the "twist" in the film was basically Ridley Scott trying to play the "I got your nose!" trick on an adult

[@feonjun]

For being a great filmmaker that he was, why did he slapped both the hardcore fans and the moviegoers alike with the lame twist ending? I walked out of the theater angry and felt incomplete. Ridley Scott's defenders have pointed out his philosophical approach to both Prometheus and now Covenant. They coordinated their defense of Ridley by pointing to his other body of work that maybe could fill in Covenant's potholes. There's a reason why the term "Cult Classic" exists in the movie industry; a movie that sucked but have a subculture following. A moviegoer and the causal fan do not and should not have to scour the internet for explanations. A movie should hold up on it's own. It would be pathetic if Ridley Scott was actually attempting to give us an Empire Strikes Back ending. I admit that I enjoyed 2/3 of the movie, but the shift in pacing at the end and the ending itself made me wonder if Ridley Scott is going senile.

[@wills.8662]

Feon Jun Well it wasn't really a twist ending David grabbed the knife quietly after distracting Walter from caving in his head Then cut to a different scene Then when he is telling the two crew members where the Alien is on the ship he shows an ever so slight blink once and you'll miss it smile as they get close to it.

[@feonjun]

@Will S I agree friend. The large majority of moviegoers just want closure to their movies.

[@wtxcrazydonut]

Feon Jun Yeah he's making another one, so he needed another threat. Although I liked that David is still around as he's such an interesting character, and I like myself a horror twist, it is a blatant set up for a future installment.

[@jwsmith53]

Prometheus should have taken place on the original 'Alien' planet. The Engineers should have been a backstory that could have been explored in a different franchise. This is becoming a 'George Lucas' nightmare- let's make more sequels to fix it. Not.

[@rhoadnaroahs]

As Charlie pointed out in Prometheus, David doesn't breathe air, so, how the f*ck can he play a flute or train an alien by blowing air?

[@dweliq2993]

They could travel to alien homeworld, Shaw could meet engineers and interact with them in interesting ways, xenos could be set loose on Earth but noooo instead we get this rehashed crap.

[@parmadacruz8755]

My idea for a third alien/prometheus movie is as follows: The engineers are the main characters in the movie and comes to the planet that was in the Prometheus movie. There they find Weyland inside the crashed spaceship. They have a blue elixir which they empty all over him and bring him to life. In the next part they arrive at the planet from alien covenant and find the other robot(Walter) who is david's twin.The engineers use the blue elixir and repairs him. Once awaken the engineers and Weyland get to know all the horrible things that David has done, and weyland says "we have to stop David" . They set course for origae. When they arrive,they scans all the planet,and finds the planet is full of hostile organisms except on a high mountain where they discover that there are humans inside a cave. Inside the cave they meet a herd of children, who tell that when they had lived on the planet for over ten years, they began to be attacked by Xenomorphs and all the adults died or were turned into these creatures. There were also great giants developed by someone the children calls David. The engineers get ready to wipe out all the Xenomorphs that David has created, but the great giants manage to escape with one of the engineers' spaceships. The engineers and Weyland hunts the spaceship and manage to force the spaceship down on the planet lv426.Where it start sending a distress signal. The engineers return to Origae to find David, but discover that he has escaped. In the last part we see David arriving and meeting an unknown alien species on a tropical like planet.And that makes the cliffhanger that ends the third movie.

[@Dellaluna13]

Much of your analysis reflects the thoughts I've often been expressing about this film, especially the disappointing and unnecessary origin of the alien which gnawed on me the most. Other issues- Is this film suggesting that the xenomorph we see here is a prototype, or is Ridley reimagining the creature and eggs completely? Notice how the interior of the alien ship (here and in Prometheus) is less organic than the original, while the alien is more organic, less mechanical than the original. Many scenes are rushed to get to the next scene, never allowing any anticipatory fear. Many deaths are not given much weight with the survivors, not to mention many of those characters existed just to be fodder. The alien(s) is dispatched quickly and we often see it coming....therefore, no more do we have a near-unstoppable threat lurking unseen in the periphery. The alien is not only featured in daylight, but we are even given it's POV later. We're even shown the Neomorph approaching the engineer city as well. We're not going to be scared when there's no unknown to fear, and when there's little risk when we don't care for the loss of the crew, against a creature we can easily blast away anyhow. The film introduces faith as a key element to Oram's character, then later abandons this point completely. Just as Prometheus ends by promising an upcoming meeting between Shaw and the Engineers, Covenant nips that right in the bud. And Oram recognizes David as a threat yet still he trusts him about the egg? I would have loved if the crew was given time to explore the city, where we may even get something from Oram's view about his learning the relation of the Engineers to humans. Daniels is likable enough but not very interesting. As the female lead, her comparison to Ripley will be unavoidable. Daniels never seems to go through the ringer as Ripley did, nor did Daniels have much conflict or relationship established with the rest of the crew. There was no character arc to Daniels, she emerged in the third act as the same person she was in the first. It seems as if she was introduced as a Ripley surrogate just to accommodate all the callback moments to the original Alien.

