Alien Covenant

[B.I.G]

I'm not that bothered about plot. I just want some nice sets, a bit of tension and loads of things bursting out of people. Neither Alien or Aliens is loved for its plot.

Its nice if they made sense. But I don't see how you can find any of the alien films bad against that standard, which means more alien action for all

 

[EastEnder]

Ridley Scott is generally overrated. Prometheus is actually one of his best films.

Have you seen any of his other films?

 

[belboid]

I'm not that bothered about plot. I just want some nice sets, a bit of tension and loads of things bursting out of people. Neither Alien or Aliens is loved for its plot.

Yes they are.

 

[belboid]

Have you seen any of his other films?

To be honest, he has been pretty shit for the best part of twenty years. Prometheus is about average for that period.

 

[Johnny Vodka]

Its nice if they made sense. But I don't see how you can find any of the alien films bad against that standard, which means more alien action for all

I like Alien 3 and maybe about half of the fourth...

 

[Johnny Vodka]

Have you seen any of his other films?

Yes. I almost fell asleep during Gladiator, though.

 

[Johnny Vodka]

Yes they are.

I'll take your word for it.

 

[EastEnder]

Yes. I almost fell asleep during Gladiator, though.

I concede he's gone downhill over the years, never more evidenced by the cinematic crime of Prometheus, but he was once groundbreaking. That's why his later stuff has been such a disappointment.

 

[Johnny Vodka]

I concede he's gone downhill over the years, never more evidenced by the cinematic crime of Prometheus, but he was once groundbreaking. That's why his later stuff has been such a disappointment.

Two 'classics' at best?

 

[Orang Utan]

No, no, no. You're not known at all for being a contrarian whinger.

i'm just honest

 

[kabbes]

Johnny Vodka is shit. That's not whinging, it's just fact.

 

[belboid]

Two 'classics' at best?

Three (tho one is mostly about women, so I guess you wont have liked it).

You seem to like Prommy because it looks pretty and has some nice bits. What else does that remind me of?

 

[Johnny Vodka]

Three (tho one is mostly about women, so I guess you wont have liked it).

That's an interesting assumption.

You seem to like Prommy because it looks pretty and has some nice bits. What else does that remind me of?

Please tell. I'm intrigued.

 

[Dandred]

Just got back from seeing this at the cinema.

It's kind of like The Force Awakens for Aliens.

Certainly worth going to see!

 

[Orang Utan]

Lukewarm review here:
Alien: Covenant review: Is Ridley Scott's sci-fi prequel just DOOM with facehuggers?

 

[EastEnder]

Lukewarm review here:
Alien: Covenant review: Is Ridley Scott's sci-fi prequel just DOOM with facehuggers?

hmmmm, maybe not worth shelling out for the cinema version then, might wait till it's downloadable...

 

[Orang Utan]

Mark Kermode didn't like it, calling it 'The Da Vinci Code in space':

 

[Johnny Vodka]

Commode suffers under the delusion that The Exorcist is the best film ever made, though.

 

[Orang Utan]

Commode suffers under the delusion that The Exorcist is the best film ever made, though.

You're really desperate to like it, aren't you?

 

[Johnny Vodka]

You're really desperate to like it, aren't you?

If I like it, I like it. If I don't, I don't. If I watch something and am severely disappointed by it, I will say so. Kermode has obviously come to it with a lot of high expectations. As I've aged, I've learned to take something for what it is, not what I think/hope it should be. I get that it's not going to be original, but if it's tense, icky and looks good, I'll probably be happy. If it's more of what Prometheus was, I'll probably be happy. I'll let you know in three years when it's on the telly.

It's hard to totally fuck up anything with the Alien in it, bar the AvPs.

 

[May Kasahara]

Neither Alien or Aliens is loved for its plot.

Speak for yourself. Or in preference, just stop talking.

 

[Johnny Vodka]

Speak for yourself. Or in preference, just stop talking.

Alien is really just a slasher film, plot-wise.

 

[Orang Utan]

Alien is really just a slasher film, plot-wise.

Just?
Alien has a just about perfect plot/script.

 

[Johnny Vodka]

Just?
Alien has a just about perfect plot/script.

Plot-wise, yes - most of the film is people being stalked and killed by the alien. It has a plot a 5 year old could understand. The joy of the Alien films has never really been in the plots, but in the creature design, imagery, tension, themes maybe.. and I'll give you often the acting too. That's my opinion anyhow.

 

[Orang Utan]

Plot-wise, yes - most of the film is people being stalked and killed by the alien. It has a plot a 5 year old could understand. The joy of the Alien films has never really been in the plots, but in the creature design, imagery, tension, themes maybe.. and I'll give you often the acting too. That's my opinion anyhow.

it's a shit opinion. the plot is perfect. it really is all about the plot and the lean script. Little is shown of the alien in Alien. It's brilliantly designed, but the film's most exciting when the alien is just out of shot or you are just seeing a bit of it.

 

[Johnny Vodka]

it's a shit opinion. the plot is perfect. it really is all about the plot and the lean script. Little is shown of the alien in Alien. It's brilliantly designed, but the film's most exciting when the alien is just out of shot or you are just seeing a bit of it.

It's not just the Alien, but the alien life cycle imagery - the egg, the face-hugger, the chest-buster. There's plenty of that and I'd bet that's what fascinates most people about the film, bar the odd contrarian.

 

[Orang Utan]

It's not just the Alien, but the alien life cycle imagery - the egg, the face-hugger, the chest-buster. There's plenty of that and I'd bet that's what fascinates most people about the film, bar the odd contrarian.

you know nothing, Johnny Vodka

 

[Johnny Vodka]

you know nothing, Johnny Vodka

Talk to the hand!

 

[Gramsci]

Saw it today.

I like sci fi and liked Aliens one and two.

After reading the Independent review was intrigued and thought I would give it a go.

It's a frustrating film. There were patches were I could see this could have been a much more interesting film.

The beginning is great. A philosophical discussion between the android and his creator. Fassbender makes this film worth seeing. The best scenes are him. Some really weird scenes between Fassbender and himself. Weird in a good way. A homo erotic relationship between the two Fassbender s. (He is the android on the colony vessel "Walter"and "David" the first android marooned on the planet.)

"David" is a Colonel Kurtz figure. The scenes in his cave reminded me of Brando in Apocalypse Now. A flawed genius who had taken the path to the dark side. The film uses Wagner as well.

David names himself after the statue by Michelangelo. The perfect human. In his discussion with Walter he asks Walter why his helping the human race. David sees there wish to start again and colonise another planet as a desperate attempt and a sign they are finished as a species.

This goes through all the Alien films. The human race are the cause of there misfortunes. It's a dark view of the future of humans.

The aliens are amoral and perfect. A perverse "David". The Renaissance put the human race at the apex of creation. This is hubris. The aliens are pure existential life force. But not one that one leads to finding the meaning of life. Which Davids creator wanted.

A plotline that was not developed was the Captain. Early on its let known to us he has a Christian faith. I thought this would be used later on.

The planet can be seen as Hell. With David as the fallen angel. But it's not followed up. The planet looks perfect but it's not right somehow. This worked well imo. Genuinely creepy in an understated way.

I wished for more of this. The action is good but it repeats a lot of scenes from previous Alien films.

I would still say go and see this film. It's better than Prometheus. It's that there was a much better film trying to get out of it.

Still it's great to see a popular film quoting Shelley at length.

 

[Bungle73]

Just had an interview with Ridley on The Film Programme on Radio 4, and apparently he wants to turn Alien into a franchise "like Star Wars", and apparently he wants to "open it up".