Review of Alien: Covenant (2017) by Anaditz — 28 May 2017

One can compare the "Alien" franchise to that of "Star Trek": Some good, some bad, some okay, some forgettable. "Alien: Covenant" falls within the latter two. It's not as mind-blowing as the original, not as much of a rocket ride as "Aliens," but it's no "Alien 3" or "Prometheus." Anyone who has seen any of the previous movies will be entertained but not awed, as there's really nothing new here. Anyone who actually appreciated "Prometheus" will see this as a fairly seamless transition to a faster-paced sequel. For me, this was like going on your favorite amusement park ride for the 100th time. You might still enjoy it, but it doesn't have that same joy or jolt of excitement you felt the first time you sat in the chair and buckled yourself in. The story line is almost a rewrite of the original "Alien," down to the "Let's try to kill the monster this way" ending. The characters are cookie-cutter; you have a Sigourney Weaver clone (the human Sigourney from "Alien," not the superhero of the later flicks), a number of other likeable but gone-too-soon folks, the unexpected stranger, etc. My biggest negative is with the movie's predictability. I figured out the "twist" about 40 minutes in, and hoped I would be wrong. No such luck.

A person sitting near me complained that the movie should have focused more on the race introduced in "Prometheus." That's probably where the next movie (and you know they'll figure out how to do another one) is headed.

Overall, I give this movie a B for entertainment value, a C for storyline, and a C+ for execution. It's not worth a full-priced admission, but it's good as a bonus picture with a Dish Network, DirecTV, Amazon or Netflix account. It's not a wasted day, but it's not one worth being at the top of your To Do list.