There are no surprises in the new Alien film – Romulus – it’s exactly what you would expect. However my question is – who left the spaceship in the care of the children?
Yes, the cast look all very young – Cailee Spaeny (the new Sigourney Weaver) was 24 at the time of filming (2022), Archie Renault was 25, while Isabela Merced was 21. The only respectable person of authoritative age is David Jonsson – 29 – but he plays a robot! The plot, not too dissimilar from the original 1979 Alien film, has Rain (Spaeny) as a contract worker on an unnamed planet who hangs out with other similar young workers. They ‘discover’ a derelict space station and hope to steal it to get away from their awful lives and start somewhere new. Conveniently Andy’s robotic skills allow him to manipulate the spaceships mechanics to get it started, also convenient is that the youngsters know how to fly it and how to find their way once inside.
But little do they know (obviously the audience knows) that there are creatures inhabiting the spaceship, and these creatures (identical to the ones in the original) will stop at nothing to attack and kill anything/anyone in their paths. Around every corner, under any roof panel, hiding behind electrical equipment and doors, they may or may not be there. And it’s too late for the youngsters as they are already up in the air, so there really nowhere to escape.
The 7th film in the Alien franchise, and set between the 1979 original and 1986’s Aliens (though you’d never know it as Romulus stands out on its own), Alien: Romulus is a good popcorn movie with enough very scary twists and turns to keep you staring at the big screen. Just put out of your mind how very young the cast is, and if you actually saw the original in the cinema this would explain it!
