I watched this with a friend this evening.
It was....OK. The first half was better than the second.
It was very heavily influenced by Alien: Isolation both in terms of overall aesthetic and in storyline. Some of the movie felt a bit too much like a videogame and less like a movie, especially in the 2nd half. A few scenes were like Quick Time events.
It reminded me a bit of the Star Wars sequels in that a lot of it felt like they'd simply recycled bits from the first four Alien movies. They also had a few too many callbacks to the originals. "Hey! He said the thing that Ripley said!".
The main characters were all 20-somethings with the same background and motivations. It makes perfect sense for the story but it does mean that they feel a bit too similar to one-another and are kind of interchangeable.
Still, it was enjoyable enough and it moved along at a pretty brisk pace. Better than Promethius. I'd say it's about on par with Alien 4.
The new pulse rifle was pretty cool in an X-Box console cheat aim-bot sort of way.
"Better than Prometheus, on par with Alien 4" is about what I expected. In their favor, they apparently used mostly practical effects and animatronics and whatnot. But I just can't get excited for these modern revival films and their memberberries.
When you think about it, how many direct callbacks to Alien were there in Aliens? Not many I can recall aside from maybe some visual motifs, like the director's cut scene where the colonist has the facehugger on him, which not only gives us that "Hey, that's the thing from the other thing!" but also explains what happened to the colony.
I do like the idea of Alien Isolation influence, but I'll wait for this to hit streaming.
Yeah... about on par with Alien 4 is far from a glowing recommendation. LoL.
The effects were mostly great. There is one bit with CGI that stands out as quite bad though. I know a lot of people complained about the de-aging of Princess Leia and recreation of Tarkin in Rogue One. I personally didn't have any issues with either character in Rogue One. That's not the case in Romulus. The CGI recreation of a character from one of the previous Alien films doesn't look quite right. Gives off a real Uncanny Valley vibe.
The first half of the film is better than Alien 4. Unfortunately, they used a callback from Alien 4 in the 2nd half and, in my opinion, it really detracts from the film.
You don't scare me. Gonna watch it this weekend, maybe today.
Not high on my list to see. If I want to be scared this weekend, I'll invite the grandkids over to play with sharp things. :HideEyes:
Quote from: Redwolf on August 16, 2024, 11:27:00 AMYou don't scare me. Gonna watch it this weekend, maybe today.
Please post your take on it. It'll be interesting to read another perspective.
Quote from: Jarhead0331 on August 16, 2024, 07:02:03 AMYeah... about on par with Alien 4 is far from a glowing recommendation. LoL.
How do you rank them?
For me, from best to worst I'd go:
Awesome movies1) Aliens
2) Alien
OK movies. Some good parts but some crap too3) Alien: Romulus
4) Alien 4
5) Alien Covenant
Bad movies6) Alien 3
7) Promethius
8) AvP
9) AvP 2
^ I'm surprised to see Alien 3 in the "bad movies" category and Alien 4 in the "OK, some good parts but some crap." Personally I'd swap them, though I haven't seen 4 in ages.
For me the ranking is pretty much the same chronologically as it is quality-wise:
1. Alien
2. Aliens
3. Alien 3
4. Alien 4
5. Everything else
Though I agree Covenant was slightly better than Prometheus.
Quote from: al_infierno on August 16, 2024, 02:26:36 PM^ I'm surprised to see Alien 3 in the "bad movies" category and Alien 4 in the "OK, some good parts but some crap." Personally I'd swap them, though I haven't seen 4 in ages.
For me the ranking is pretty much the same chronologically as it is quality-wise:
1. Alien
2. Aliens
3. Alien 3
4. Alien 4
5. Everything else
Though I agree Covenant was slightly better than Prometheus.
My list is the same except I put Aliens first ahead of all.
I think the difference depends on whether you're more of a horror/suspense type or a combat/action type.
I definitely am in the minority of enjoying Alien3 at all and definitely in ranking it above Alien4.
I love the Alien lore so anything that isn't total crap I will see.
With that said, I have not seen any of the AvP movies.
I am further in minority as I don't like any of the alien movies:)
I think I dislike Alien 3 so much because I was such a huge fan of Alien 2. I went to see 3 on opening day and it was such a massive step down that I left the theatre thoroughly dejected by it.
