Alien: Covenant

ALIEN:COVENANT (2017) had the deck stacked against it going in. It had the arduous task of both trying to live up to Ridley Scott's more revered '79 Alien masterpiece as well as James Cameron's widely acclaimed action sequel, '86 Aliens, PLUS it had to both somewhat make up for Scott's dubious '12 prequel Prometheus with it's mixed reaction. Prometheus was a movie that was hyped to the hilt and made a ton of money, but alternated between being hailed some ethereal "people just don't get it" masterpiece (a la 2001) versus a pretentious, bloated, flashy, terribly acted CGI exercise that was nothing more than hot garbage. Count me in the latter group! LOL I really dislike Prometheus and can't get past it's utterly stupid characterizations which sank the film for me. At the end of the day, I think character trumps CGI, something I randomly preach in my reviews. I'll take character over effects any day of the week and twice on Sunday. For myself, in terms of characters, Alien:Covenant absolutely craps on Prometheus for the simple fact that not a single character in Covenant ANNOYED me, while virtually every single character in Prometheus accomplished that dubious feat! To me, Covenant is the 2nd best Alien film (minority opinion, I know) and it's not really saying much as Scott's '79 film Alien is one of the great multi-genre (sci-fi, horror, thriller, character study) of all time. The overrated '86 sequel Aliens is just an abrasive summer action flick, nothing more. Then there's the underwhelming Alien3 and Alien:Resurrection. And of course the massive disappointment Prometheus. So Covenant didn't have much to overcome. What Covenant did that Prometheus failed to do is keep it simple: simple story, simple characters, simple plot and in doing so, culminates in a very re-watchable, enjoyable summer movie experience. Also, unlike Prometheus, Covenant actually makes me look forward to the next sequel! Covenant starts with a prologue sequence of the creation of the android David (the best character from Prometheus, reprised by the great Michael Fassbender) in the early 21st century by billionaire Peter Weyland (well played in esteemed fashion by Guy Pearce, also reprising his role, but this time as the young version of Weyland). Peter and David converse about the human condition and the irony that even though Weyland created him, David will actually live forever while Weyland is destined to expire, like all humans. Flash forward to the early 22nd century and the colonial spaceship Covenant, maintained on it's way to the habitable Origae-6 planetary system by the ship's synthetic being Walter (also played by Fassbender in a completely believable dual role). The ship encounters a solar flare which causes it's life-support systems to malfunction, compelling Walter to get the ship's main computer "Mother" to awake the 14-member crew from cryosleep and fix the ship, which is also carrying 2000 colonists still in cryosleep and over 1000 embryos for building a new world. With the incident causing the original Captain's cryotube to fail and burn up, the leadership role is taken over by Captain Oram (excellently played by veteran actor Billy Crudup). Oram is a man of faith and a bit shaken by the incident and unsure of if the crew trusts his leadership style. The 2nd-in-command is the feisty Daniels (strongly played by Katherine Waterston), the wife of the original captain who must soldier on without her husband. Rounding out the main characters are down-to-earth ship's pilot Tennessee (winningly played by Danny McBride), stalwart crew biologist and Oram's wife Karine (stolidly played by Carmen Ejogo), crew shuttle pilot and Tennessee's wife Faris (confidently played by Amy Seimetz), security team leader Sergeant Lope (cheekily played by Demian Bichir), and married crew co-pilots Upworth and Ricks (solidly played by Callie Hernandez and Jussie Smollett). Upon repairing the ship, the crew discovers a transmission on a nearby (and apparently life-sustaining) planet and go to investigate the distress signal as well as research and map out the planet as a permanent home in lieu of traveling for another 7 years to Origae-6. Upon touching down, the planet at first appears perfect, but as the group further investigates, it's not long before things turn out to good to be true, and the group runs into trouble and must navigate their way out of it somehow. Surprisingly, the film has a healthy amount of action and the scenes are all tense and edge-of-your-seat. The aliens are pretty intimidating and agile in this as Covenant combines elements from the 3 most popular films of the franchise Alien, Aliens, and Prometheus. Yet I feel as if Covenant stands well on it's own as an entertaining horror-thriller-action movie. I feel as if Covenant took the "less is more" approach and succeeded in spades! I had to re-watch Covenant (glad to do it) to realize how perfectly modulated the supporting performances were and how in sync the actors played off each other to resonate as a real crew. Just subtle things showed these people had known each other for a long time and I liked the way their rather by-the-numbers dialogue bounced off each other very naturally. While Fassbender easily stole the show as Walter/David (doesn't he always?), the rest of the actors should be commended for being very natural in their performances, unlike the characters in Prometheus who felt like cardboard cutout cartoons most of the time. I think the people roasting this movie for bad performances and weak, stupid characters do it a major disservice. I think they are conflating it too much with Prometheus, which is an abomination in terms of both character and acting. The characters in Covenant behaved very real to me, the way they reacted to the rather crazy circumstances they encountered. The shocks, the jump scares, the reactions all felt genuine. I might say that I tend to agree that the CGI wasn't the greatest, but as I've repeatedly said, I'll take character over CGI anyday and for me, the characters worked in this film, along with many other elements that kept it entertaining from start to finish. I would say this movie is underrated and give it a few years and people will re-visit Covenant as the deserving addition to the Alien franchise it truly is.

