Alien: Covenant (2017)

David's not Ash, Walter's not Bishop and "Covenant" is not "Alien"/"Aliens", but it's also not that bad either...

Context: "Covenant" is a colony ship targeting a planet somewhere far away, the crew and colonists lying in induced sleep/cryostasis/whatever, and an android (Walter) takes care of maintenance on board. Story: Issues on the way, crew wakes up, and discovers a habitable planet much closer than the original target. Ignoring the classic intergalactic wisdom: "It's a trap!", the new captain (previous one suffering a premature hot end-of-life event in his sleeping pod) decides on a exploring mission. And like that we're getting in an ecosystem where the evil alien lives quietly waiting for fresh meat. But also where we have another android - David - remember "Prometheus"? ... Ending: Well I don't either, but I guess enough to say that David didn't seem have exactly sane cybersynaptic connections in his brain, which proves to be true quite fast... More it's spoilers, so let's stop.

"Prometheus" was overly disappointing, and Noomi Rapace a total fail as Ripley replacement. So somehow influenced by this I can say that I actually liked "Covenant". Even though the story isn't that complex. There is some depth and some fine irony (e.g., you would expect that a superior brain who's convinced to be the incarnation of Ozymandias, king of kings to know who's quoting - well, of course he doesn't...). As well there are lots of references to the bad android/good android in the first two Alien movies as I was suggesting in the beginning. But as good Michael Fassbender might be in his role, at least the Bishop played by Lance Henriksen it's a different class. And Ash, well... (light spoiler) it's obvious that the current Ridley Scott prefers his own android approach in the beginning of the series ;), but even so... The major issue in "Covenant" is the ending: 1 - way, way too predictable and 2 - guess what, we'll have a sequel (not announced yet, but it must be there) = unfinished ending ... Still, it's an "Alien" episode that's comparable with part 3 and 4. So, the best in last 20 years.

Rating: 4 out of 5

Life (2017)

... is more about the opposite. Either I'm getting old, or the SciFi thriller genre is sometimes too extreme, sometimes too mild. Or both = I'm getting older and I prefer the mild version = "Passengers" let's say to an extreme one as we have in "Life".

Well... To be fair IMDb gives it clearly as: horror, but I didn't buy it from the trailer. Seems it is one indeed. At least 3 scenes are quite rough, long and very graphical. We have an unknown life form discovered on Mars, which follows the classical recipe: group killer, take them one by one, for the crew members of the International Space Station. Who change quickly their priorities from researching the alien to preventing it reaching Earth. Guess how this story ends?...

I expected something like "Alien", and this partially confirmed. Indeed, the story is quite similar. The problem is again about how is this brought on screen. It doesn't really work throwing around cliches (some a bit weird) about life, to build up like a gritty movie, and to fallback on campy horror from time to time ending it like this with the end credits entry. It's true that it offers a necessary tension relief, but something's not really right in all this... Clearly, the opposite way of build-up as a funny slasher, hitting you with some morals in the end, a la "Cabin in the Woods", has much more impact. There are also problems with the direction - here I've seen the weirdest ending twist construction. It's clear from the start how it will go on. That's why the question in the previous paragraph is rhetorical. But in the movie, when the time has come it sort of telling you that's it, then that it's not, that again it is... Oh well... Overall it was acceptable, but I'm still waiting for something on par with "Sunshine" or at least "Pandorum".

Rating: 3 out of 5

Prometheus (2012)

There are already more than two weeks I think since I've seen the movie = immediately after I mentioned it in the summer preview entry .. as head of the list. The reason Why last week I picked another title is that I had a pretty long break since my last rated movie, and I wanted to have something deserving to be watched on my blog. The reason why I returned to "Prometheus" now is because I feel I owe getting it down from the top of the previews list (even if the list was just chronological according to the release date).

Because I might have started a bit too harsh (and I intend to end even more), "Prometheus" is not exactly a movie to be avoided. Unlike, for instance, the last blueish production signed by master Cameron here you have a script, some story, a bit of acting .. but no Sigourney Weaver (who's present in "the blue world" if the irony wasn't clear enough). It doesn't worth to get started with the subject for many reasons, from the spoilers (I'll have plety of those below) to the simple fact that I'm not in the mood. In case there is still somebody completely lost from the subject, what we have here is a prequel to the "Alien" series, and I will say that it seems to have the role of creating a spin-off. That's enough. The subject is after all one of the good points of the movie. The handling of it though ... Suficient atat.

I didn't see every Ridley Scott movie but I don't remember which one was the last that disappointed me like this one. I have to admit for instance that "Kingdom of Heaven" and "Robin Hood" were not exactly masterpieces but they were a bit above average, level that in my head was the guaranteed minimum for Scott (he's still the first in my top of directors by the way .. but I'll argue my option when I'll have something supporting this, if it doesn't change before). Again "Prometheus" is not bad. It's just .. medium quality. I don't know from where to start and where to and .. for me is somewhere at the same level with Jeunet's experiment in Alien 4 - which even if it was crazy at least it had some originality and sufficient action to be fun. I think this is the point where "Prometheus" lost - it wanted to get more philosophical than the script can handle (although the idea and the story have potential). And like this it lost the action in Alien 4, and it didn't reach to the deepness of Fincher's Alien 3 either (very underrated movie). It doesn't even worth comparing with the first two in the series. But if this would have been all, we would still have a movie "a bit above average". But no ... we have more ..

We have a ship that enters the atmosphere of an unknown planet and lands more precisely than a trained paratrooper exactly near the alien structure (yes, I know .. spoiler: there are many of those, come on, that's the justification ? .. one in every valley, huh ?).
We have a Guy Pearce with a makeup almost as horrible as J. Edgar's buddy in the last Eastwood movie .. was it really a problem to set the guy's age at 60 instead trying to make him look like 100 ? (you have to see the movie to answer this, but I'm sure that I can fight back any argument with an alternative challenge me ;) if you dare).
We have madame Shaw instead of Ripley who apparently wants to look more badass (spoiler again) by cutting and sewing back her own belly and after that doing olympics training in 100 meter hurdles races ... And no, there's no excuse in portraying her as in pain from time to time, neither that medicine in 100 years will be more advanced, and neither that the movie is a movie as long as it takes itself as seriously as it does. And still, maybe it would have been credible, but to end this, sorry, but Noomi Rapace is no Sigourney Weaver ;).

Rating: 3 out of 5