Alien 4 is a frustrating one for me. It's got some really great stuff in there. (the swimming aliens scene) but also some real cringe with the human-alien hybrid and the terrible miscasting of Dan Hedaya. Still, I liked the heist idea and the action set pieces so I ranked it higher than 3.
I...kinda liked the human/alien hubrid. So grossly fascinating 🧐
I appreciated the absence of weapons in Alien3.
I have special reverence for Alien of course but Aliens is by far my favorite of all time.
I enjoyed both Prometheus and Covenant for the peeks at the universe they created. I never really understood the hate for those two.
The tabletop RPG from Freeleague expands on the Engineers, the black goo, and the original species that David bioengineered to quite the xenomorph a bit.
Some of that expanded lore makes it into Romulus.
I'd say there are lots of callbacks to Alien in Aliens, though not much in dialogue. In the sequel they're using official versions of weapons and systems that were cobbled together for the action of the first story; and the story structures and beats are kinda similar, albeit Aliens has a lot more than that.
Aliens really feels like an ultimate fan-fic love-letter to the prior movie, updated for 80s action expectations. I love it more than the original but I appreciate both for what they do, and how differently (yet similarly) they do them.
Alien 3 I wanted to like more than I did. If I had the wherewithal, I'd prefer to cobble together an edit from both production cuts, although I also feel like I might change my mind about some choices a few years later. :Nerd: I have a lot of respect for what the various writers creators were trying to try (so to speak). Sometimes when you bunt for the run-in, you win huge and other times you trip over the bat breaking your legs as you stumble heroically trying to get somewhere before hurling yourself into a pool of molten lead. Or a metaphor to that effect.
Alien 4 was a nice recovery finale to the story, but didn't feel nearly as 'real' as the prior films (in their somewhat different ways). I always end it feeling somewhat vaguely disappointed, but not in the same way as Alien 3.
Got all four in a Blu collection long ago.
Never bothered with AvP 1 or 2, though I think I'd like 1 more than I expect to.
I've watched enough plot analyses of Prom/Cov to understand why the films are shredded by some fans, though I've never simply watched them. I don't think I'm missing anything.
I don't especially care to try Romulus. Just not up for more Alien; but for the sake of other fans and the franchise property generally, I did hope it would be good or at least entertaining. I've seen a lot of mixed reviews.
And RLM now gives a very mixed review!
"Best movie I've seen all year!"
also
"WHO IS TO BLAME FOR THIS?!!"
An amusing debate over whether this film was written by production committee, or by an AI.
Very closely mirrors my opinion on it. Great first half, starts falling apart halfway through, and nosedives hard at the end.
Quote from: Gusington on August 16, 2024, 09:07:11 PMI enjoyed both Prometheus and Covenant for the peeks at the universe they created. I never really understood the hate for those two.
The hate comes because its such a Zeitgeist of that time inspired unwanted bend to the lore how the alien creatures came to existence
as prequel i would have liked to see a movie where the giant astronauts race (with the busted chest in the chair), somehow had stranded or made an exploration on the original home world of the Alien species.
A jungle and volcanic world, think of that Avatar jungle but turned nightmare on steroids, pure Darwinism every second. And the Alien species is not even the top of the predators as we might think. In that jungle they just fill the ecological roll of Army Ants in our jungle.... and in the end one giant astronaut somehow managed to escape with his ship to the moon LV-426 from the first movie
^that's one of the biggest problems with all the prequels in my view. They never should have explained how the Xenomorph originated. The mystery and unknown is part of the horror. That such things do exist in the universe and yes, these monsters of nightmares are indeed real, is terrifying.
The fact that they were engineered does make sense. As Ash said, they are perfection and possess unrivaled purity as killing machines. It would seem logical that such purity and perfection comes by design. Going further, the revelation that some breed of the alien was further engineered by a rogue android created by humanity is equally twisted...and relatable. However, the execution of all this was sloppy and overall poor in my view. This is why I think it would have just been better off left to the imagination.
^Are you...a xenomorph? :lipsrsealed:
Quote from: Gusington on August 20, 2024, 07:22:14 PM^Are you...a xenomorph? :lipsrsealed:
No, but his cousin is. Good guy. One time he told me to open my mouth and close my eyes and he... well, nevermind.