Does the Alien series have a fluid story- from start to finish? I always wonder, especially after Prometheus and this movie... were the movies made after the Alien series began (like the two previously mentioned), made to fit a story already out there- or did those who created the Alien series- have this general idea- the back-story of how Aliens came about- set up from the very start (which was what, 1979- a long time ago) I will say that I have no fluid idea of the Alien movies- from start to finish. I have watched all the movies at one time or another- and before I go to the great beyond- if I ever get to the sub-set of my bucket list where figuring out the Alien series is listed, I will fulfill this need for knowledge. But Alien Covenant, I believe, fits in somewhere in the storyline and I have so many more movies to watch again- to figure out where.... Of all the Alien movies- this one- definitely rocks- and is thought-provoking (as you can tell from my review). In it, there is a robot, created by man. You meet a later creation (Walter) of the same robot that was the first (David) when they are both all alone on a planet (except for the little space crew left) and you see, because he was the first- he has SO MANY flaws. But the flaws are there because, it seems, of what humans forbade him to do. The one thing this robot (David) seems to want most- is to create. Because humans denied him the ability, David says to Walter (when they meet)- "to create even a simple tune" (or something like that). David's drive in life seems to be fueled by the anger over this- and it makes him want to "create" all the more. For some reason the ship David was on (ten years before this new crew stumbles onto the planet) carried a virus he released- maybe he manipulated what they had while in the air- after- but it seems when it ate all the people on the planet- well, that was never clear to me- just that all the people were gone on the planet because of what David did (and some aliens on the planet attacked this new crew that had the back luck to land on it). After that, since he is all alone, he seems to manipulate this virus further- to create the aliens- or a version like the ones we know (the eggs where the jumping aliens come from). When you see the body of a woman on the ship he claims he once loved (I think her name was Elizabeth, who he now has a stone with her name on)- her body looks lacquered, and cut and pried open- and that maybe something came out of it, was taken out of it. But David has done a lot of studying in the ten years he has been on the planet- and has parasites ready for human (or any) DNA- so that they can alter their form into an alien. You easily learn that this virus- when mixed with a living form- creates a new product- an alien. This virus brings birth- a new from- and kills what it comes out of- destruction in creation- and David finds it beautiful The irony of the story is David has this love of creation for these things- these aliens- as animalistic and violent as they are- and he destroys humans (and all other living things) to create them. It seems that David only has a love for the things that he can create- and no care for what he will destroy to make these creations. David destroyed an entire world- not even knowing the people on it- and there he sat for ten years, waiting- hoping- to destroy more. He may have even lured the ship that came to him....Ten years later, the ship with Walter and his crewmates shows up- and- in the end- we see how the creation of aliens gets off the initial planet it destroyed (as we so often see at the end of Alien movies as a ship leaves, with an alien hiding on it)....Fuuny there is a twist to this Alien cliffhanger ending... It's a great movie, although one you have to watch several times to get the entire story (as you can tell from my review) but to put the whole Alien saga together to get a fluid picture of how and why this happened- you're going to have to pay a lot of attention- to many movies- This, I would say, is where Aliens begin- with David who was essentially created by man- and created aliens to punish his creator for denying him his right to do what they can But remember, these are my thoughts and opinions only. Please take them for what they are and when you enjoy this movie on your own- develop your own- which may be the same or different- regardless, enjoy the movie- I know I did! Thank you- Happy Viewing!

