40/11
[Last updated 2024 August 14]
Synopsis
Exploring the outskirts of an abandoned space station, a group of young space colonists encounter the most terrifying life form in the universe. See how the Alien movies rank by franchise based on IMDb user ratings. Director Fede Alvarez from Alien 2 (1986) was looking for a special effects team to work with the creatures. Physical sets, practical creatures and miniatures were used wherever possible to help ground the subsequent VFX work. When Rain disables the ship’s gravity and shoots all the aliens, all their blood congeals in the air in long, blob-like patterns. . Zero gravity causes liquids to form into spheres in real life instead of spreading out into long, flat pieces like in the movie.
It was…okay, I guess?
Andy: For a claustrophobic astronaut, the solution is to give him more space. The 20th Century Studios fanfare freezes and appears ominous, as in Alien 3 (1992), leading into the film’s opening scene. The logo itself experiences a burst of static and turns green. Featured in Nerdrotic: The Acolyte: Force is Female CONFIRMED? Theatrical Death – Real BBC @MauLer @HeelvsBabyface (2024). Theme from AlienWritten by Jerry Goldsmith. A few hours after leaving the theater and I don’t know what to do.
Been there, done that
Fedy Alvarez seemed to go through the making of every previous film and every remaining idea was finally thrown onto the screen along with a retooling of key parts of the franchise. You have credits from Alien, Aliens, Resurrection and Prometheus/Covenant. For a fan of the show, there are subtle and not-so-subtle easter eggs every few minutes, from sound effects to reused dialogue. The plot is really simple, as it should be. A group of people exploring a space station. However, I actually liked the use of temperature and gravity in this movie, which is not seen much in this universe. And there were a lot of jump scares.
The world is great
I’m not usually a fan of them, but this time they paid off. The two main actors were pretty good, the rest were pretty forgettable. And don’t know what to make of one actor’s role beyond the grave… Forget the sleek and clean world of Prometheus, this is a throwback to the ugly retro-futuristic stuff of the 70s. Just lovely. Aesthetic if you like that look. But in the end, there really doesn’t seem to be anywhere for this franchise to go story-wise.
More standalone movies?
I wouldn’t call it artistically bankrupt, but close. Although this film neatly tied the "proper" Alien movies and the new Prometheus aside, it’s hard to imagine anything else to do with this creature. Almost all the mystery has been taken out of Xenomorph. I wonder if there is anything left to do with this creature? Whether they’re exploring the stars, escaping dystopias, or making the world a better place, these women are science fiction.