The sloppy execution for both the prequels (there have only been two), was definitely the problem. That and Prometheus wasn't even really supposed to be an Alien prequel per se to start with -- it got retooled late in production, and the results showed in how various things were stapled together (...plot pun not originally intended...) to SORT OF resemble the situation at the start of Alien 1, and yet weren't.
I recall MauLer and his crew (in their review of Romulus which I'll post below) agreeing with someone else's comment that Romulus made them appreciate Aliens 4 more. But I could see it also making the two prequels seem better by comparison, because at least those films were swinging for the parking lots.
At the same time, the production team is nothing but praiseworthy. Though that's been true for all the entries.
Quote from: Silent Disapproval Robot on August 20, 2024, 09:32:13 PMPretty much this.
The pairing of Romulus's "Get away from her, you bitch" to "I'm asking you to pull the plug" is A+. I'd heard that line was terrible, but goddamn, that was bad.
Is there a one volume book available that charts the history of the Alien universe?
The Alien RPG by Free League?
Sounds pricey.
On sale at DriveThruRPG for $12.50 right now.
https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/293976/alien-rpg-core-rulebook (https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/293976/alien-rpg-core-rulebook)
I've seen some reasonably detailed (i.e. lengthy) overviews on Youtube advertised recently, though I haven't watched them.
Quote from: al_infierno on August 20, 2024, 09:54:22 PMI'd heard that line was terrible, but goddamn, that was bad.
Get away from this franchise. ...you... bitch?
:Dreamer: nice thank you!
I often think about Xenomorphs when I go to the Dentist. That's why I always check in all the corners before I sit in the reclining chair. :shocked:
I thought it might be because your dentures shot out like a xeno's mini mouth when you ogled the assistants.
Quote from: Sir Slash on August 21, 2024, 09:50:23 PMI often think about Xenomorphs when I go to the Dentist.
I often think about Xenomorphs when its 8/12. the night of the Perseides and i am more lying then sitting late after midnight alone in the dark garden with my back to the bushes, shrubbery (unarmed, its the German suburbs) ... and there are so small noises from time to time, ...a little rustle ... here ... and there ...and behind me ... and all the rustles are closing in on me ... and then one is direct behind me , maybe a yard from my head in the ivy :HideEyes:
I also think about ghosts and demons, but this is the land of my anchesters and their spirits will protect me, i say to myself: I am the sacriest and dangeroust thing on that little spot on earth :azn:
That is VERY deep Mike. Deep enough to cause me to actually...contemplate, something usually just confuses me more. The Xenomorphs are an advanced race of aliens, or are they? They have no advanced weaponry, just claws and teeth, no means of space travel other than hitching a ride on others spaceships, no language, tools, or writing. They can't even produce fire by themselves. And cannot reproduce without a host to infest. So, they're actually very ancient and primitive aren't they? They don't even eat us, just scare the shit out of us at the theater. That seems to be their sole purpose. But they do, do that very well don't they? :HideEyes:
The Alien RPG rulebook that SDR recommends above is only available digitally. Anyone know of an available print version? I am finicky like that.
Re Xenomorphs being an advanced race of alien: the short answer is 'no'.
The longer answer is, this is why Warhammer40K upgraded them A LOT into the Tyrannid race. Even back in classic Space Hulk (which of course is simply Camerons' Aliens vs Space Marines matchup translated to a different IP), the Genestealers had a lot more to them than their usual Xenomorphic charging melee forms which were (mostly) used in the actual game. Their other modes helped explain how they were able to travel the galaxy and secretly infect worlds (not only the hulks).
MikeGER, I know some German folklore and cryptid studies from Germany. Suburban areas are NOT safe.
Just try not to think of werewolves when out watching for fallings stars.
....JUST TRY... :evil:
Which reminds me, I'm surprised there haven't been more werewolf-swarm films or games. Dog Soldiers is the obvious film entry, nearly(?) the only one. For games.... Sang-Froid I guess?
Quote from: Gusington on August 22, 2024, 10:57:05 AMThe Alien RPG rulebook that SDR recommends above is only available digitally. Anyone know of an available print version? I am finicky like that.
https://www.amazon.com/sp?ie=UTF8&seller=A2LD5KOFCRAIEJ&isAmazonFulfilled=0&asin=9188805557&ref_=olp_merch_name_2 (https://www.amazon.com/sp?ie=UTF8&seller=A2LD5KOFCRAIEJ&isAmazonFulfilled=0&asin=9188805557&ref_=olp_merch_name_2)
https://www.gamenerdz.com/alien-the-roleplaying-game (https://www.gamenerdz.com/alien-the-roleplaying-game)
https://www.miniaturemarket.com/flfale002.html (https://www.miniaturemarket.com/flfale002.html)
I knew Pratt would have an answer for me. :notworthy: Do we know what Xenomorphs eat? I'm betting they're NOT vegan.