This is a pre-quel to Alien, I enjoyed the movie. It goes more in depth and some of the characters are engaging. The best of the Alien Saga will still be Alien and Aliens.

Five years after Ridley Scott triumphantly returned to the "Alien" franchise that he started with 2012's "Prometheus", the director is back with another chapter in the "Alien" prequel series with 2017's "Alien: Covenant". While technically a continuation of the story that unfolded in the divisive 2012 prequel, "Covenant" manages to strike a more favorable balance between director Scott's desires to push the series in a new direction while paying homage to the series' sci-fi/horror roots that long term fans felt "Prometheus" lacked. Monsters and buckets of blood abound when the crew of the colony ship Covenant is awoken seven years early from hyper-sleep on their way to a far away planet to start a new human settlement. While making repairs to the ship, the crew intercept a strange transmission coming from a nearby planet that appears on the surface to be an uncharted paradise and a much more favorable location for their new colony. When the crew lands on the planet and track the signal to crashed alien ship, they discover a horror unlike anything they ever imagined, as one by one the crew and colonists are killed gruesomely by the alien creatures that inhabit the planet. The aliens however prove to be a much smaller threat to them when they encounter the android David (Michael Fassbender), survivor of the Prometheus expedition who has been stuck on the planet ever since he crash landed there with Dr. Elizabeth Shaw (Noomi Rapace). After watching "Covenant" in theaters, it was painfully obvious at points in the film that Ridley Scott, and 20th Century Fox, has listened to the cries of disappointed fans that had less than positive remarks about 2012's "Prometheus", a film while flawed in several ways, was a mostly satisfying return to the sci-fi roots of Scott's earlier work, as well as a welcome return to form for the "Alien" franchise. While many fans bemoaned that film's philosophical themes and ponderous tone, as well as the story about the origins of mankind, I found the focus on these new themes and the turn away from the monster violence and action of the previous films to be a welcome change of pace for the franchise, as well as the deepening mythology and exploration of several unanswered mysterious from the 1979 classic original, "Alien". For me, "Prometheus" returned the class and rich tone back to the series, and after leaving theaters, I was eagerly awaiting a follow up. Flash forward to 2017, it appears that instead of giving fans a proper follow up to Prometheus, Scott and Fox are trying to please all sides of the fan base by returning the titular Xenomorph to the franchise and providing plenty of murderous mayhem, while also continuing the themes of creation and the origin of life that began in the previous film. True to form for the series, the film opens, after an extended prologue featuring David and his creator/father Peter Weyland (Guy Pierce), with the crew of the space colony ship Covenant begin awoken from hypersleep after a neutrino burst damages the ship and kills several crew and colonists, among them Capt. Branson (James Franco in a "blink in you'll miss it" cameo). After the crew mourns their fallen Captain, they set out to repair the ship and resume course to their destination. However, the crew pick up a strange transmission of a mysterious woman singing "Take Me Home (Country Roads)" by John Denver that is coming from a nearby planet. Scans of the planet show that is it seemingly a much better candidate for colonization. Despite objections from terraforming expect Daniels (Katherine Waterson), newly appointed Captain Oram (Billy Crudup) decides to investigate to see if the planet is indeed a better settlement. Once the crew land, they find that they've made a grave mistake. The first act of the film was for me the freshest and most engaging part of the film, as we are introduced to the cast of the film and explore the Covenant a little bit. While some critics of the film have noted that the characters barely stand out or register as people, I beg to differ. All the actors here manage to deliver, even the one relegated to secondary roles. Waterson, Crudup, and Amy Seimetz, who plays Farris, are all standouts for me. Even Danny McBride, who plays Farris' husband Tennessee, manages to subvert expectations and deliver one of the more nuanced and emotional performances. Daniels, who comes across as a Ripley substitute for some of the more vocal critics of the film, manages to carve out a niche for herself as the more levelheaded and intelligent members of the crew. Make no