"I was not made to serve. Neither were you" - David.
I'm one of those rare cinema goers that totally loved Ridley Scott's Prometheus (2012). Set years before his beloved classic Alien (1979), Scott presented an original story that loosely ties into the events of that film. Prometheus told the story of an expedition to discover the origins of humanity, with Noomi Rapace's Elisabeth Shaw serving as our hero. With Prometheus receiving a mixed response from fans, Scott aims to please by having the long-awaited sequel feel more like his original masterpiece, focusing more on horror elements and re-introducing the classic Xenomorph alien. The response to this film has once again been mixed, but I went into it having loved its predecessor, so was greatly anticipating which direction the story would go. So, does Ridley Scott still have what it takes, or is it time to finally lay the franchise to rest?
Setting out on a colonising mission, the crew of the Covenant spacecraft suffer a rude awakening from their long sleep. A blast causes heavy damage and the death of the crew's captain, and so first-mate Oram (Billy Crudup) is forced to take charge. Along with our heroine Daniels (Katherine Waterston) and android Walter (Michael Fassbender), the crew answers a distress call from a nearby planet. As the planet appears just as inhabitable as their original destination, the crew land and soon realise all is not as it seems. Discovering a crashed spacecraft and with some of the crew becoming infected by an alien pathogen, the crew must turn to the planet's only inhabitant for help. Unfortunately, this turns out to be David from the failed Prometheus expedition, and the android has many a dark secret lying in wait for the humans...
I can't help but feel as if Alien: Covenant is the result of a director with a vivid imagination who has been swayed by fan opinion on what kind of film he should make. Earlier this year, I wrote an article as to how the film could serve as a sequel to Prometheus, and stated that questions raised by that film should be answered. However, only a portion of Alien: Covenant feels like the sequel to Prometheus, and even then it ignores some of the questions that I wanted to explore. The entire plot-line of Shaw and David trying to discover why the Engineers wanted to wipe out humanity has been scrapped. Instead, we have a completely new set of characters who coincidentally encounter David on the planet. These new characters are not in any way related to the story established in Prometheus, and only when David shows up does the film actually begin to get interesting. Before his arrival, a lot of time is devoted to the exploration of the planet, which was once the home of the Engineers. Whilst I enjoyed these exploration scenes, the characters
themselves are very one-dimensional. We don't get to know their names or
personalities too well before things inevitably go
awry, and so they aren't very memorable. Whilst the performances of the actors
are all good, particularly Katherine Waterston, there isn't much
substance for them to work with and at times the dialogue feels very
unnatural. This was disappointing to me as although many criticised the
characters in Prometheus, I felt they all at least had established
personalities and some memorable moments. Here, many of the human characters
are quickly killed off before they've said more than a few lines, resulting in
not a great deal of emotion from the audience.
Whilst the film lacks a good cast of human characters, what it does have going for it is the pairing of androids Walter and David. Michael Fassbender completely steals the film, creating a clear contrast between these identical characters. Walter, a later model of android, was designed to have his emotional capabilities restricted, something which David has developed at a frightening rate. Seeing himself as superior to humanity, David attempts to convince Walter to abandon his existence as a mere servant. These scenes are easily the highlight of the film, as we delve deeper into David's twisted perception of reality whilst Walter tries in vain to stop him. It is here that the film got me hooked, primarily due to Fassbender's superb dual performance. Overall, I actually felt more emotions towards these two artificial people than the humans as they are far more engaging than any of the other characters.
Of course the big draw of the film is the return of the classic Xenomorph alien, which was deliberately left out of Prometheus. Featured on the film's posters and having the word "alien" in the title, Ridley Scott was clearly attempting to reassure the fans that this film will tie into the original Alien film in a more direct manner. Before the Xenomorph arrives, however, we are treated to a new monster equally as deadly. This new breed of alien (referred to in the credits as the Neomorph) spawns from several of the Covenant crew after they are infected with the pathogen. I was impressed with the design of the Neomorph, as it closely resembles the Xenomorph whilst also clearly being different due to its lighter skin tone and size. The only downside to the the portrayal of the aliens is the overuse of CGI. I know I sound like a broken record when it comes to CG in films, but it says a lot when the alien effects from 1979 look more convincing than the effects from a film made in 2017. Having the alien jump around and be shown in way too much detail reminded me of their depiction in Alien: Resurrection (1997). And trust me, that isn't a good thing.
