ALIEN: ROMULUS (2024)

Everything old is new again in the latest Alien filmography offering, and after the lack of fan love for Prometheus and Alien: Covenant, this bitch is getting back to basics. The aforementioned twosome failed for some due to their lack of scares and fixation on mythology. Personally I enjoyed them and place them below the universally beloved Alien and Aliens, and above the disputable Alien 3 and Alien: Resurrection (see our ranking list below). I appreciate them all (save Alien: Resurrection, a catastrophe) and I’ll happily take anything Alien related.

If you share my fervour, fear not because Fede Alvarez’s Alien: Romulus has a straightforward plot that clears the way for thrills and numerous (perhaps too numerous) callbacks to our favourite Alien films. Yes, the lines being repeated verbatim is a tad too fanboy even for me, but otherwise it’s a stretch finding fault with this film, but here it is: The inclusion of one of the pioneer characters will not age well due to the obvious CGI. What’s good? Everything else. A game cast benevolently provides the alien buffet, with top marks going to Cailee Spaeny (resident Ripley proxy) and David Jonsson (who gracefully bridges two contrasting characters). The movie breezes through its 2-hour runtime and is a feast for the senses with its moody atmospheric environment riddled with 80s retro-culture. My guess is that all involved are fans like me (and you if you’re reading this) and they delivered what we continually crave: a fun addition to our favourite science-fiction blockbuster horror series, that despite the distracting homages, brought it back home. More please.

WATCH OR NOT: WATCH

Additional musings: This is the best in the series since Aliens. 

Premium Def Alien Franchise ranking:
Alien
Aliens
Alien: Romulus
Prometheus
Alien: Covenant
Alien 3
Alien: Resurrection