mistake though, when pushed to the brink, Daniels rises to the challenge and embodies that fierce spirit and fighting energy that Sigourney Weaver managed to pull off so effortlessly as Ripley. I also loved the colony crew/couples angle the film went with in this area.The film, taking cues from the 1986 classic "Aliens", follows the colony crew as they prepare to set up a human settlement on a far way planet. It was refreshing and made for a more emotionally resonate film, as the deaths of each characters are mourned by their loved ones and friends. Take Daniels for example, who was married to Captain Branson before his death. We get to see her mourn his death and cherish some of their memories and mementos before having to resume her duty to the crew and colonists. After the crew lands on the planet and traces the signal to the crash Juggernaut from "Prometheus", the tables drastically and horrifically turn on the inexperienced crew, who soon find themselves infected by alien spores that birth new alien creatures not seen before in the saga, to so called Neomorphs. In a particularly gruesome scene, a crew member is infected by an alien spore, and after being rushed back to the landing ship, has a Neomorph burst violently from his back, in an homage to the classic chestburster scene in the original film. Farris attempts to kill the newborn alien but in the chaos inadvertently blows up the drop ship, thus stranding the crew on the planet. Another crew member births a Neomorph through his throat. After several crew members are killed by the alien creatures, they are scared away by a mysterious cloaked figure. The remaining crew follow the figure to a walled off city littered with thousands of petrified corpses of Engineers. The figure reveals himself as David, survivor of the Prometheus expedition. He reveals that he and Dr. Shaw landed there after fleeing LV-223 and searching for the Engineer homeworld. When they arrived, the Juggernaut unleashed the deadly black pathogen upon the populace and in the resulting chaos, the ship crashed, killing Dr. Shaw. While David seems welcoming at first, Daniels and Walter, David's android counterpart for the Covenant, distrust him from the beginning. This second act of the film is where "Covenant" embraces its "Prometheus" connections and follows up more on the events of that film, filling us in on what became of David and Shaw after their flight from LV-233. The interactions between Walter and David are by far the highlights of the film, as David displays a rabid fascination with Walter, while Walter himself is more reserved and intrigued by the fate of Dr. Shaw. We see David sorrowfully tell Walter how he misses and loved Shaw and wished she were still with him. This is a fantastic portrayal of artificial intelligence, and raises many questions about the nature of creation and robotics. It nicely connects with the prologue from the beginning of the film, and furthers the development of David's character arc that started in "Prometheus". The film makes many references to "Paradise Lost" and Fassbender himself quotes "Ozymandias", an attempt no doubt by Scott to retain the philosophical tone of "Prometheus". It mostly works in this film, though it stands in sharp contrast with the final act and the sci-fi/horror tone the rest of the film has. However, it is also here that the film commits it's cardinal sin in my opinion, in regards to its treatment of Dr. Shaw. Her arc in "Prometheus" was that film's emotional core and backbone, and we later find out she was killed in the interim between "Prometheus" and "Covenant". Along with "Alien 3", this continues the franchises sad history of discarding its best characters for the sake of introducing new ones. It is a stab in the back to both Noomi Rapace, who is sorely missed here, and the fans of "Prometheus" that waited five years to see what became of her and David. While Rapace did reprise her role in the promotional short film "The Crossing", none of that footage is featured in the film. Shaw's dog-tags, found by the Covenant crew in the crashed Juggernaut have more screen time than Rapace does. Had said footage been included in the film, it would have certainly softened the blow, while providing a suitable send off for the character. The later reveal of what actually happened to her hammers the point home, but more on that in a moment. The Neomorph is shown to follow the Covenant crew into the Engineer city, and resume its murderous killing spree. After coming across the creature interacting with David, Oram kills the Neomorph, to which David violently and emotionally reacts to. After luring Oram into a room filled with the classic facehugger eggs, David watches in delight as Oram is attacked