Alien Romulus - Game Over, Man! Game Over!

Summary

The video script critiques the 'Alien' franchise, highlighting its decline from a classic horror to a series marred by poor sequels and misguided prequels. 'Alien: Romulus' is examined for its attempt to return to the series' roots with practical effects and a smaller budget, but is criticized for its predictable horror clichés, convoluted plot, and excessive action that undermines the tension and logic of the original concept. Despite good cinematography and production values, the script's flaws, especially in the third act, leave the film falling short of its potential.

Takeaways

• 🎥 The 'Alien' franchise has had a mixed track record, starting strong with the first movie but declining in quality with subsequent installments.
• 👽 'Alien: Romulus' was marketed as a return to the franchise's roots with a smaller budget and practical effects, aiming for a retro-futuristic feel.
• 🚀 The film's plot revolves around the recovery of a Xenomorph and a race against time to escape a decaying space station.
• 🤖 The character Andy, a decommissioned Android, plays a significant role as an adopted family member and a crucial element in the story's tech interface.
• 🌌 The setting is a dark mining planet with a harsh environment, reflecting the bleak conditions of deep space colonization.
• 🔥 The film's third act is criticized for its excessive action and loss of logical coherence, deviating from the established tension and plot.
• 👾 The script is accused of reusing elements from previous 'Alien' films and other movies, leading to a sense of unoriginality.
• 🎭 Despite a modest budget, the film boasts high-quality production values, including cinematography, design, and practical effects.
• 👍 The performances are generally well-received, with David Johnson's portrayal of Andy being particularly praised for its depth.
• 🚫 The script's third act is a point of contention, with many feeling it undermines the film's earlier build-up with excessive and illogical action.

Q & A

What is the general sentiment towards the 'Alien' franchise over the years as described in the script?

The script suggests that the 'Alien' franchise started strong with the first movie being one of the greatest horror films, followed by a good sequel. However, it declined with subsequent installments, including a grim third movie and a tacky fourth one. Attempts to cross over with 'The Predator' franchise and prequels were seen as overhyped and failed to meet expectations.

What was the initial promise of 'Alien: Romulus' according to the script?

The script indicates that 'Alien: Romulus' promised a return to the basics of the franchise with a smaller budget, practical effects, and a retro-futuristic production design reminiscent of the earlier movies, moving away from the high-minded philosophy of the 'Prometheus' movies.

How does the script describe the structure of 'Alien: Romulus'?

The script describes 'Alien: Romulus' as having a two-part structure. The first part is a well-paced sci-fi thriller with a simple premise, while the second part suffers from predictable horror tropes, dumb character decisions, and a loss of logical coherence, devolving into mindless action and body horror.

What are some of the specific criticisms of 'Alien: Romulus' mentioned in the script?

The script criticizes 'Alien: Romulus' for predictable horror tropes, character decisions that defy logic, protracted chase scenes, and a third act that is filled with ridiculous and exhausting plot elements that detract from the tension and world-building established earlier in the film.

What aspects of 'Alien: Romulus' does the script praise?

The script praises 'Alien: Romulus' for its cinematography, production design, props, costumes, and soundtrack, noting that it successfully replicates the look and feel of the original movie. It also appreciates the modest budget without sacrificing quality and the use of practical effects.

What is the setting of 'Alien: Romulus' and how does it relate to the original 'Alien'?

The script states that 'Alien: Romulus' is set about 20 years after the events of the original 'Alien' and begins with a Weyland-Yutani ship recovering the original Xenomorph from the wreckage of the Nostromo.

What is the main plot of 'Alien: Romulus' as described in the script?

The main plot revolves around the main character, Rain, who works on a mining planet and gets involved in a plan to steal cryopods from a derelict space station to escape to a better planet. However, they discover the station was a classified research facility experimenting on the Xenomorph, and they must escape before it explodes.

How does the script evaluate the characters in 'Alien: Romulus'?

The script finds the characters in 'Alien: Romulus' to be reasonable but not memorable, lacking the gravitas and depth of characters from earlier films in the franchise. It notes that the cast does a fine job but does not leave a significant impact due to the script's shortcomings.