[@threethrushes]

The sophistication of the average audience in 2017 is something that old school film makers like Scott simply have not come to terms with.

[@lesserson2311]

Thanks for sharing. I was really looking for a movie rich on Shaw and David's journey into the the "horrors" of the engineers world. Big Big letdown.

[@RFSA180]

the David creator shit ruined it. as did omitting the crew toast scene and prologue

[@ryangettig274]

I've screened Ac with The Crossing&The Last Supper prologues,right between The White Room prologue&The starfield opening credits,it helps the first 65-70 minutes,cannot help the shitty acting across the boards(excludingMcBride)Nothing can save the second act....

[@yakuza01]

I would also add Ridley Scott's odd choice of showing when the creatures are coming, specially in long shots. A few examples are the neomorph approaching the temple and the xenomorph chasing after the crane at the end. This also goes for the last fight in the ship where Daniels knew too well where the creature was and let it to where she wanted it to go.

[@loskioskbears]

Ridley Scott is a filmmaker not a scientist. Hence to anyone who knows just a bit of science or is familiar with how technology works, the film just doesn't ring true. As it many early space related films, the crew are eager for the adventure to start without taking any serious precautions, like checking the atmosphere, radiation levels, scanning for lifeforms etc. They are also eager to ditch their helmets as soon as possible (helmets are a great annoyance to filmmakers, they make it difficult see the actors expressions or record their dialogue). So Ridley Scott is an old-school filmmaker. Many of the flaws in this film could have been avoided if he'd hired some science/technology consultants to advise him on the script and how space travel and technology works these days. The idea of the 'robot' turning on its master is also an old concept and fails to keep up with how we use computers and robots these days (or to project how they might work in the future). Any thoughts on this? Paul

[@threethrushes]

It is the unrealistic dialogue, and behaviour of the characters which makes one tune out. Captain Orem was given terrible dialogue and was the most stupid commander ever put in charge of people and a ship.

[@threethrushes]

I have watched a number of YT videos on Alien: Covenant and no one has mentioned the anachronistic references. 1. Firstly, this film is set in 2104 and the John Denver song which Tennessee recognises was released in 1971, 133 years earlier. It is like recognising today a popular ballad from 1884. Highly bloody unlikely, particularly considering this is a major plot device. 2. In 2104 do people still smoke tobacco? Even in 2017 the trend is for electronic cigarettes, so I doubt that the form of smoking in the latter half of the 20th century will persist into the 22nd century. 3. Do people still listen to R and B in the 22nd century? It is as if people in the 19th century imagine us in the 21st century listening to quadrilles on the gramophone. Utterly preposterous.

[@diddoinarow8846]

They smoke a lot in the first movie too tbh

[@AllThingsFilm1]

I can't say I agree on the dialogue. I've heard much worse dialogue over the years. And I don't think seeing the alien in the trailer hurt the movie either. As anyone who has seen earlier Alien films, we already know what it looks like. Where Covenant failed mostly for me was that it was trying to be too many things at once. From one direction, it was trying to expand on the Alien universe with more explanations on the origins of the Alien and its creators, the Engineers. From another direction, Scott was trying to make a horror film. In my opinion, there simply were too many characters he was trying to develop. The female that was killed by the white "neomorph" was a character that we had hardly even seen and had literally no development before we see her killed. Not to mention the fact that the build up to her death was one of the most blatant telegraphing of a kill I'd ever seen in a movie. All the time he spent showing her washing her face and toweling off, I just knew she was going to be dead in a minute. If Scott decides to make another Alien film, I just hope he sticks to horror and leaves out ramblings on its origin. I don't think it matters anymore at this point.

[@laviliterthefirst]

Remember when the queen ripped Bishop in half and tossed him to the side like shaking mud from a boot? After that why would a whatever-morph not do the same? I always thought the Morphs didn't care what is was, they kill everything that isn't them even those not of the same queen or a different kind of Morph. Idk but I think you are right Scott has just too much on his plate and I think needed to relay on the (constantly proving incompatent) New younger Hollywood crowd far too much...The new generation in all forms of entertainment have proven to be incompatent to be honest.

