On the Sidelines of Ellen Ripley’s Story, Something Else Happened

Cailee Spaeny in "Alien: Romulus"
Photo Credit: RottenTomatoes.com

When director Ridley Scott returned to the “Alien” franchise in 2012 with his prequel, “Prometheus,” it was the first installment he directed since the 1979 original.  Although the prequel had its flaws, it was a visually mesmerizing film that set up some fascinating prospects as to where this mythology could expand.  Five years later, he gave us his followup, “Alien: Covenant,” which, despite being an okay entry, didn’t do much to move the pre-“Alien” story forward in a meaningful way.  Since then, any continuation of Scott’s new batch of films was abandoned.

Now, director Fede Álvarez brings us back to this iconic series with “Alien: Romulus.”  With this film, he doesn’t give us a prequel or sequel, but rather, a movie that takes place in between “Alien” and James Cameron’s 1986 followup, “Aliens.”  While it doesn’t reach the heights of those two films, it nevertheless shows that there’s still potential in this franchise to charter some new outer-space territory.

The story follows a group of space colonists who, while exploring an abandoned space station, must do what they can to survive when a xenomorph goes on the hunt.

Cailee Spaeny, who plays Rain Carradine, is a welcome addition to the leading ladies of the franchise, following in the footsteps of Sigourney Weaver, Noomi Rapace, and Katherine Waterson.  She exhibits the terror of being faced with a deadly, otherworldly being, while also showing the fortitude to keep as many of her group alive as possible.  It’s the type of performance that has become a staple of the series, one that carries a grit to it as Rain and her group must evade the bloody rampage of the xenomorph.  If there are more films that continue this storyline, Spaeny proves that she’s a force to be reckoned with to carry this narrative further.

Just as Spaeny succeeds in emulating those who came before in similar roles, David Jonsson does the same in his role as Andy, an android who accompanies the colonists.  Actors like Ian Holm, Lance Henriksen, and Michael Fassbender have all had a chance to portray such AI characters, and Jonnson puts his stamp on it as a robot who’s hopelessly adamant about making sure their mission directive is met.  He’s engaging to watch as you see him make decisions that he forms out of logic, but provides tension as we watch the consequences of such choices, see him come to terms with the effects, and how the rest of his group responds to it.

The screenplay by Álvarez and Rodo Sayagues, who collaborated on the scripts for Álvarez’s “Evil Dead” remake and “Don’t Breathe,” pretty much follows the basic outline of most “Alien” movies, but it still adds enough to the mythology to make the franchise’s overall story still worth exploring.  While some of the fan service can be a bit irksome on occasion, the narrative makes a few crazy, but effective creative decisions that involve some unexpected connections to other films in the series.  While the first two thirds of the film are pretty standard, but still fun and tense sci-fi horror, it’s the third act that offers quite a bit that can open some doors as to where this franchise can go.  Seven installments into this series (not including the two “Alien vs. Predator” movies), it’s great to see that there are still some enticing possibilities to be had.    

The cinematography by Galo Olivares, who’s working with Álvarez for the first time, offers both stunning visuals of space and accomplished framing of the space station’s interiors.  When it comes to the vastness of space, Olivares offers imagery that shows the beautiful and terrifying depth of outer space and what could be hiding amongst the stars and darkness.  When it comes to the space station, Olivares makes us apprehensive at the shadows of the many dark or low-lit rooms where anything can be hiding.

Álvarez is someone who’s exemplified a terrific handling when it comes to films where characters are in one location for a majority of the runtime, whether it be young adults stuck in a cabin facing off against supernatural forces in “Evil Dead,” or a group of burglars being retaliated against by a blind veteran in “Don’t Breathe.”  He takes that talent and presents it on a bigger scale with a space station and instills the terror for which he’s known.  Just as he did with “Evil Dead,” Álvarez exhibits a confidence in taking on a well-known series and providing his own sense of invention to the larger scope that has grown out of Ridley Scott’s iconic 1979 film that started it all.  He utilizes both practical effects and CGI imagery to great impact, mixing them in a way that shows a devotion to the lower-budget sensibilities of the earlier installments and the advanced effects of the later entries.

If what we see in “Romulus” is anything to go by, this series has more of those alien facehugger eggs to hatch.