What is the script's view on the third act of 'Alien: Romulus'?

The script criticizes the third act of 'Alien: Romulus' for being overly ridiculous and exhausting, with a series of implausible events that undermine the film's tension and logic.

What does the script suggest about the audience's reaction to 'Alien: Romulus'?

The script suggests that despite its flaws, 'Alien: Romulus' has been well-received by audiences, with a successful opening weekend and a lot of positive chatter online, although the script's author seems to disagree with this reception.

Outlines

00:00

👽 Alien Franchise Decline and Romulus Introduction

The script discusses the decline of the 'Alien' franchise, starting with its strong debut as a horror classic followed by a thrilling sequel. It criticizes the subsequent downward spiral with less successful sequels and ill-fated attempts at crossover with 'The Predator'. The introduction of 'Alien: Romulus' is presented as a return to the franchise's roots with a smaller budget and a focus on practical effects. The first part of the movie is praised for its pacing and production design but is criticized for its predictable horror clichés and loss of logic in the latter part, leading to a shift from suspense to mindless action.

05:00

🎬 Romulus: A Mix of Borrowed Ideas and Unoriginality

This paragraph delves into the plot of 'Alien: Romulus', highlighting the setting 20 years after the original and the discovery of a derelict space station with a hidden research facility. The summary points out the film's reliance on borrowed ideas from previous movies, including the pulse rifles, the hive, and the black goo. It also touches on the main characters' struggle to escape the station before it explodes and questions the trustworthiness of the upgraded Android, Andy. The paragraph acknowledges the film's strong points, such as its cinematography and production design, while criticizing its unoriginality and a third act that is overly convoluted and nonsensical.

10:01

🚀 Romulus: A Missed Opportunity for Excellence

The final paragraph reflects on the public's positive reception of 'Alien: Romulus' despite its shortcomings. It suggests that the film's success may be due to nostalgia or a lack of comparison with the superior first two 'Alien' movies. The critique emphasizes the missed opportunity to create a compelling story with the elements in place, and the frustration with the film's ending, which detracts from the rest of the movie. The script ends with a recommendation to rewatch the original films for a better understanding of effective storytelling in the franchise.

Keywords

💡Alien Franchise

The 'Alien Franchise' refers to the series of science fiction horror films that began with 'Alien' in 1979. The term is key to understanding the video's theme as it discusses the evolution and quality of the films over time. In the script, the franchise's trajectory is critiqued, noting its strong start and subsequent decline with various sequels and prequels.

💡Horror Movies

Horror movies are a film genre that aims to elicit fear, scare, or startle viewers. The script mentions 'Alien' as one of the greatest horror movies, emphasizing the genre's significance in the franchise's identity and the video's discussion of its effectiveness in instilling fear and tension.

💡Sequels

Sequels are films that continue the story of an earlier film. The script refers to the 'Alien' sequels, particularly the second one, which retained the tension and horror of the original while increasing the stakes and pacing, illustrating the importance of sequels in extending and evolving the franchise's narrative.

💡Cinematic Tropes

Cinematic tropes are common themes, devices, or clichés in film. The script criticizes the use of predictable horror tropes in the franchise's later installments, such as characters making poor decisions, which contributes to the video's argument about the decline in quality.

💡Prequels

Prequels are films that precede the events of an earlier work. The script mentions 'Alien: Prometheus' as a prequel that attempted to answer questions about the franchise's universe but ended up overblown and overhyped, reflecting on the video's critique of the franchise's narrative choices.

💡Corporate Greed

Corporate greed refers to the excessive pursuit of profits by corporations, often at the expense of other concerns. The script suggests that corporate greed has led to the exploitation of the 'Alien' franchise, with studios pushing for more films despite a lack of creative direction, highlighting a broader theme of commercial interests impacting artistic integrity.

💡Retro Futuristic

Retro futuristic is a design aesthetic that combines elements of the past with futuristic concepts. The script praises 'Alien: Romulus' for returning to this aesthetic, which is seen in the production design of the earlier films, indicating a positive aspect of the franchise's attempt to reconnect with its roots.