[@syntaxed2]

A visual director in charge of story and screenplay = Biggest problem.

[@alexjadielmaldonado8479]

I liked the first and the middle of the second act until Faris simply blow up their transport and then when David showed up. There was no mystery. The only that surprise me just a little was Shaw’s fate. Not even for a minute I doubted of David’s switch and I didn’t like how quickly they disposed of the Alien on board.

[@Kinghenhog39]

I HAD to subscribe after this video. I saw ur Blade Runner 2049 video and it was great, eloquently stated and very thought provoking analysis. But this video essay/analysis literally put into words so f***ing well the thoughts and feelings I had while watching this gorgeous and entertaining yet ultimately clumsy film. I too am a BIG fan of Prometheus (Such a dirty proclamation for some reason) and its grandiose ideas, thrilling ambiguity, and exploration of its philosophically rich sci fi themes. Esp when there's a f***ing c-section of an alien!! But I think the biggest strengths of Prometheus come from the writer Damon Lindelof (LOST co-creator) who is adept at providing extremely engrossing mystery he doesn't intend to solve right away or ever. I was looking forward to Alien: Covenant and its exploration of the engineers one the great new ideas introduced in Prometheus that actually expand the cinematic universe from just the Alien in interesting fashion. But you can feel that Scott listened to the haters way too much and didn't continue his original vision. Instead admirably but futilely tried to satiate the haters and the fans by doing a cabin in the woods space planet horror complete with stupid AF couples and a cliche shower death (which admittedly is a really cool idea being that Alien is a haunted house horror in space but much better executed and iconic than this slightly better than average horror cliche with hints of sci fi greatness). The first act was a great blend of the two genres and exactly the exciting film I wanted but then it ended up shitting all over its new exciting sci fi ideas and roots (namely no screen time for Shaw and literally blowing up the engineers and their society and andriodsplaining the Xeno's origins) and thus relying on pure cliches and really dumb chatacter motivations by the end except David and Walter who were the saving grace played by the same brilliant actor. I did enjoy the film but was left so dissapointed that Scott seemingly backpedaled away from the promise of Prometheus. So ultimately I just wanted to say THANK YOU FOR THIS VIDEO IT SUMS UP MY THOUGHTS PERFECTLY.

[@urchinvalero6529]

They need to go WAY more towards a Lovecraftian style universe in future iterations of this series.

[@bigtravis1968]

if they knew where the downed ship was why not just do a quick flyover?

[@gordonfreeman6896]

the xenomorph started to die the moment cameron introduced the queen yeah she's awesome (i bought the latest neca release) and the power loader fight was awesome. but because of the queen, the creature went from "thing that is out there and just exist, can't be reasoned with or understood" to "ah so they are like space termites"

[@blueg8731]

9:40 "It's just masturbation at this point." Yes, it is.

[@grengeg7373]

They need to stop making these alien parodies. Enough is enough

[@thomassantomartino7337]

I agree that this film was a real disappointment; but I wasn't happy with Prometheus either. It was hard for me to get any type of cohesion out of Prometheus--was is supposed to be cosmic or scary--it left me scratching my head. Covenant seemed to me to be a rehash of everything we'd already seen in the previous Alien movies--predictable monster birthing and evil androids without answering the question Prometheus raised--why DID the designers want to wipe human beings off the face of the galaxy--which was the whole reason Elizabeth Shaw wanted to go to their home world--how could they possibly provide an answer to that question now? Oh and did I mention the really stupid characters--after David murdered her man in the previous movie and almost her--she was stupid enough to repair him? He was much safer as a talking head.

[@shoresean1237]

How about an Alien film: 1 - With no W-Y in it at all; No one trying to save the poor dears 2 - No one saying how awesomely awesome hyperfect the Xenomorphs are.

[@RaikenXion]

Where does Covenant go wrong? is it when David tells the story of when he and Shaw arrived on the supposed engineer homeworld, but it never shows Shaw getting her answers from the engineers!? Because we all remember the ending of Prometheus right? when Shaw said she wanted to go on to the engineer homeworld to find out what happened with them and humans. I mean that was the ending wasnt it? or did I dream that!? Or is it that the from the half way point, the movie just focuses too much on being a straight forward horror movie, but we dont seem to be scared anymore cause most of us know what to expect, remembering the masterpiece that is ALIEN 1979. Or is it that the ending of Covenant seems to imply that David 8 has managed to grow xeno eggs from Shaw's body, and are him (and Walter) planning to use the facehugger embryos hes grown (from Shaw's body), to use with the Covenant crew to make many more xeno eggs onboard the juggernaut ship hes got, then that lands on LV-426? Are these the main problems with this movie? It seems ever since the (yet again) mixed reaction from Alien: Covenant, some people are liking Prometheus abit more now.