by said creature and is horrifically killed when a chestburster is born from him. It is at this point that Daniels and Walter, both unnerved by David's actions and presence, both independently come across evidence of David's experiments with Engineer technology and the black pathogen, revealing that David is the creator of the classic Xenomorph. Walter himself also come across Shaw's mutilated and dissected body, to which David reveals he killed her in order to use her body to create the "perfect specimen", in another homage to "Alien". This was a major bone of contention with many long term fans of the franchise. While many argue that the reveal of the Xenomorph's origins robs the said creatures of their mysterious nature and ability to terrify, I'd argue that those had long since been taken away from the franchise after years of exposure and their continued popularity within mainstream media. The long line of subpar installments in the franchise before "Prometheus" also contributed to this. For me, not only was this a natural extension of David's arc from "Prometheus", it provides further extension of the new mythology of the prequel series, something "Covenant" mostly skips by on. One can only keep something dark and mysterious forever before it becomes stale and boring. By providing us with answers, we can now explore new sides of the Xenomorphs and the series as a whole. It also fits in quite well with the themes of life and creation the series has thus far been centered around. The only gripe I have with this is once again the treatment of Dr. Shaw, whose body is used by David to aid him in the creation of the aliens. This was not the way to end her character arc and it will now forever be a missed opportunity and an example of "what could have been". It does provide a layer of dark irony however, as Dr. Shaw noted she was unable to "create life" due to her being infertile, and now David has corrupted her body to give birth to a race of creatures that would kill hundreds if not thousands of people later in the saga. David and Walter square off, with David seemingly gaining the upper hand and dispatches Walter. He then sets his sights on Daniels, who has uncovered David's drawings of Shaw and finds out the horrible truth of what happened to her. Promising to do to her what he did to Shaw, David attempts to murder Daniels but is rescued by Walter, who is revealed to have upgraded healing capabilities to David's surprise. Walter fends off David long enough for Daniels to escape with the only other surviving crew member, Sergeant Lope (Demián Bichir), who was attacked by another facehugger but was saved by another crew member only to be killed by the now fully grown adult Xenomorph. Back on the Covenant, Tennessee manages to deploy the second terraforming drop-ship to rescue Lope and Daniels, but is intercepted by the Xenomorph, who climbs aboard the ship. Walter also emerges, seemingly survived his encounter with David and is rescued by the crew. As the drop ship is taking off, the crew notice the alien has followed them, and Daniels tethers herself to the ship and attempts to kill the alien. This sequence is probably the best action set piece of the entire film, and had me on the edge of my seat the entire time. Waterson shows off some commendable acting chops as she single handily takes on the alien. Ripley would be very proud. The only complaints I have with this scene is that some of the CGI used to recreate the alien is rather spotty and sticks out like a sore thumb. I was told that during most of the production, practical effects and stuntmen were used on set. It is disappointing to see, like so many other would be blockbusters, that the hard work put in by the special effects team has been painted over by CGI. Although it does allow us to see the alien from a new perspective not seen in the previous films, the effects do not hold up nearly as well as they did in the older films. Bad CGI looks like bad CGI and completely takes me out of the film. Daniels manages to lure the alien into some of the terraforming equipment and incinerates it. Overjoyed and seemingly out of danger, the crew returns to the Covenant to mourn their fallen crew members and resume course to their original destination. However, it seems despite only being briefly attached to the facehugger, Lope has given birth to another Xenomorph which quickly grows to full size and kills the last two remaining crew members besides Tennessee and Daniels in a violent and bloody shower sequence. While some derided this scene as being too similar to slasher film, the horror film lover inside me loved and squealed in delight. Daniels and Tennessee, with Walter's help, begin tracking the Xenomorph aboard