‘Alien: Romulus’ reviews: ‘Gripping’ and ‘confidently spooky’ sci-fi horror film stars ‘badass’ Cailee Spaeny
There have been many installments in the “Alien” sci-fi horror franchise since the first film introduced Ellen Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) and the xenomorph back in 1979. The latest is “Alien: Romulus,” in which a team of space scavengers come across a terrifying life form on a derelict space station. Directed and co-written by Fede Alvarez, it opened in theaters on August 16. But is it any good?
The reception has been generally favorable. As of this writing the film boasts a MetaCritic score of 64 based on 51 reviews counted thus far: 31 are classified as positive, 17 are mixed and only three are outright negative. On Rotten Tomatoes, which classifies reviews simply as positive or negative, the film has a freshness score of 81% based on 201 reviews, only 38 of which give the film a thumbs down. The RT critics consensus says, “Honoring its nightmarish predecessors while chestbursting at the seams with new frights of its own, ‘Romulus’ injects some fresh acid blood into one of cinema’s great horror franchises.” To compare, the previous film in the franchise, the prequel “Alien: Covenant” (2017), was more divisive, receiving a similar score of 65 on MC, but a much lower 65% freshness rating on RT.
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James Mottram (NME) gives the film one of its most enthusiastic raves, calling “Romulus” “an ‘Alien’ film for the ages. Finally, someone has made a movie that comes close to the brilliance of Ridley Scott and James Cameron.” Johnny Oleksinski (New York Post) likes it too, saying that the “gripping film … goes back to the franchise’s basics,” and “it’s one of the long-running franchise’s better entries.” Jordan Hoffman (Entertainment Weekly) adds, “It is bleak and grimy and nauseating, but somehow manages to be a lot of fun … While it may not have the visual sweep of 2012’s ‘Alien’ prequel ‘Prometheus,’ it benefits from the simplicity of its storyline.” And while Owen Gleiberman (Variety) doesn’t think the film revolutionizes the franchise’s storytelling, he calls it “a confidently spooky, ingeniously shot, at times nerve-jangling piece of entertainment.”
Clarisse Loughrey (The Independent) is more ambivalent: “‘Alien: Romulus’ has the capacity for greatness,” but there’s too much emphasis on nostalgia “delivered with an increasing disinterest in logic, the needs of the narrative, or the desire to make ‘Romulus’ feel like one part of a larger universe.” Manohla Dargis (New York Times) praises “some good jump scares” but criticizes “a disappointingly bland heroine” played by “Priscilla” star Cailee Spaeny. Jocelyn Noveck (Associated Press) disagrees about that part, though, arguing that “Spaeny takes up the mantle of badass space fighter with aplomb, and is easily the best part of a movie that, like the 1979 original, is short on character development.” However, Mick LaSalle (San Francisco Chronicle), one of the few to decisively pan the film, is done with the whole franchise at this point: “The alien concept is dead. Leave it alone, and leave poor Ian Holm out of it.”
If “Romulus” is a hit, though, I suspect LaSalle won’t get his wish of putting “Alien” to bed at last. But considering the goodwill from other critics, more xenomorphs might be a welcome, if terrifying, sight.
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