[@akshay_rc]

In Prometheus we get to see infant Deacon but they don't explore that in Covenant. A Xenomorph born from Human and had an Engineer as host was pretty cool idea but we instead get Neomorphs and other unwanted stuff. They even killed the Newborn earlier in the series and also Ripley which was like WTF moment.

[@alexjadielmaldonado8479]

I liked the visuals of this movie. Especially the technology on board the ship and how the Mother computer was so advanced that could track the Alien. I liked parts of the story of how and why they came to this unknown planet. I didn’t mind how much we saw the Neomorphs and Xenomorphs.

[@l0rd_breeigo-sama954]

I really liked the idea that something like the neomorph exists cause its like Say a cowkiller compared to a bee cause it Might be stronger on its own, but it cant work in a hive mind there for its weaker in the mental sense

[@HunterLyonIsAPerson]

There's no mystery left to be had. That well has been tapped to holy hell and back and you're pining for nostalgia that can't be realized at this point.

[@NightmareMasterclass]

+Hunter Lyon Holy hell. you missed the point of my video entirely.

[@ryanjohnson6072]

I still think the Engineers created the Xeno morphs because in Prometheus you can see it on the mural. David only created a version of the Xeno morph. I still like the movie despite its flaws. There's a big difference with a low budget movie that is being made in the late 70s that had to show less of the creature and rely heavily on good writing and actors who can act. Nothing can recapture the past, you can't re-invent the wheel. I'm interested to see where this is going.

[@seangreen9633]

The movie started with this deep question of creation which had nothing to do with rest of the movie. No excuses.

[@Resuarus]

I couldn't agree more with almost everything said here. The problem with this movie is that it does not exist in a vacuum. If it was a random sci-fi flick and not part of the Alien franchise, it would be a passable, somewhat enjoyable popcorn movie. Being a part of one of the most venerated sci-fi franchises of all time, it is held to a higher standard. Not only that, but as a prequel that seeks to demystify the original, everything it does has an effect that ripples to more than just the events of the movie. The strength of the original was the sense of mystery. When you tear down the curtains for the audience, it normalizes the alien in a way that shouldn't be done in a mainline franchise film like this. It's even worse when the explanations and events in the film introduce myriad inconsistencies between the films in the franchise. I can understand that Scott feels he can pretend that the movies that weren't his don't exist even if I feel differently, but he doesn't certainly can't get a pass when the movie lines up crooked with both of the other films he directed in the franchise.

[@barryauguste9734]

Nice summary there - I agree on most of your views. After seeing Covenant for the second time today I was relieved that it played better this time around than in my first viewing. After reading the novel, many of the plotholes and missing backstory were filled in and the actions of the characters made much more sense. Its a shame that most of the necessary character development had to be trimmed from the theatrical release. The breakneck pace of much of the movie has to be overlooked as well as the underwhelming, dismal eventual demise of the beast. Why he had to leave out essential scenes though is beyond me and the fact that one has to piece together the full story from viral video's and the novel is disgraceful. After 40 years and 5 movies we are still no nearer to the claustrophobic Lovecraft-ian horror of the original and its getting tireing to say the least. Covenant is entertaining at best and visually stunning as you'd expect but in depicting the alien in such a normal, corporeal setting, Scott demystifies the whole nightmare-ish, psyco-sexual horror that Giger presented in the original. We know where the alien is at all times. Now the space jockey is nothing more than a 7-ft tall weight-lifter and the alien parasite just an experiment conducted by a self-aware android. Scott has done it no justice. Shaw's dissection and experimentation by a mad robot is an interesting side-note and homagé to another Giger vision - but one which Scott refused to explore fully. I applaud his themes of "Where do we come from? Who made us?" But not in an Alien movie. Bladerunner covered much of that as well as the consequences of creating self-aware AI. The best I can say is "IT LIVES." It lives in some form. At least there is that. But its far from the heights of horrific nightmares I was expecting when Scott first announced he was back on board. PS. I will no doubt buy the blu-ray dvd and continue to watch in dismay for news of future projects. What else is one to do?

[@rheanonjasmyne]

AMEN, I LOVED Prometheus ! AC I did NOT like at all !