the Covenant in what is mostly a condensed remake of the original Alien. This is the part of the film where Scott and Fox most obviously tried to appease fans of the series that were disappointed by the lack of monster violence in "Prometheus". While I do appreciate the homages throughout the rest of the film to the original "Alien", here is comes across much more cliche and unoriginal. It was as if Scott, unsure of how to end the film, just decided to remake his original film in the attempt that it would win over fans that otherwise would prefer a classic "Alien" film. Fox is also to blame here as well, as they no doubt pressured Scott to include more familiar elements of the franchise in the film to ensure its success. The CGI used on the Xenomorph is probably the worst in some of these sequences, adding even more insult to injury. However, it eventually pays off in the climax as the Xenomorph is lured to the loading dock, and in what is probably the scariest sequence of the film, the alien obsessively pursues Daniels with such single minded determination that we are finally able to fear the xenomorph again. Seriously, the sequence where the alien tears through the terraforming equipment, trying to get to Daniels gave me chills. Still, after the more "Prometheus" like second act and that wonderful first act, you can't help but feel slightly let down by Scott, as a director of his caliber should have fought harder to retain his original vision. Anyway, after luring the Xenomorph to the loading dock, Tennessee manages to open the airlock and send the alien, who has been impaled by some terraforming machinery plummeting out of the ship and down to the planet below. Finally able to rest for the first time in the film, Daniels and Tennessee prepare themselves to reenter hypersleep for the voyage to their new home. As Walter helps Daniels get into her hypersleep chamber, it is here where the film reveals its final twist; Walter is actually David, who killed Walter and took his place. Daniels realizes this too late, as she is already inside her sleep chamber, and can only scream in horror as David puts her back into stasis. For a film that goes above and beyond in its attempts the scare the audience, this was probably the single most chilling scene in the entire film. Now that the entire ship and crew along with the colonists still in hypersleep are completely at David's mercy, Daniels is powerless as this corrupted creation of mankind seals her fate and the rest of the ships as well. David will no doubt make good on his threat to do to Daniels what he did to Shaw. David then returns to the chamber containing the sleeping colonists, and regurgitates two facehugger embryos that he was storing inside his body, and places them into a cryo-storage unit containing other human embryos. David then makes one final transmission as Walter to the Weyland-Yutani Corporation, stating that the entire crew minus Daniels and Tennessee died in the neutrino blast, and the ship remains on course for its original destination, thus ending the film on a dark and bleak note. The film both succeeds and fails because of Ridley Scott. His trademark photography and grand, visual style remain intact, as well as his broad sweeping themes that were so integral to "Prometheus". The picture is probably the most visually appealing and beautifully shot of the entire series, and carries with it a tone of pure menace and foreboding like no film before it. The film's score, composed by series newcomer Jed Kurzel is breathtakingly beautiful and a highlight of the entire franchise, probably my favorite since Elliot Goldenthal's score for "Alien 3". The reprisal of the main theme from "Alien" as well as "Prometheus" helped establish a connective tissue between all three films, and the new themes written for the film stand out as well among the rest of the score. The bleak, woodwind based score and sound helped greatly contribute to the film's tone and foreboding themes. The "Alien Covenant Theme" and "Dead Civilization" stand out as highlights of the score. However, the mishmash of tones and Scott's forced hand at including some of the more iconic touchstones of the franchise as a whole hurt the film and prevent it from standing on its own in the franchise. This is entirely Scott's fault, as he had to contend with not only the studio but the scores of fans as well. The film doesn't always work when combining the tones and themes from "Prometheus" and the rest of the series, but when it works, it truly shines. It's not a perfect film by any means of the word, but I for one loved it and will gladly be in theaters for the follow up, assuming Fox allows Scott to wrap up this exciting and multidimensional prequel series.

