Author: Houghton STAR

Written By: Caleb Tiedeman (’25)

Color me surprised. It’s no secret that the last couple of films in the Alien franchise have been questionable in their quality. Even the director of the original 1979 movie, Ridley Scott’s return to the franchise resulted in lackluster films. With that in mind, I was excited when I heard rumors of a new Alien movie. Alien: Romulus is a sick name, and upon seeing the trailers, I became even more excited and hopeful that this movie would turn out great. After watching it, I am so happy with the final product. 

Fede Alvarez’s take on the Alien franchise connects to both the original story and Scott’s prequels marvelously. Not only does it expand on the original story, but also adds more depth to previously established characters, monsters, and events. Despite this movie being the seventh movie made about the titular creature, in the universal timeline this movie is number four. With a smaller cast, the movie harkens back to the original Alien without repeating the same narrative. Each member felt important and relevant to the plot in some way. Despite getting killed off, each character added something of benefit to the overarching narrative. The standout was David Jonsson as Andy. He not only pulled off a believable performance as a bit of a buffoon, but a very convincing cold android one as well. I loved the homages to the original movie and the prequels as well. I rewatched the series, so I was ready for any name drops or references. 

The cinematography was excellent. Alvarez’s hand behind the camera highlighted the beauty of the natural world, or in this case, space. He also recaptured the tension and claustrophobia of the original film well. The use of space itself was impressive, utilizing zero-G to create new and tense action sequences, and introducing water to add a new level of horror to the already terrifying face-hugger—both excellent decisions. The lower lighting, with the flashing strobe lights of the Romulus and various flashlights, did wonders for keeping the Xenomorph shrouded in mystery. 

Both the score and sound design were excellent as well. The tense sections of the film that relied on pure silence were some of the best. The drop into complete silence followed by a piercing scream was a great way to build tension before a kill. I have to say I was very impressed with the finale. It was fresh and added a new horrifying creature to the franchise’s repertoire. The human-Xenomorph hybrid was miles better than the one from Resurrection. It retained its human form but was gangly and distorted, highlighting the skeletal structure of the Xenomorph. The scene where only its silhouette is seen was chilling! It was very reminiscent of Dead Space, and anything that can capture the quality of such a well-made game deserves praise. It will probably be the closest thing we Dead Space fans will get to a Necromorph. 

I can’t wait to see this again and spot all the small details I missed. Alvarez’s contribution to this franchise is a great one and certainly should not be missed. ★

Written By: Anna Sumner (’25)

At first glance, Andor seems like yet another Disney+ spinoff based on a semi-important character from another movie that few people have seen. If you were to make assumptions based on this formula, Andor would be mildly entertaining mediocrity. Andor is not that. Andor is a refreshingly mature take on the Star Wars universe that probes and deepens the franchise’s conventions by adding much-needed nuance. It is a prequel to Rogue One and acts as part political drama and part spy thriller. The only foreknowledge required for this viewing is familiarity with the Original and Prequel Trilogy. Andor follows the titular character Cassian Andor, played by Deigo Luna (reprising his role from Rogue One), and the rise of the Rebellion. It takes a closer look at the lives of (relatively) ordinary people under a totalitarian government (The Empire), and dives into the ultimate fragility of totalitarianism. Andor presents the Empire and the Rebellion less straightforwardly than the Original Trilogy. The Rebellion consists of disconnected acts of resistance, with the characters being just as much terrorists as freedom fighters. None of the characters feel cliché–they are grounded, nuanced, and conflicted. Even the characters on the same side experience a range of motivations, from the idealistic manifesto-writing Nemik to the cynical, do-what-must-be-done Luthen. The Empire is still portrayed as evil, but its oppression is shown in such personal and frightening ways that the writers must have drawn from history. The Imperial (or adjacent) characters span a similar range of motives and backgrounds. While all the characters are compelling, I would like to especially highlight the characters of Syril Karne and Dedra Meero, and how their desperation for power because of their youth and lack of status makes them especially frightening in their cruelty. In general, the Empire feels frightening and oppressive, in a way that few other Star Wars media captures. One particular highlight is the scene where the TIE Fighter flies overhead the rebel group. It created more anxiety and tension over a single TIE Fighter than I’ve felt with entire space battles in other Star Wars media. As with the rest of the Disney+ catalog, the visuals are stunning, but I’d like to complement the art direction, as things feel gritty, lived in, and have a certain weight to them. Another profoundly good aspect is the writing and dialogue, there are some truly breathtaking monologues. It’s realistic and carefully crafted, giving each character a unique voice. The pacing can be slow, especially in the first two episodes, as characters and the world are established and developed. However, this results in multiple climatic payoffs, and a deep understanding of the characters and world, with an incredible finale. As this is only the first season, some character arcs are left unfinished, but even as-is, the show is certainly worth a watch.  ★