[@daemontrigger3281]

I agree the previews take so much away from seeing the movie to the point of ruining it. I mean imagine if they showed the very first chest burster back when the first movie came out that would just ruin the surprise .

[@Oravankarva]

The problem with this movie is that it tries to answer where the xenomorphs come from. When instead we all want to know where do the engineers came from!

[@YoStu242]

I don't know if Danny Mcbride did great job in this movie, because I was waiting for him to do or say something "funny" all the time. That's why comedians usually don't work in serious roles for me.

[@noneya3635]

Scott has been the problem with all the recent Alien films because, like many so called fans of the original, he has come to believe that HE wrote the original story that made this such an iconic piece of media. Scott is a director, not a writer. SOME of his work speaks for itself, a lot more of it speaks for his hubris.

[@GDeNofa]

I do agree with most of your points, but not about David trying to interact with the Neomorph. That scene was both chilling and intriguing. The creature didn’t attack David because he either wasn’t considered prey (being an Android) or it sensed he was its creator in some way. It was different and I was hoping to see what the interaction would have turned out instead of Oram being trigger happy than blindly following David into his cavern of ovamorphs and planting his face right into one.

[@ashs4022]

I find myself saying this over and over and over now as more movies come out that are "similar" , "remakes" or re installments... When I first saw alien (80's) it was SCARY! Now, the prequel aliens are not so scary. But, to my daughter watching it with me, who has never seen alien nor the sequels... this was a HUGELY scary movie for her. We cannot watch prequels with the "mindset" that we want MORE than the originals... IE.... alien, we KNOW that Ripley was THE PROTAGONIST... so of COURSE all the other female leads, HAVE TO DIE.... there are NO mentions of these characters in the original movies... not even 1 mention of "david", or "prometheus" or "dr shaw"... in alien, aliens, alien 3, and resurrection... so WHY DO WE EXPECT deep character development? why do we expect ANY female lead to live?!?! We know, thru proxy, that the aliens end up getting owned.. by sigourney, i mean ripley.... 4 frickin' times.... 4 times she kicks the "perfect" creations ASSES!!!! So, really, HOW important is dr. shaw? or david? in the end, HUMANITY wins over the xeno. These movies, prometheus, covenant and awakening... are all the how/why plots... not a "who is this and what happens to her/him"... it doesn't matter! We saw all we needed to in alien, aliens and so on. David, is USELESS... so far, as the droids are SO DIFFERENT in the originals... vs the david/walter models in the prequel... you have droids in the future that are LESS human, vs the better droids of the current movies. Does that make sense?!?! 200 years later and the david model is GONE. No longer made, nor the walter.. its whoever his name was... and he was all wacked out too...at the point of the world-time of alien. Jockeys... or NOT... are gone. There are NEVER referenced nor seen in any of the original films. SO, enjoy the prequels... as is... a stand alone. They don't want to make aliens 7-8-9-10 ect... so it's better to do the stories of the events before the original. A prequel is NOT to be viewed with the KNOWLEDGE of the original film(s). It's to be taken on a stand-alone basis. Even when it's canon... don't watch it and review it with the knowledge of the past films... see it, as an original in itself. You will enjoy it more, trust me. Otherwise you will always be disappointed. In EVERY alien film, the crew was STUPID! EVERY MOVIE... the crew does STUPID, unintelligent things... so if ANYTHING, Scott is keeping the "reality" of the idiots in space, consistent. Why would we have SMARTER astronauts in space in the prequels... when were left with the knowledge of the idiot choices in the original... so, the new crew has to be stupid too. Or it wont work. And they all die. They have to. Again, think about it... ever heard about "tennessee" or any other character, mentioned in the original 4? Nope... so we know, they all have to die, to justify and keep the stream of movie reality intact. Otherwise they'll have to re write and re direct another alien original movie. SO, just put on some popcorn, grab a drink, turn the lights down, and experience the movie, as is... don't over think it.

[@terrypussypower]

They should have explored the Engineers home planet, when David and Shaw first arrived, that was the best part of "Covenant". This

[@destra1257]

What i think the Reason is for Overexposure. is the Fact That David was supposed to Perfect the Creature in the Next Movie, Where Me Makes the Best, Newer Smarter, Deadlier Alien..

[@DJ.NoName]

Thanks Nightmare Masterclass. I totally agree. But could'nt put it in to perspective myself. So very nice with this clarity you hand out here. Appreciated.

[@dedg0st]

i’m glad i found this channel. well thought out analysis and that vhs aesthetic is on point.