I'm going to start by saying that I personally think Prometheus is a masterpiece. I dig it when movies ask deep, thoughtful questions and leave us without answers but more questions. In the case of Prometheus, a slight hole in the Theory of Evolution (the Cambrian Explosion) is answered immediately. How did organisms on earth go from simple to complex so quickly? Was it God? Aliens? Even if it was aliens, does that mean that God doesn't exist? Grappling with such things is why I love movies. Alien: Covenant is a direct sequel to Prometheus, Aliens to the classic Alien for those who understand my simile. There are more characters, there's more action, and the horror roots are sewn early. Without spoiling as much of the plot as possible, I will just say that the Covenant is on a habitation mission. A freak accident changes things, and a decision to deviate from the original plan is made emotionally rather than rationally. Those decisions aren't particularly good for characters in horror films, needless to say. Walter (Fassbender again) is an android on the Covenant and has been programmed to genuinely care for the inhabitants- the crew, cryogenically frozen 'colonists' and next generation embryos. The crew have individual romantic interests, and may I briefly deviate to say that it is nice to see a gay couple here instead of left in subtext. No explicit sex scenes, just treated as normal which is how it should be done. Back to the characters. David from Prometheus returns (also Fassbender- can he please get an Oscar nomination for this?) along with his obsession with perfection. Daniels (a brilliant Katherine Waterston) and Tennessee (a curiously cast Danny McBride who proves to be a wise choice) are the most humanely driven while the reluctant Oram (Billy Crudup) and his strong wife, Korine (Carmen Ejogo from It Comes At Night and Roman J. Israel, Esq.) try to do what they think is right while also attempting to appease the majority due to the fact that after they colonize the planet, they won't be Captain and mates but neighbors. The Alien movies follow a similar archetype that somehow feels unique even when this is the fourth or so time this has been repeated. As far as plot turns and developments ate concerned, even guessing some before Big Reveals is not a fault because much tension can be mined from the dramatic irony presented. I got an inescapable feeling of wanting to jump in and help the characters but being left as a spectator. The visual effects are flawless, the art direction, cinematography, editing and sound work incredibly effective, and the plot moves at a brisk pace. Criticizing the new entries makes me feel small as Ridley Scott makes the choices he believes serve the material beat. This didn't feel rushed, and I actually heard some people in the audience mutter "come on, come on..." during suspenseful sequences and had an unknown neighbor grab my arm during one particular part. I love the four Alien movies I mentioned in this review, and I can't wait for the next one. Sure, there are some things I would habe done differently, but I'm not going to say that my ideas are better than Ridley Scott's as he did decide to explore Alien in its prequels by asking the most important questions we as human can ask. This goes from a horror-thriller with philosophical storytelling in Prometheus to more action-based storytelling. I prefer the former, but I will not complain about the latter if it is done well which I believe to be the case here. Chances are, you'll at least like the movie if the Alien movies are your thing. If Prometheus was your movie like it was for me, you might find yourself loving this while catching some quick references ("blast that f***** into outer space!" from Alien is used again here). It's sci-fi action horror that stays true to itself while boasting fine performances and outstanding technological storytelling. I loved it, and I hope you will, too.

*There may be some spoilers-proceed with caution! I grew up with the original Alien back in the early 80s. The original scares the sh*t out of me, even to this day whenever I watch the original…it still gives me the creeps! I have seen ALL of the ALIEN series…this particular movie is intended to be a (prequel) to the original ALIEN, and a sequel to Prometheus. For me it did NOT prequel correctly to ALIEN. But as a stand-alone movie I think it was absolutely stunning! With bone crushing, blood spatting attacks, carnage and violence on epic high-end CG effect levels, composed in the true style of ALIEN…makes for a gripping on the edge movie. *Right from the start, I NOTICED …and did NOT like all the (hipster hoody) wearing crap in this movie! Let’s just stick to the true style of ALIEN and stop trying to be all cute and fashionable…doesn’t work for this kind of movie…WTF Ridley!? This movie contains excellent back story and character development. The movie attempts to answer most questions and resolves some issues…but kind of skips right over the true story behind the indigenous humanoid beings or the (engineers), they are dead all around this ancient city on the planet. I think Ridley Scott should have went more in-depth on this issue because there are a lot of unanswered questions in this area as it pertains to Prometheus…this part of the story is key, and is where they dropped the ball in my opinion. This was a big