Grade: B+

To Catch a Killer

Josh Hartnett in "Trap"
Photo Credit: RottenTomatoes.com

When it comes to writer-director M. Night Shyamalan’s filmography, while it may be popular to point out that the quality of his movies is all over the place, you can’t deny that it’s been fascinating to see him fluctuate between genres.  We’ve seen him tackle the supernatural with “The Sixth Sense,” sci-fi with “Signs,” superheroes with his “Unbreakable” trilogy, found-footage horror with “The Visit,” body horror with “Old,” and apocalyptic horror with “Knock at the Cabin.”  As divisive of a filmmaker as he might be, you almost can’t resist the intrigue of seeing what kind of spin he’ll put on a genre or sub-genre.

Up until now, Shyamalan hasn’t really done a film that could be seen as a straight thriller, something that doesn’t have ghosts, aliens, or superheroes.  However, he tries his hand at that with his latest film, “Trap.”  Although this movie isn’t one of Shyamalan’s best, there’s still much to enjoy with his so-absurd-it’s-good big-screen offering.

Cooper (Josh Hartnett) is a serial killer known as “The Butcher,” whose identity remans unknown.  When he takes his daughter, Riley (Ariel Donoghue), to a pop concert, he notices a heightened police presence and finds out its in place after a tip said he’ll be there.  As the concert goes on, Cooper will have to do whatever he can to avoid being found out and captured.

Hartnett looks like he’s having a lot of fun playing a villain.  He imbues his character with a slight fatherly goofiness that mixes well with his malicious side, creating a person that can make you chuckle in one scene and unsettle you in the next.  As Hartnett moves forward in the story, he does well in showing how his killer’s mind works when he tries to think on his feet as evading police presence becomes more difficult.  Hartnett shows his character with a jitteriness of being caught, but also a confidence of being able to get away with more of his heinous acts, a killer who keeps a level head, yet is anything but on the inside.  His impulse to inflict harm on his targets will have you wonder what he plans to do next, and Hartnett keeps us absorbed as a killer who’ll do whatever he can to keep his evil impulses alive.

The screenplay by Shyamalan unfolds as the most Hitchcockian narrative he’s done.  While it isn’t anywhere near as tightly plotted as the films from the Master of Suspense, Shyamalan manages to construct a story that still immerses you in the thrills.  Despite the off-kilter construction of the story, the narrative still seems pretty straightforward for the first two thirds of the film.  However, once you hit the third act, you’re in for a wallop as the story will have you grinning from ear to ear when it swerves into something that has an abundance of gleeful throw-logic-out-the-window fun.  Although the movie overstays its welcome by about 10 minutes, that certainly doesn’t dilute the whacky fun that precedes it.

One aspect of the script that provides some tension is how you pretty much experience the concert in real time.  By doing so, you feel the tension that Cooper experiences more and more as the event goes on, with him knowing that he only has a certain amount of time to accomplish what he wishes to accomplish.  This story unfolds as somewhat of a concert-thriller, and Shyamalan enhances that by including a few sequences of performances with catchy songs that were written and are sung by one of his daughters, Saleka Night Shyamalan, who plays Lady Raven, the pop star at the center of the concert.

As a director, the goofiness that Shyamalan gives some of his movies can be an enjoyable factor, so long as it doesn’t go completely off the rails, like in “The Happening.”  For “Trap,” he hits that sweet spot where he brings us enough of that humor, but doesn’t make it so that the film goes into “bad movie” territory.  Even with the bonkers nature of the third act, it’s still handled in such a way where you’re having fun instead of cringing.  In the middle of his take-it-or-leave-it brand of humor, Shyamalan still manages to keep your pulse pounding with the scenario in which he places his characters.  Part of that comes down to his collaboration with cinematographer Sayombhu Mukdeeprom, who’s working with Shyamalan for the first time.  With his camerawork, Mukdeeprom captures the many details of the setting, bringing us onstage, backstage, through the crowded hallways, and into the access-only areas.  By doing so, you’re immersed in the environment as you’re placed in Cooper’s frame of mind when he realizes there are eyes everywhere and he must avoid suspicion. 

This movie might not have all of the trappings that make for a top-tier thriller, but it certainly has enough to keep your attention ensnared.

Grade: B