NEW BLOOD: ALIEN COVENANT

ALIEN COVENANT
FOX 2017 Color
120 Mins.
Sci/Fi-Horror
Michael Fassbender, Katherine Waterston, Billy Crudup, James Franco, Danny McBride< Carmen Ejogoand Jussie Smolett star.
Written by Dan O' Bannon
Directed by Ridley Scott
Rated R for graphic violence, gore, strong language and nudity.

I know it's been a while since my last post. And this review is hella late but I was busy with life stuff like my 38th birthday and getting engaged to my wonderful boyfriend of five years. But truth be told reviewing this movie is a difficult thing. I've needed time to think about it and what I wanted to say. Now that the film has been out for two weeks and word of mouth isn't to positive I can say that I was undoubtedly disappointed. Not to say that the film is bad, because it isn't. First up let's discuss the plot which is pretty much Scott's version of Friday the 13th in space. A group of colonists discover a planet with the remains of an alien spaceship and set upon it. Almost immediately a sort of alien bacteria exposes itself to them and some people get infected.

(SPOILER) They eventually run into android Michael from Prometheus and a new kind of Xenomorph. The film sadly doesn't deliver on the films it wants to be or feels like it should be. The first half feels like a sequel to Prometheus and the second a half a half assed follow up to Alien/Aliens. When the action gets going which is pretty quickly it feels disjointed. Alien films have always been character driven and suspenseful. This entry doesn't really have any character work in it. Waterston is solid in the lead but her character feels confusing and a little disjointed and Fassbender does expectedly well with his parts but there just doesn't seem to be all that much to him besides being creepy in a god like fashion.

Sadly the film is filled with a bunch of tired genre clichés where people wander off unnecessarily, fire at explosives and decide to have sex in the aftermath of an Alien attack. There is some fun to be had here the special effects are cool as is the cinematography, there are some interesting action sequences although they feel out of place and some cheap scares here and there. The movie does nail an atmosphere of dread for the most part but it all feels very rushed through and dragged out at the same time. It can't choose whether it wants to be something substantial with an underlying theology and deeper subtext or just a run of the mill horror sci/fi action flick. Because it toggles between these it's not truly effective on either level.

 Worst of it all culminates to a generic Tales from the Crypt type ending. What is all the more confusing is that in the trailers, TV spots and scenes that appeared on line there seemed to be a lot more character work and extended sequences of suspense which were cut out. And that's really the goods that would have made this venture have more of an impact instead of feeling so episodic. In the end I'm sure the film will get better with a director's cut and multiple viewings but as for right now it barely makes the grade for decent summer entertainment. Which isn't a very high bar. My suggestion wait for VOD and give Prometheus a second shot it's a better film in my opinion one in which it feels like Scott wanted to make instead of feeling like he was obligated to. I didn't love that film the first time around but it's grown on me substantially as for Covenant I'm just not so sure. ***/5