budget AAA Film. All movie sets, CG graphics, CG effects, props, make up, and period attire, was absolutely amazing. This is a different kind of ALIEN movie that we have never seen before, with its stunning cinematography and other worldly Sci-fi beauty and grandeur. If you have a surround sound system, you will get rocked by the ground pounding effects from 7.1 HD sound quality. There are no seriously dry or boring areas in this movie, it’s filled with a lot of detail and action that will keep you on edge. However I will add, the REAL action or the movie really doesn’t start to jump-off until approx. (33 min) in…then once you reach (1 hr. 20 min) into movie, sh*t hits the fan! They spend the first (33 min) setting the movie up for you and various character developments. If you grew up with the original Alien like I did, you will notice little nuisances reminding you of instances from the original, this will be either objects and or theme music or phrases from the original ALIEN…totally love that! My personal thoughts: This movie gave us a lot…but still failed to answer some questions and tie up loose ends, yet they leave this chapter open for yet another sequel. I want to know more about the dead indigenous humanoid race of beings on that planet…as it pertains to Prometheus, those dead beings were called the (engineers). In closing, this movie was damn good…I will give it (5) Stars because of the large production and all of the hard work they put into this movie, I really do appreciate what (Ridley Scott) has done here, and I look forward to the sequel! The Facts: 1. Running Time: 2 hrs. 5 min. 2. Sound 7.1 HD 3. Widescreen 4. Excellent story with a climatic ending. 5. Excellent character development. 6. Excellent backstory development. 7. Hardcore bone crushing, blood spattering attacks and fights. 8. Lots of blood, death and carnage. 9. Has some very hardcore action. 10. Movie really doesn’t start to jump-off until approx. (33 min) into movie. 11. Once you reach (1 hr. 20 min) into movie, sh*t hits the fan. 12. First (33 min) of movie (slow) due to character development and story set up. 13. Left open for a sequel. 14. Does NOT answer all questions about the (engineers). 15. The Alien (timeline) is totally distorted leaving you more confused. 16. Assassins Creed meets Alien? Michael Fassbender played Assassins Creed. Everyone knows the Assassins Creed Character wears (Hoodie-styled) clothing…so it’s weird to see the same actor in this movie wearing a “Hoodie,” looking like the exact Assassins Creed Character he played in another movie! Not cool…WTF! Thank you!

spoilers rewrite, the movie failed to impress but my ideas would have made it work:: The idea of making this a colony ship, that was doomed to pick up aliens on it, and then a colony that ended up being infected by aliens works for me, and all this tieing into the Prometheus, is fine. Prometheus harkens back to Alien, so if you wanted to make this work for me then this needed to be the colony ship that all the colonists of Aliens were on. That way the entire plotline makes sense. So the ship is going to the same planet that Prometheus left from. Making sense they would find the characters from Prometheus. Everything happens the same, I had no issue with the robot worshiping the aliens, as that was the theme of Prometheus and with Ash in Alien. In the end, he puts two embryos in cold storage, which becomes important later, as that will fill a major plot whole of Aliens to Alien 3. They land on the same planet that Prometheus left from, to tie in everything Aliens did, and even give an easter egg to Nute and her family in cold storage, only David doesn't release the embryos. The colony opens and everyone comes out, credits roll the end. The two embryos now exist to infect both Ripply and Nute from Aliens to Alien 3, thus filling a major plot hole, and since Prometheus was hankering to Alien, Alien Covenant now tells all the backstory of Aliens, and that would have made the movie cool! Instead of the stupid story we got, because what is this other random colony with Aliens on it, and since the company wants them, why don't they get them from the robot that worships them? It adds so many plot holes and it adds nothing to the lore or cannon of alien!

great movie

En primer lugar tener la película Alien Covenant para mí colección de cine de ciencia ficción, segundo lugar la película de Riclet Scott es muy buena y eso que era de segunda mano imagen y sonido bien .

Just to let people know the 4k disc has german writing on it and the bluray disc has english writing. I have tested the disc and its in english audio but once you open the case your faced with german writing which i dont like.

Si eres adicto a las películas de Alíen, ésta es recomendable por su imagen y sonido Película en buen estado, sin daños y llegó antes de tiempo Gracias!

Alien: Covenant in Blu-ray continua la storia dei primi film della saga e amplia la lore in modo interessante. La qualità video e audio è ottima, con immagini nitide e dettagliate, perfette per il grande schermo di casa. Trama coinvolgente, con tensione e colpi di scena, ideale per gli appassionati della serie e per chi vuole approfondire l’universo Alien. Consigliato.

Very very good ! Highly recommend amd ive purchased other things that were successful amd good condition quick to arrive! 5 stars !!!