[@DawnHub666]

Its funny that he is such a good director. But everybody hates is 2 most recent films. He is trying really hard to expand his universe and everybody hates it. I loved the expansion of the universe in Prometheus. But maybe it did fail as an Alien film. I wonder how Ridley feels about people hating his expansion of the universe and all they really want in another Alien film. I wonder if he cares at all or if he just thinks. This is my vision and some will like it and that is enough.

[@jacobwright5542]

The addition of McBride and Franco was a detriment to this movie.

[@ErikRyde]

I think they should have explored the planet more... and not meet David till the third act, the reason I love the first one so much is because it's dedicated a large section to exploring the alien ship rather than set up cheap jump scares.

[@aliray1165]

The alien isn't fully out of the bag yet. Covenant was about DAVID. Once you fall in love with him as a character and both prometheus and covenant make total sense, and equally Davids potential demise is going to be the greatest finale which I cannot wait to see

[@slydesplaylists]

If you know Carter's sis tell her there were some pretty bad directives from the squad's command , anyhow it would be easy to describe how the Yutani personal guard and shareholding units felt after Hadleys. Well yeah I'm still with that aspect of the greater designs though

[@sleepysartorialist]

Interesting perspective. I don’t think Scott is trying to make horror films. I don’t think he ever was. I think he’s focused on the meaning of faith in the context of a science fiction universe now. He’s getting older and approaching the void faster every day and that reflects in the tone of these two latest works. He may also be, and this is just my view of course, be trying to divorce the camp and comfort now attached to the ubiquitous Xenomorph. My friend runs & collaborates on a really comprehensive blog on the franchise (and now sits on a podcast crew too) and general science fiction and the sheer amount of content she’s uncovered that gives insight into just how deep thus rabbit hole is? Fantastic. There’s visually obvious symbolism in the film poster referencing The Divine Comedy, a whole Cain & Abel subtext to David and Walter, the “blind leading the blind” in that scene fresh off the ship, and I would even argue that the scene of the ship returning to The Engineers’ world is either a reference to the plague of locusts or maybe a less on-the-nose nod to The Great Flood. I don’t know Scott’s specific belief system but he’s definitely playing with Christian themes and any possible horror left may come in the form of extremely subtle references that take a lot of digging to point out. If you’re interested in digging through what my friend has dug up, you can follow Yutani.blog-it isn’t strictly Alien so don’t come complaining under this about it. I’m aware. Still a great place to ponder imo or I wouldn’t mention it, friend or no. 😂

[@PredatorAlienate]

For good or ill, Ridley Scott shifted the focus of antagonism in the Alien franchise away from xenomorphs to misanthropic androids. I didn't mind, but too many others did. Unfortunately, Mr. Scott can't imagine how to delve any deeper into the iconic creature without forfeiting a sense of mystery. And now, because of his disillusionment, the franchise may go extinct. Whatever happened to "Planet of the Aliens"? Or Neill Blomkamp's alternate sequel to "Aliens"? Either of these concepts raises a host of unexplored possibilities for storytelling purposes.

[@stabilisedchaos]

Let's stay here and gather samples-She's dead and the guy with her. "I am just going to freshen up" she's dead. "Let's split up and search for it,we will meet back here" at least one of them is going to die. It was so predictable.

[@jacobwright5542]

With expectations of of a continuation of the giddy spirit of exploration presented in Prometheus, Covenant feels like running into a brick wall.

[@gillianc592]

Hi David, I just want to say that I'm really enjoying your videos entertainment with a side of education. I hope you do many more.

[@NightmareMasterclass]

That's the plan! Thanks for your nice words.

[@cardcounter21]

You know what the most disturbing thing about Alien Covenant is! It suggests that Ridley Scott simply has no idea how bad or disliked Prometheus was (regardless of your own personal view)! AC suggests that Scott is surrounded by a protective machine that goes out of its way to make sure no criticism or negativity about his films EVER reaches him! Thanks to this machine, Ridley probably believes the scene in Prometheus where Milburn decides he wants to hug an Alien Cobra was one of the most brilliant and popular moments ever to be recorded on celluloid - or hard drive - and that the public simply cant get enough of 'intelligent' people in his films! This is the only reason I can think of why AC not only repeated the mistakes of Prometheus (another crew of 'trained' people deciding to walk about an alien planet with no protection) but in some cases magnified them! Ok, maybe that's exaggerated, Scott must be aware of at least some of the criticism surrounding Prometheus but he probably needs to look further beyond the blind praise of the parasites and hangers-on surrounding him!

[@polkmana]

Great videos so far. Hope to see more.

