Alien: Romulus Movie review - Fede Alvarez skilfully crafts a memorable addition to the Alien franchise (By Shayen Unadkat)

 Fede Alvarez knows how to make a good horror movie. He’s got the talent to create the right tone and atmosphere to keep you on the edge of your seat, and this is evidential in don’t breathe and evil dead (which were both well received by critics and audiences alike). Now he’s back, and this time adopting the Alien Franchise with Alien: Romulus. Here, Fede does what he’s good at to teleport audiences back to the feels of the first aliens films with practical effects, other eerie production choices and characters that we can actually care about, but there are a few flaws that should be discussed. 

Isabela Merced as 'Kay' in Alien: Romulus.

The movie follows 5 teens and a synthetic who, after in need of resources and the ability to travel, scavenge the deep ends of a derelict space station to find what they need - but things go upward in classic Alien fashion. Fede and the writing teams choice to focus on 5 teens doesn’t really pay much justice to the illogical decisions and few plot holes in the film, but instead creates a fresh approach to the franchise and more likable characters in the process. Each individual, and our synthetic Andy (played by David Jonsson) are fleshed out with solid motivation and their own individual reasoning for going out to the station and garnering resources. We can clearly differentiate the characters from their personalities, and ultimately care about them - which is rare from survival horrors nowadays. 

As for these characters though, they make classic bad decisions like in every horror movie - though some are very illogical and take you out of the experience (such as getting too close to an Alien when peers are literally telling that character to get out!)  For the most part, however - their  reasoning for silly actions are explained by their personalities that we are introduced to upon the films first act. 


Some, also, are really just there for longer than they need to be, and make appearances long after we think they are gone, showcasing how prevalent plot armor is in this film. These same characters survive very intense and threatening situations, but don’t survive others/ become injured in others that don’t feel as much so. Along with this comes a mix of illogical writing  towards the third act when it comes to knowing how on earth a character makes it out/ doesn’t make it out of the situation they are in, as some of these outcomes aren’t explained properly. Think someone telling you a gun is low on ammo, but it continues to fire for the next 5 minutes with the ammo not even lowering. How does that make sense?  

Cailee Spaeny as 'Rain' and David Jonsson as 'Andy' in the third act of Alien: Romulus

However, this all does add to the unpredictability of the film, which is a major highlight. There are some unexpected and wild events in the 3rd act that Fede sets clues for in earlier moments in the film. Things might structurally be off-beat, and I do think the film pulls off one plot beat too many, but at the end of the day It’s things like this that ultimately elevate the viewing experience and keep you on the edge of your seat. 

Another major highlight for me has got to be the practical effects. They are absolutely mind-blowing. Everything feels so real and genuinely eerie, and it makes it clear that visuals like this have to be seen in IMAX (the format I, luckily, watched it in)  with the best sound-system possible. This is some of the best set-work I have seen for a movie in a long time, and you can tell Fede/ the production crew have put a ton of work into this.


David Jonsson is the highlight for me when it comes to performances. He has to play this dual role as a synthetic/ai, and he knocks it out of the park, displaying emotion when needed and also tapping into the action side of things where necessary. Cailee Spaeny is another standout. At times she really does feel like Ripley, even though this is helped by Fedes practical effects. Isabela Merced is very solid in this also, and her character is one that is pivotal to a gnarly third act which will be stuck to fans brains like facehuggers. 

The Xenomorph in Alien: Romulus

Ultimately, Alien: Romulus is a memorable and worthy addition to the franchise. It might lack some originality with some overused tropes and illogical character decisions that we often see from survival horrors of this nature, but the mix of practical effects with some solid character work in classic Fede fashion makes this movie excel in what it’s set out to do, and that’s create an Alien watch that is enjoyed by fans and stands on its own two feet.   

Alien Romulus - Overall Score: 7.4/10 - RECOMMEND