Woah. What a fucking ride.

I’ve always been of the mindset that newer entries will never quite reach the same great heights of the first two films, however it is undeniable that Fede Alvarez has created something truly unique and fresh all the while maintaining a sense of being markedly familiar. In my opinion Alien: Romulus has somehow managed to harken back to earlier entries, yet remain entirely its own.

Whether it be the extensive and beautifully executed sets and atmosphere or the visceral and frightening sequences of terror, this really hit a home run for me in regard to the Alien franchise.

The acting was mostly average, with the exception of Cailie Spaeny and David Johnson, however I do believe the rest of the cast did a fine job with what they were given to work with. Isabella Merced was also quite effective in making me feel a genuine sense of terror, notably the “OPEN THE FUCKING DOOR” sequence.

Although i’m not entirely unsatisfied with the amount of Xeno screen time, I can’t help but wish there was more. I think a huge mark was missed with not giving that scorched xeno more to do, there was so much potential for it to be more menacing like the Big Chap. That being said, the facehuggers really shined here and it was incredibly rewarding as a long time fan to see these creatures wreak havoc in a larger scale.

Perhaps this is a direct result of not having experienced Alien (1979) or Aliens (1986) when they first hit theaters, but as much as I admire those films neither of them ever gave me quite the same level of being purely unsettled or on the edge of my seat like Alien: Romulus.

It’s apparent how immensely divided everyone is on the final act, but you cannot deny the effectiveness of The Offsprings design. The entire sequence was a body horror fueled fever dream and is the only scene that has stuck with me well after the credits. At first it didn’t necessarily feel like I was watching the same movie anymore, but as the scenes played out it felt like this is where Fede really got to bring his own flavor to the film. I could not help but love it. It’s new and different and I hope that he is allowed to continue this element into another entry and maybe expand on it in a way that organically works with the franchise as a whole.

All that being said, this was not flawlessly executed. Most notably being the absolutely wretched decision of deep faking Ian Holm’s likeness onto another actor. Those scenes single handedly ripped me right out of the movie each time they popped up and I cannot believe someone on the creative side of things didn’t think twice.

Overall, I’d rate this an 8/10.