💡Cinematic Philosophy

Cinematic philosophy refers to the underlying themes and ideas that give a film depth and provoke thought. The script notes the abandonment of high-minded philosophy in 'Prometheus' for a more straightforward approach in 'Romulus', which is part of the video's critique of the franchise's thematic evolution.

💡Interpersonal Tension

Interpersonal tension is the conflict or strain between characters in a story. The script mentions this as a factor that could have added drama to 'Romulus', but it is overshadowed by other issues, showing the video's expectation for character dynamics in the franchise.

💡Body Horror

Body horror is a subgenre of horror that focuses on the graphic transformation or destruction of the human body. The script acknowledges the use of practical effects and body horror in 'Romulus', appreciating the film's attempt to stay true to the franchise's roots while also critiquing its execution.

💡Cinematic Borrowing

Cinematic borrowing refers to the reuse of ideas, themes, or elements from other films. The script criticizes 'Romulus' for borrowing heavily from other movies in the franchise, suggesting a lack of originality and creativity, which is central to the video's argument about the film's shortcomings.

Highlights

The 'Alien' franchise has not consistently improved over time, with a strong start followed by a decline in quality.

The original 'Alien' film is considered one of the greatest horror movies, with a sequel that maintained its tension and horror.

Subsequent installments, particularly the third and fourth, were seen as a downturn in the series' quality.

Attempts to cross over with 'The Predator' franchise were unsuccessful.

The prequels to 'Alien' were criticized for being overhyped and answering unwanted questions.

The 'Alien' series faced a creative and moral decline, attributed to corporate greed.

'Alien: Romulus' promised a return to the franchise's roots with a smaller budget and practical effects.

The film 'Alien: Romulus' was compared to 'Prometheus', with mixed results.

The first part of 'Romulus' is praised for its pacing and production design, but the execution falters.

The film suffers from predictable horror tropes and a lack of character intelligence.

The script of 'Romulus' is criticized for its lack of logic and overuse of action.

The setting of 'Romulus' is 20 years after the original 'Alien', with a new storyline involving a derelict space station.

The film's plot involves a mining colony, a decommissioned Android, and a plan to escape to a better planet.

The space station in 'Romulus' is revealed to be a classified research facility with experiments on the Xenomorph.

The script of 'Romulus' is criticized for borrowing heavily from other movies in the franchise.

Despite a modest budget, 'Romulus' delivers high-quality visuals and practical effects.

The cast of 'Romulus' is considered reasonable but lacks the memorability of previous 'Alien' films.

The third act of 'Romulus' is particularly criticized for its excessive and nonsensical plot points.

The film 'Romulus' has been divisive, with some praising it highly while others find it lacking.

The review suggests re-watching the first two 'Alien' films for a better understanding of effective storytelling in the franchise.