[@jacobwright5542]

The ending of Prometheus promised so much. This film, strong though it is in so many ways, could only be a disappointment to those looking for, maybe not answers to the questions posed by Prometheus, but at least a continuation of the spirit of exploration presented by Prometheus.

[@alexanderwatson1867]

A frequent problem from my perspective is the way far too many people, far too often will sidestep Scott's obvious fault here. The platitudes of "He's such a great director, such a great filmmaker, start to ring hollow the umpteenth time you hear them. I specifically recall him in an interview asking the very question: "Have you ever wondered where it (the Alien) came from?" Interviewer says "No." Scott basically slaps his forehead like he just solved cold fusion. The man ruined what was starting to sound like a possibly excellent Aliens sequel from Blomkamp in order to go off on another convoluted android wank-fest. Anyway, great video, really hit the mark I feel.

[@louisvilleuav5794]

Ridley said a very long time ago that Blade Runner, ,Soldier, Alien, The Martian along with all of his fantasy/space movies are in the same universe. AI and Ancient Aliens.

[@TheSmallninjavicki]

I watched this movie twice in three days...aside for a couple of jump-scares, I came out of it both times thinking, 'Meh'. 'ALIEN' is still the reigning champ. Time for Ridley Scott to pass on the baton.

[@bigtravis1968]

here's how Riley Scott would tell a fairytale the slipper fit but after the ball oh yeah her step sisters were ran to her something to do with a fairy godmother got cut out of the story also her name is Cinderella

[@bigtravis1968]

I do like the way the engineer's head/have shows thru the aliens head dome piece

[@stephengiles793]

is Alien Covenant the Alien equivalent of Highlander 2?

[@anthonyyoutubefan7567]

I AGREE! There wasn't a lot of MYSTERY...but, there were even MORE questions and less answers.

[@AndyAce83]

The lack of disease prevention is something many people complain about in both Prometheus and Covenant. It would have been nice to be addressed at least. Like, I dont know, they are not afraid of infection anymore because of medical science, or they have apparatus warning about contagions or something. Its strange how the plot of both movies are about infection, and its never addressed why they dont care before they become infected.

[@threethrushes]

Clearly, epidemiology is a branch of medical science doesnt work effectively in the 22nd century.

[@demamhutan5547]

Hey wait. If aliens didn't come around until far into the future, how was there an alien skull in the predator's ship in predator II in 1997 L.A.?

[@swishpronoob]

Thank you for the video, what did you think of Event Horizon btw?

[@jonbbaca5580]

All of the promotional Prologue scenes and even some of the other supplemental promotional stuff really should've been in the film. When you need to go on youtube and watch promotional trailers to make sense of a movie, there's something seriously wrong. I think this film was actually too short, and a little more character building and exposition could've gone a LONG way. I hate to imagine what ended up on the cutting room floor in order to preserve a 10 minute long flute lesson scene. It's possible a very well done followup will tie the three prequels together and really save them all. That's what I'm hoping at least. I'm not giving up on this franchise just yet. I think Scott needs to completely ignore what the hardcore fans are saying and just make the film he wants to make. I think if he had ignored some of the fan boy backlash to Prometheus (mainly the lack of xenomorphs), this would've been a much better movie, a true sequel to Prometheus expanding on the themes of that film, instead of an awkward bridge that tried too hard to be exactly 50% Prometheus, 50% Alien. You just can't do both in a single movie. You end up half assing each, and then no one is truly satisfied. All that said, I still enjoyed Covenant, and I'll definitely see the next one if it happens.

[@kamakazilee6066]

what made alien and jaws so good? not the alien or the shark, but the characters

[@kenaustin3472]

I think the problem with Alien Covenant is that is tried to serve as an Alien film and a sequel to Prometheus, but failed to live up to either. As a sequel to Prometheus, nothing of significance is explained or resolved. For an Alien film, they were just there for marketing reasons. There also seems to be this proposed "Who created the Xenomorphs and why?" that Scott thinks everybody is asking and seems to forget he's treading the same ground that was already established in the first film.

[@kenaustin3472]

Also to further support that the Xenomorphs and Protomorphs were simply there for marketing reasons are evidenced by the original concept art for Prometheus. Sadly it is suggested Alien Covenent and Prometheus 2 were pretty much one of the same but instead of Xenomorphs, it was going to be killer plants and other assorted freaks running around.

