A colony ship, known as the Covenant, picks up a signal from a planet and head to investigate, only to discover a potential planet for the colony....but also a horrifying threat...
Alien: Covenant is actually the eight film in the Alien saga (or sixth if you ignore the AvP films which a number of fans tend to do!). Coming after the flawed but enjoyable Prometheus, Covenant is anther prequel, set at an unspecified date before the original Alien. It is, according to the script, set around ten years after Prometheus. However film wise, this a vast improvement.
The problem Prometheus had, was the it took a simple, yet terrifying story and tried to fuse to it an epic,mysterious backstory that frankly wasn't needed. Of course, we were told before Prometheus was released that there would be a series of films, before we get to the events of Alien, so the film didn't attempt to answer all the questions it raised; who are we? where are we from? What are we? for example, but it ignored the key ones from Alien; what happened for the ship to crash on LV-426 and where the alien eggs came from?
Well keep wondering as Alien: Covenant doesn't answer all those questions either. However, the script from John Logan and Dante Harper does seem to have learnt from the criticism levelled at Prometheus. The story does come much closer to Alien this time round, in some ways a retread, with a signal picked up and answered. But it does begin to fill in some details, but also adding new ones too.
However, the story does have issues. Apart from the overall story, the ending recalls not only Alien but also Aliens, including in the dialogue. Also, without giving anything away, the story does bring to mind, in parts, an episode from one of the Star Trek series. I won't say which as it might spoil the film, but if you are a fan of Star Trek you will know the episode and story in question. The ending tries to be a surprising development, but it is one that anyone can see coming if they have paid attention.
But while there is little original or surprising ideas in here, and for an Alien film no real scares at all, there is still much to like. Ridley Scott is one of the great directors and can stage impressive scenes of action, one of which does owe a debt to Jurassic Park II. He doesn't spare the blood here either as there are some brutal and horrific moments as blood is spilled.
The cast are solid. Katherine Waterston plays the lead Daniels, who becomes a bit of a Ripley clone here. Michael Fassbender returns, as android Walter and it is a slightly different performance than his David from Prometheus role. Danny MacBride, whom I have found annoying at times in the past, dials it down and is not bad. Billy Crudup does well as the new Captain (replacing one who dies early on, a blink and you'll miss it cameo that might surprise you). The supporting cast, including Demian Bichir, Amy Seimetz, Callie Hernandez and Carmen Ejogo all get little moments to stand out too. There's little to fault in the acting.
The look of the film is definitely more Alien and Prometheus and it just feels right. The score from Jed Kurzel is good and the cinematography from Dariusz Wolski isn't bad either. The effects, both practical and CGI are impressive as well.
In the end, what prevents the film from being truly great is the story, which has to balance and deal with some of the strands from Prometheus while also being a film that wants to be closer to Alien. That the story and script don't quite pull it off is a shame.
But even so, I have to say that despite the lack of scares, despite the lack of surprises in the story, I did enjoy Alien: Covenant. It's never dull, moving at a good pace and the final moments leave it open for what could be potentially an intriguing next instalment.
I would say you might have to see Prometheus first before watching Alien: Covenant, just to refresh on some details, but quality wise this film is a better one I feel. It might not be on a par with the best Alien films, the original three, but this is probably the best one to come along since Alien 3.
Worth a watch.
Rating - 3/5
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