Transcripts

I think it's fair to say that the alien

franchise hasn't exactly gone from

strength to strength over the years yeah

it opened strong with one of the

greatest horror movies of all time

followed by an action-packed sequel that

retained the tension and horror while up

in the stakes and pacing then it all

started to go down hill with a grim

mean- Spirit third installment that

spoiled everyone's fun and a weird tacky

cash grab fourth movie that we don't

talk about now after trying and failing

twice to cross over with The Predator

franchise we were subjected to a pair of

overblown overhyped prequels that tried

to answer questions nobody wanted to ask

and proved that film directors don't

always get better with age and honestly

that really felt like the end every

possible Avenue had been explored every

permutation of the original concept had

been tried and the poor old Xenomorphs

had finally been defeated by the one

enemy that even they couldn't overcome

corporate greed but hey when you're a

creatively and morally bankrupt Studio

that's paid an obscene amount of money

for 20th Century Fox and all the IPS

under their Banner you're going to find

a way to dig just a little deeper which

brings me neatly along to alien Romulus

ditching the pretentious high-minded

philosophy of the Prometheus movies the

trailers instead promised a more strip

down Back to Basics approach to the

alien franchise a smaller budget

practical effects and a return to the

Retro futuristic production design of

the earlier movies so far so good but

does it actually

deliver well watch an alien Prometheus

feels like two very different movies

awkwardly bolied together the first one

is a tight well-paced sci-fi thriller

with a simple premise great production

design a small cast of characters an

intriguing mystery and some excellent

performances by talented actors in short

it's a simple but effective foundation

for what could have been a decent alien

movie the problems begin when setup has

to give way to execution and the tension

gets squandered by the predictable

horror tropes of dumb characters making

dumb decisions protracted Chase scenes

Shameless key jangling and repurpose

dialogue and by the end all sense of

logic and consequences goes completely

out the window and the film devolves

into mindless action and Goofy attempts

at body horror now I suspect I'm going

to take a lot of flak for saying this

because for some reason everyone [ __ ]

loves this movie but what the hell I am

become Drinker the destroyer of Dreams

anyway grab your pulse rifle and motion

tracker and let's begin shall we so

Romulus is set about 20 years after the

events of the original alien and it

kicks off with a wh and utani ship

recovering the original xenomorph from

the wreckage of the Nostromo now I'm

pretty sure that the Nostromo was

vaporized by not one but three

thermonuclear

[Music]