[@mikeylikesit100]

While I agree that the Xenomorph has been done to death at this point, I don't think the way forward is by exploring other avenues either, because then it's not Alien (you know, the titular character of these films). And as for the "engineers", that falls under the same umbrella as the Xenomorph for me as well, in that the Space Jockey was a great mystery better left unsolved. I didn't really want to know what that giant fossilized biomechanical elephant-looking thing was (all Prometheus did was ruin it and make it far less interesting or impressive), and I don't care to explore that avenue any further. My question is, why do we need any more films set in this universe at all? This franchise was about Ripley and the Xenomorph. Once you've exhausted those two things, it's over. "Game over man, game over!" Sadly, it was game over a long time ago. James Cameron's sequel was the last really good installment, and the last one that felt necessary or that expanded the universe in any meaningful way IMO. Every last goddamn sequel made since has been a complete and utter disappointment for me, and the Xenommorph, as you pointed out, has become a pop-culture icon that was being parodied on SNL and the Simpsons decades ago. Again, do we really NEED more? Should FOX really just keep exhuming the corpse of this long deceased franchise every few years, stringing it up like a marionette and making it do a little jig, pretending it's not dead in an effort to make a little money, when everyone can smell the foul stench of its rotting corpse from a mile away? I mean, at this point it's basically Weekend at Bernie's over at FOX with these cashgrab sequels they insist on pumping out. It's over. The goose had been cooked. Then it was eaten, digested, and shit out, and Covenant is just FOX and Ridley Scott warming up the turd in the microwave and trying to serve it back up to us. No thanks.

[@numb3r5ev3n]

For me, the major problem I have with both this film and Prometheus is when David 8 essentially becomes The Final Boss of the Alien(s) franchise, when before it was like the Xenomorphs were a metaphor for the dangers that may lie in wait if we as a species ascend to explore hostile, uncaring environments in outer space and alien worlds. I don't dislike either film, and I definitely don't want to speak ill of Ridley Scott, but it seems like David has become the primary focus of the series rather than the Aliens themselves.

[@jimbobeire]

I had assumed from _Alien_ that Xenos were already a designed weapon, so there's a good backstory to explore as to who made them. Instead we got over and over , various characters blindly trying to acquire them for their own weapons program and finding that they couldn't control it. Prometheus suggested to me, that we were on the trail of whatever Dr. Frankenstein was behind all this but never showed us who it was (in fact, despite Shaw's clunky 'choose to believe' conclusions, the film is littered with hints that the Engineers are just a slave caste bred from abducted humans, who fetch more bodies for the lab as raw material for the Xeno program). Covenant brings us no closer to answers about that, just a run of the mill "idiots land, idiots die" movie.

[@benquinney2]

How could it be scarier than it really is?

[@MrCageCat]

Agreed with everything you mentioned EXCEPT Alien being the best of the series. Aliens in my opinion ups the anty on everything Alien laid the foundation for and is by far one of the best horror/sci-fi films out there. The atmosphere, story, characters, it's all brilliant. In fact it's one of those rare films I find I can watch from start to finish every single time. Also, love the intro by the way 👍

[@MoonRayDJMoonRay]

For some reason, I didn't take this film as a horror, I was laughing so much, because people were so stupid, that it was more of a comedy. It was hilarious to watch.

[@urchinvalero6529]

Thanks for making this video. I'm looking forward to the movie, and think I will enjoy it MUCH more knowing all of these flaws in advance.

[@MasonOfLife]

I think the fact that it doesn't go into depths about its touched on themes serves to get the viewer to think about the ideas brought up.

[@NightmareMasterclass]

+Yeah Yes, in the same way that me saying the word "apple" makes you think of an apple. What does that accomplish though? Merely bringing up a number of interesting sci-fi topics doesn't make a film worthwhile or deep. I'm not trying to be mean or condescending, but just broaching on a topic like religion, or AI, or whatever, didn't make Covenant any better. More often than not, it muddled an already bad screenplay. I hate to sound so harsh, but that's just how I feel about this movie.

[@MasonOfLife]

Nightmare Masterclass I can see where you're coming from for sure, but for me the movie kind of makes the viewer bring the depth with them (or without), probably not great if you want the movie to stand alone as a deep and insightful film. For me, particularly the role and nature of David fascinated me and just got the wheels turning in my mind in all kinds of directions and led me to creating all kinds of ideas and notions about the nature of life, AI, creation, etc. I understand why you don't like it, because by itself it doesn't go far enough, and I greatly appreciate a movie that does go the lengths and depths of an interesting idea, however I can also appreciate the art in a movie planting the seeds for deep thought, coming along with some other basic film attributes that I found positive. I do think that this probably wasn't the movie the Scott wanted to make entirely (with the reaction of "more horror, action and aliens!" from Prometheus), but I still enjoyed what we got