I’m not an Alien aficionado. I’ve only watched the first two plus Prometheus. Ridley Scott’s original was a genius exercise in claustrophobic tension, whereas James Cameron’s sequel was a much bigger action-based blockbuster. Still very enjoyable, but just in a different genre. And as for Prometheus, it had some interesting concepts, but the execution was poor. Why do you have to run in a straight line when the ships’s heading straight toward you? Just move in a different direction, goshdarnit. But, anyway, that stuff just didn’t work.
With Romulus, however, the film benefits from a fairly simplistic plot. Rain and a group of ragtag individuals decide to seize their opportunity to get off world by seizing a Wayland ship, travelling to a seemingly abandoned vessel to try and extract some plunder. But, funnily enough, there are some extra terrestrial dudes that might hinder their mission.
If that off world reference sounds familiar, then that’s probably because you remember a little old film called Blade Runner. And Blade Runner 2049. The film’s opening set pieces of urban malaise, drenched in glorious sepia tones, reek of the iconic Blade Runner aesthetic. Not quite that distinctive 2049 orange, but it’s got a similar vibe nonetheless. Ridley Scott only has a producer role here, but the dystopian atmosphere is strong nonetheless. The use of sound design was pretty genius too, especially when I saw the opening credits listing Blade Runner 2049 co-composer Benjamin Wallfisch as the composer. I knew the soundtrack was going to be awesome, and it was, leaning into the horror vibe of the film with freaky synth vibes.
As with every great horror antagonist, fear is always increased by the ‘less is more’ trope. It’s a fairly common idea, but it’s pretty darn effective. We don’t see the iconic xenomorph in question until a decent way into the movie, making its eventual appearance all the more effective. And it’s also refreshing for the terrified group of humans to make fairly rational choices in the face of danger, rather than being absolute goobers who get themselves killed off for no good reason. The characters themselves are mostly under drawn, but everything still works fairly efficiently within the wider plot. The film’s beating heart lies with central heroine Rain and her friend Andy. Without going too far deep down the spoilerino hole, David Jonsson knocks it out of the park with minimal acting and expressive facial movements. I’ve never seen him in anything before (or any of the rest of the cast, for that matter), but he needs to get more attention after this.
Romulus is a love letter to Scott’s original project, riffing on the lore while remaining its own thing. The claustrophobia of the first film is brilliantly recreated, with the oft-unseen monster taking centre stage during the final act. The pace is slow, but in a good way, with sumptuous visuals throughout.
August has been a bit lacklustre in terms of high quality films, but it’s nice to see Romulus well and truly breaking that trend. In the cinema, no-one can hear you scream. That’s because I’m not that kind of vocal film viewer, nor was anyone else. This is England, after all. Anyway, check this little gem out.