Being a silicone based lifeform, I suspect they eat minerals, although I don't know anything from the films that addresses this. Was the dogalien chomping down on the dead bull in Alien3? -- I can't recall if that was in one of the edits, or was a dropped sequence, or if I'm just imagining it.
^I don't remember that from Alien3...
They probably could eat anything. If their blood is acid, then their stomach contents must be pure nuclear radiation-type stuff. I wonder how they... Nevermind :HideEyes: .
I've seen enough versions of A3, including footage never included in either edit, that I really can't tell if I'm imagining the dogalien noshing on the dead bull. I do remember that the original plan was for the bull itself to have been facehugged, spawning the Xenomorph for this film!
:Dreamer:
The "Balls Deep" team who does anime recap and theories, also has a movie channel where four days ago they released an epic 2 hour 40 minute recap of the Xenomorph story including all films, comic books, and (supposedly though I doubt it) video games.
BEHOLD! ALIENS, BAAAAAALLLLLSSS DEEP!
^That is what I have been waiting for!
Be aware that the render accidentally dropped the summary of the original Alien film which started all this. I don't know if there will be a re-render.
I saw it in an IMAX theater. Not nearly as bad as I thought. Mind you, still bullshit compared to the early movies, but not as bad as I thought.
I suspect if it was watched in an unknown language, it would improve significantly. And be educational, too! :ThumbsUp:
Meanwhile, the guys who did the super-video storyline for the Alien franchise, linked to a few posts ago (minus
Alien itself by accident :HideEyes: ), have released a few more videos filling in their theories and rationales about various mysteries, like why a Xenomorph queen seems to be on the wall of the temple in Prometheus. (Actual reason, because the movie was retooled to try to connect to the Alien franchise late in production, but taking the story as established...)
I feel like if I do eventually watch any of the above collections they will drive me insane.
This is all a huge waste of time. Instead of wasting time worrying over the origin of Xenomorphs, they should be doing what really needs doing, explaining how the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles can still be teenagers after I plainly saw them in the theater over 30 years ago? :shocked:
They age in turtle years, not human years. Duh.
Quote from: Gusington on August 26, 2024, 02:05:16 PMI feel like if I do eventually watch any of the above collections they will drive me insane.
Having watched about half of the main video (which establishes the timeline/plot for the franchise) I can confidently answer yes.
:ThumbsUp:
:Dreamer:
Every 15 seconds of that pitch meeting had me throwing up my arms and going "Are you F-ing serious!?"
Jeez, I think I made the right call skipping this one.
That Pitch Meeting was accurate.
To be fair, Romulus looks on track to make more money than most of the other Alien films combined.
Quote from: JasonPratt on August 29, 2024, 10:36:04 PMThat Pitch Meeting was accurate.
To be fair, Romulus looks on track to make more money than most of the other Alien films combined.
And the CGI Lion King remake made a billion dollars, but who remembers or cares about that film?
The investors?
Disney needs all the hits they can get in recent years. Romulus counts as one of them, for better or for worse!
Just the thought of "Disney Alien" makes me want to dry heave. What next? Disney The Thing? Disney The Godfather?
I would love to see a musical number with Kurt Russell, Wilford Brimley, and the Thing.
Fortunately, The Thing is still a Universal horror monster. And so is still in the hands of Universal.
....what has their track record been in recent decades?
Oh, as a reminder, Disney did give us a new Predator movie already -- complete with a Disney princess! Not too bad either from what I've heard. It made enough money for Disney to continue with a sequel, and also a whole other Predator film which will star
Dakota Elle Fanning?
IMO no new movies is better than whatever Romulus is. I just don't like rehashed crap, I'd rather watch an original miss like Alien 3 and Resurrection than a mediocre remix of better movies.
I forget Prey was a Disney movie, that one was quite decent as I recall.
The originality is the main thing I appreciate about Prometheus and Covenant (that and the visuals). All the swings might be big misses, but big swings. They did okay financially, too, I think.