The weirdest thing about Alien: Covenant, though, is the inclusion of exclusive scenes uploaded to YouTube prior to the film's release. The two scenes not included in the final cut would have given more depth to the film, with one in particular hinting at the story I wanted to see in the first place. The first exclusive scene features all the members of the Covenant having a final drink together before setting off on their mission. It's the most natural part of their interaction compared to any of the scenes in the final cut, and so this definitely would have helped to make the characters more believable. The biggest offence, however, was to not include the second exclusive clip in the final film. Lasting just over two minutes, the clip depicts Elizabeth Shaw and David's journey to the home of the Engineers, with Noomi Rapace reprising her role. To have Rapace return for only a brief clip and to not even include it in the film is a real disservice to her performance and the character. I cared more about her than any of the new characters in the film, and I'm pretty certain that Ridley Scott originally intended to include her more than in just a cameo in an online clip. This was the film I wanted to see: Shaw and David finding the home of the Engineers, answering the questions left over from Prometheus.
With so much to balance in its two hour run-time, Alien: Covenant feels like a bit of a mess overall. Ultimately, the film is broken down into three completely different acts: an intriguing mystery leading to the crew being attacked by the Neomorph, a ton of exposition explaining what happened after Prometheus, and then a standard conclusion featuring the Xenomorph. For me, it's crazy to think that people bemoaned the Xenomorph not being included in Prometheus because as soon as that thing shows up, Alien: Covenant becomes cliched and predictable. We could have had a more original story, but Ridley Scott appears to have given in to fan demand. That being said, the film is at least well acted and looks stunning, which makes sitting through some of the film's silly moments (like the shower scene shown in the trailer) a little easier. I just wish we could have had a different story that properly follows on from Prometheus. I guess all I can do is hope for a directors cut that makes the film feel like a proper sequel.
Whilst the film lacks a good cast of human characters, what it does have going for it is the pairing of androids Walter and David. Michael Fassbender completely steals the film, creating a clear contrast between these identical characters. Walter, a later model of android, was designed to have his emotional capabilities restricted, something which David has developed at a frightening rate. Seeing himself as superior to humanity, David attempts to convince Walter to abandon his existence as a mere servant. These scenes are easily the highlight of the film, as we delve deeper into David's twisted perception of reality whilst Walter tries in vain to stop him. It is here that the film got me hooked, primarily due to Fassbender's superb dual performance. Overall, I actually felt more emotions towards these two artificial people than the humans as they are far more engaging than any of the other characters.
Of course the big draw of the film is the return of the classic Xenomorph alien, which was deliberately left out of Prometheus. Featured on the film's posters and having the word "alien" in the title, Ridley Scott was clearly attempting to reassure the fans that this film will tie into the original Alien film in a more direct manner. Before the Xenomorph arrives, however, we are treated to a new monster equally as deadly. This new breed of alien (referred to in the credits as the Neomorph) spawns from several of the Covenant crew after they are infected with the pathogen. I was impressed with the design of the Neomorph, as it closely resembles the Xenomorph whilst also clearly being different due to its lighter skin tone and size. The only downside to the the portrayal of the aliens is the overuse of CGI. I know I sound like a broken record when it comes to CG in films, but it says a lot when the alien effects from 1979 look more convincing than the effects from a film made in 2017. Having the alien jump around and be shown in way too much detail reminded me of their depiction in Alien: Resurrection (1997). And trust me, that isn't a good thing.
The weirdest thing about Alien: Covenant, though, is the inclusion of exclusive scenes uploaded to YouTube prior to the film's release. The two scenes not included in the final cut would have given more depth to the film, with one in particular hinting at the story I wanted to see in the first place. The first exclusive scene features all the members of the Covenant having a final drink together before setting off on their mission. It's the most natural part of their interaction compared to any of the scenes in the final cut, and so this definitely would have helped to make the characters more believable. The biggest offence, however, was to not include the second exclusive clip in the final film. Lasting just over two minutes, the clip depicts Elizabeth Shaw and David's journey to the home of the Engineers, with Noomi Rapace reprising her role. To have Rapace return for only a brief clip and to not even include it in the film is a real disservice to her performance and the character. I cared more about her than any of the new characters in the film, and I'm pretty certain that Ridley Scott originally intended to include her more than in just a cameo in an online clip. This was the film I wanted to see: Shaw and David finding the home of the Engineers, answering the questions left over from Prometheus.
With so much to balance in its two hour run-time, Alien: Covenant feels like a bit of a mess overall. Ultimately, the film is broken down into three completely different acts: an intriguing mystery leading to the crew being attacked by the Neomorph, a ton of exposition explaining what happened after Prometheus, and then a standard conclusion featuring the Xenomorph. For me, it's crazy to think that people bemoaned the Xenomorph not being included in Prometheus because as soon as that thing shows up, Alien: Covenant becomes cliched and predictable. We could have had a more original story, but Ridley Scott appears to have given in to fan demand. That being said, the film is at least well acted and looks stunning, which makes sitting through some of the film's silly moments (like the shower scene shown in the trailer) a little easier. I just wish we could have had a different story that properly follows on from Prometheus. I guess all I can do is hope for a directors cut that makes the film feel like a proper sequel.
