Sometimes, you just have to go back to basics. Alien: Covenant, Ridley Scott’s second prequel to the acclaimed sci-fi horror franchise, takes a variety of elements from both Prometheus and the original 1979 classic, and the result is a film that tries to mix the introspective nature of the last film and the creeping horror of the earlier ones. There were a number of scenes I enjoyed on their own, but overall the movie feels a bit confused at times on which direction it wants to take.
This time, we follow the (mis)adventures of the USCCS Covenant, who suffer a terrible mishap on their way to Origae-6 in the hopes of starting a new colony, as the planet can sustain human life. The pods malfunction to where the victims inside are burned alive, and the crew and colonists are still years away from their destination. Christopher Oram (Billy Crudup), a newly appointed captain who feels slighted by the others because of his religious faith, opts to redirect their destination to a closer, presumably equally hospitable planet, against the protests of fellow crewmember and widowed husband of the prior skipper Dany Branson (Katherine Waterson).
Their expedition across the bizarre new world leads them to a wheat field which clearly had to have been cultivated by either humans or some species of equal capabilities, but that doesn’t prove to be a positive omen. Sure enough, Xenomorphs are soon on the prowl, crewmembers are being implanted with chest bursters and eaten alive, and blood and mayhem abounds. Visually, the H.R. Giger-designed aliens themselves are more horrifying and disgusting than they’ve looked in a while.
As Dany, Katherine Waterson comes off almost like a more mournful incarnation of Ellen Ripley, From her haircut to her toughness blended with vulnerability, she feels like a deliberate attempt to recall the same dynamic that Sigourney Weaver brought to the original films. Still, her character is sympathetic enough for the audience to pull for, and she stands out from most of the cast who aren’t given too much in the way of deep personality. Michael Fassbender’s android Walter is given the most interesting arc, involving another droid (also played by Fassbender) who resides on the planet, and holds secrets that prove not only to be vital to the crew’s survival, but also making a major impact on the entire Alien franchise.
Speaking purely as a fan, I’m not too sure how I feel about some of the revelations in Covenant, in regards to how they affect the series as a whole. For me at least, the Xenomorphs were scarier when they were more of a mysterious force that Ripley’s company wanted to take advantage of.
This is a much smarter film than, say, the Aliens vs. Predator series (which never captured the excitement of the Dark Horse comics it originated from), but if it had a more consistent tone and didn’t try so hard to imitate the original film- in particular, towards the climax- it would have been something really great. To be fair, Force Awakens (which I enjoyed) borrowed many elements from previous Star Wars films, but the third half of Covenant felt more like a straight re-enactment.
Though that isn’t to say there aren’t some fun action scenes or enjoyable character moments throughout. There’s some funny banter involving the side characters, and Danny McBride’s crack pilot Tennessee Faris stands out as an easy guy to root for. Without spoiling much, the Aliens themselves aren’t the “true” villains, and Fassbender turns in a strong performance that helps Scott weave a narrative involving the nature of man vs. machine. At times it feels Stanley Kubrick-ish, and that makes it feel like more of a shame when the film starts falling back on clichés and character are making dumb decisions that get them slaughtered.
For what it is, Alien Covenant is a solid improvement over some of the lesser entries in the franchise, even if it doesn’t meet the heights of Alien or Aliens. I know I’m being much kinder to it than other reviewers, but I can’t say I flat-out disliked it, for me this was much more fun than Prometheus. As far as the worst films so far this year, that title easily still goes to Fifty Shades Darker for me (shudders). Overall I’d call it a decent sci-fi thriller, but it’ll mostly appeal to Xenomorph die-hards.