explosions and the xenomorph was blasted

out into space from Ripley's Escape pod

so the chances of actually finding it

two decades later are about equal to

finding an attractive woman at a

Warhammer convention but man it sure is

cool to see stuff from the original

movie am I right keep that little

writing philosophy in mind because it'll

be important later anyway the real

action picks up with our main character

rain who works as a laborer on a mining

Planet run by the company she lives with

a decommissioned Android named Andy who

acts as a kind of adopted brother for

her anyway she's not exactly thrilled to

be trapped on a planet where it's dark

24 hours a day and the life expectancy

hovers somewhere around medieval Europe

honestly love try living in Scotland it

seems like a picnic by comparison but

when her contract gets extended due to

labor shortages it's pretty obvious that

the company is never actually going to

let her leave that's when she's

contacted by her ex-boyfriend Tyler with

news that a deric space station has been

detected orbiting the planet Tyler and

his Carew plan to head up there in a

cargo hauler steal some cryopods and use

them to travel to a much nicer Planet a

few light years away the catch is that

they need Andy's help because he's the

only one who can interface with the

station's computer before you can ask

questions like why is nobody else

investigating this space station or

wouldn't wh and utani have sent out

their own recovery team for it rain and

the others are on their way they make it

on board and discover that the station

isn't derelict at all in fact it was

some kind of classified research

facility experimenting on the xenomorph

and well it went about as well as you

might expect the other problem is that

its orbit is decaying so they only have

a few hours to find what they need get

back to their ship and get the hell out

of there not bad a small group of

characters with a clear objective a

ticking clock a dangerous threat to

contend with and some interpersonal

tension to ratchet up the drama not

exactly revolutionary but a decent

foundation for a neat little alien

Adventure unfortunately this is where

the script starts to go off the rails

one of the crew gets infected by a face

hugger and tries to escape on the cargo

hauler but oh no the chest burster kills

her just as they're lifting off you know

I'm pretty sure that the whole process

from face hugger to chess burster is

supposed to take a couple of days but

now it's basically instantaneous for the

sake of plot convenience

and oh no the cargo huler crashes into

the station and causes a big explosion

that pushes it off orbit and then comes

to rest completely intact in a hanger on

the other side of the station wow that

was a lucky chain of events lucky it

didn't just tumble off into space or get

completely destroyed like the drop ship

from Aliens remember that remember how

it triggered an overload in the

atmosphere processor so the characters

had to find a way to escape the writers

of this script certainly do and while

I'm on that subject that's not the only

idea that they borrowed from other

movies remember the pulse rifles

remember Ash remember the Alien Hive

remember the laser Mist remember the

black goo what was that black goo

remember the alien Skeletor baby

remember the fourth act Stinger remember

this line I prefer the ter artificial

person myself or this line but you have

my this or this line get away from her

you [ __ ] I've heard enough of this I'm

asking you to pull the plug honestly I

could probably spend about 2 hours

listing all the stuff this film

shamelessly steals from other movies in

the franchise but for the sake of

brevity I'll move on so the main

objective now is for the gang to hike

across the station avoid the aliens

recover the cargo huler and Escape

before the whole place goes boom Oh yeah

and Andy's been upgraded with a new

operating system so he's like super Andy

now but can they still trust him or is

he now a servant of the company what's

the true purpose behind the research

here and will any of them make it out

alive now I don't want to go all in the

negativity right off the bat there are

things in Romulus that are really

appreciated so let's go through them

first the cinematography production

design props costumes and soundtrack are

all excellent they've successfully

replicated the look and feel of the

original movie and I appreciated the

opening segment on the mining Colony

that gives us an actual window into what

it's like for normal people working on a

wh and utani worlds I like the early

hints that humans are struggling with

deep space colonization hence the

attempts to mix them with alien DNA to

make them Stronger Yeah the payoff

doesn't make much sense when you realize

the solution is to turn all of humanity

into horrifyingly deformed monsters or

the fact that they already have perfect

workers in the form of Androids who

never get tired or sick or have to be

paid but whatever I like the fact that

this project was done on a pretty modest

budget of 80 million without sacrificing

quality or scope proven that you don't

need hundreds of millions of dollars to

deliver a top-notch visual experience it

uses a lot of practical effects there's

some decent Gore and body horror and the

production probably saved a ton of of

money by not hiring any bigname actors

on that subject the cast all do a

reasonable job I say reasonable rather

than great because they're nowhere near

as memorable as the crew of the Nostromo

for example partly because the decision

to cast a bunch of 20-some robs them of

some much needed gravitas and partly

because the script doesn't tell us a

whole lot about them despite the amount

of time we actually spend with them in

Alien I felt like I knew the crew pretty

well within like the first 15 minutes

but by the end of Romulus I struggle to

name a single character or what the

personality was like because they all

have the same background played by

actors of roughly the same age the only

exception to all of this is David

Johnson who does a superb job playing

two completely different versions of the

same character in Andy it's great stuff

and he really captures the innocent

vulnerability of a being that's trying

his best to fit in without really

understanding the people around him kayy

spy is fine as rain I guess she doesn't

have sigoni Weaver's intensity and

Charisma or numi rac's physicality but

she gets the job done without too much

fuss rain's likable enough and her

relationship with Andy is a nice Twist

on the usual Dynamics we see in films

like this even if it doesn't come close

to the emotional impact of Ripley and

new the actors are fine the director's

good and the production is excellent the

only real problem is the script

especially the third act which throws so

much ridiculous [ __ ] at you that it

honestly feels like it was lifted from a

completely different movie before you

know it characters will be flying up and

down elevator shafts fighting aliens

while the gravity goes Haywire or

shooting a swarm of them with a pulse

rifle and acting surprised when acid

blood goes flying everywhere or

injecting themselves with the black goo

for no reason so that they can give

birth to an alien baby that instantly

transforms into a 10t tall human

xenomorph engineer hybrid for yet

another climactic Showdown the script

just never lets up it doesn't know when

to quit and instead of being

exhilarating it just becomes kind of

tedious and exhausting by the end all

that carefully crafty tension and World

building just goes out of the window in

a confusing melor of what I can best

describe as JJ ABR brand of Rapid Fire

stupidity just keep hitting the audience

with more idiotic stuff that makes zero

sense but looks really good so they

never have time to stop and think about

it before the next dumb thing comes

along basically Romulus has got a strong

opening a slightly shaky middle and a

finale that screws the pooch so hard

that the pooch is going to be in therapy

for the rest of its natural life it's

not exactly a terrible movie but it's

definitely not great either and what's

frustrating is all the right elements

were there to deliver something so much

better than what we got and what's weird

is that people seem to be going nuts

over this film it's had a huge opening

weekend and if you believe the chatter

are online it's the greatest thing since

Sigourney Weaver picked up a pulse rifle

to people who think that way I would

politely suggest they go back and

rewatch the first two aliens movies

really think about how they worked how

they handle their characters and

relationships and escalate the tension

and Stakes while staying fairly

believable and then come back and tell

me what you really think about Romulus

somehow I don't think you'll be quite so

positive anyway that's all I've got for

today go away now