Alien: Romulus is set between the events of the original Alien and its sequel, Aliens. Álvarez recreates the gritty, retro-futuristic atmosphere of the first two films. The setting features weathered industrial aesthetics with dim lighting, steam jets and machinery that appears barely functional.
Also Read: Jackpot Review: Awkwafina and John Cena Shine in a Dystopian Action-Comedy
Romulus brings back the theme of corporate exploitation. The characters, a group of young colonists are trapped in dead-end mining jobs on a desolate planet, victims of the Weyland-Yutani corporation’s heartless labor practices.
Unlike many modern action films that feature preordained heroes, Romulus centers on characters who seem like ordinary people, thrust into extraordinary circumstances. This choice makes their peril feel more immediate and their survival more uncertain.
One of the features of Alien: Romulus is its cast of young, unknown actors. Cailee Spaeny and David Jonsson deliver standout performances as Rain and her adoptive brother Andy.
Spaeny’s portrayal of Rain is vulnerable, while Jonsson’s Andy is an uneasy presence. The decision to cast younger actors helps to refresh the franchise and bring a new energy to the series.
The film’s central characters are given enough depth to make their fates matter to the audience. While not all of the young cast members are as fully fleshed out as Rain and Andy, their desperation to escape their circumstances makes them sympathetic.
The group’s plan to commandeer an abandoned spaceship and escape their planet sets the stage for the horror to come.
Álvarez’s decision to rely on practical effects rather than CGI pays off in spades. The xenomorphs are as terrifying as they’ve ever been with the practical effects giving them a physical presence that digital creations often lack.
The film builds tension by keeping the creatures hidden for much of the runtime, allowing the audience’s imagination to run wild before the inevitable reveals.
The film’s horror sequences are some of the most effective in the franchise’s history. Álvarez uses the cramped, industrial setting of the space station to his advantage, creating a claustrophobic atmosphere where danger lurks around every corner.
The action is punctuated by moments of visceral horror with the xenomorphs depicted as the nightmarish predators they are. The sound design is full of screeching metal and unsettling noises.
Much like the original Alien, Romulus excels at building tension. Álvarez uses muffled clangs, flickering lights and half-glimpsed shadows to create a sense of unease. When the monsters finally do appear, their impact is all the more powerful because of the careful build-up.
Alien: Romulus moves at a brisk pace with the characters quickly discovering that the abandoned spaceship they plan to use for their escape is actually a space station infested with xenomorphs.
The story maintains a sense of urgency throughout with the characters racing against time to complete their mission before the space station drifts into an asteroid belt.
While the plot is compared to the convoluted storylines of Prometheus and Alien: Covenant, Romulus is not without its flaws.
The film struggles with balancing its various elements and there are moments where the plot becomes difficult to follow in terms of which characters are still alive and which spacecraft they’re on.
The rules governing the space station such as those related to room temperature and artificial gravity, are also not always clear, which can lead to some confusion.
One of the few criticisms of the film is that it doesn’t fully exploit its setting. The mining colony with its detailed and expansive design, feels underutilized as most of the action takes place on the space station.
Also Read: Five Individuals Charged in Connection to Matthew Perry’s Death
Alien: Romulus raked in $108.2 million globally during its opening weekend. This total includes $41.5 million from the domestic market (U.S. and Canada) and $66.7 million from international markets.
China is known for being a fickle market. Alien: Romulus grossed $25.7 million during its opening weekend in China. This is the second-best opening for a Hollywood film in China this year, a performance driven by strong word of mouth, positive reviews and high social scores.
Alien: Romulus had the second-best domestic opening weekend for the franchise, trailing only behind Prometheus (2012) which debuted with $51 million. It surpassed previous installments like Alien vs. Predator ($38.3 million) and Alien: Covenant ($36.1 million).
Other top international markets include Korea ($5.4 million), the UK ($4.8 million), France ($3.8 million) and Mexico ($2.8 million).
The film secured No. 1 positions in several regions including Italy, Spain, the UK, Poland, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand.
Alien: Romulus grossed $16.8 million from IMAX screenings globally making up 15.5% of its total opening weekend earnings.
In China IMAX contributed $5 million, which is 23% of the film’s total box office in the region. The film’s performance in IMAX theaters worldwide was the second-highest ever for the format in August.
Internationally Alien: Romulus opened 47% ahead of A Quiet Place: Day One and 17% above Prometheus in comparable markets.
In Latin America the film’s opening weekend outperformed A Quiet Place: Day One in several markets including Argentina, Peru, Central America, Ecuador and Uruguay. It also surpassed the lifetime totals of Prometheus and Alien: Covenant in markets like Mexico and Brazil.
The success of Alien: Romulus is part of a late summer box office surge which also saw continued strong performances from other films like Deadpool & Wolverine, It Ends With Us and Despicable Me 4.
Deadpool & Wolverine added $32.9 million globally, bringing its total to $1.143 billion making it the highest-grossing R-rated movie of all time surpassing Joker.
It Ends With Us continues to perform well especially in Europe and Latin America grossing $180 million globally after just 10 days.
Despicable Me 4 crossed the $500 million mark internationally becoming one of only three films to do so in 2024.
Inside Out 2 became the No. 1 international animated movie of all time surpassing Frozen 2 with a global total of $1.626 billion.
Also Read: Bad Monkey Review: An Entertaining Thriller Adaptation
