Different shouldn't mean bad.

Rating: Null/10 (1 February 2001)

This film by David Fincher is a step away from Alien and Aliens, but that doesn't mean it's a step back. The movie is different, with an almost European experience regarding the Alien saga. (Thus because most of the supporting cast is European). The atmosphere is dark and seemingly claustophobic with a quick-as-a-whip killing machine decimating the defenseless convict population.
The supporting cast is terrific with Charles Dutton as the Gothic Brute and leader of men, Dylan. Charles Dance as the medical official with the shadey past. Paul McGann plays a more psychotic and isolated loner prisoner named Golic. Ralph brown and Brian Glover hold the place together as the two men in charge of the rusty complex. Pete Postlethwaite, Philip Davis, Christopher John Fields, and namely Daniel Webb are terrific as other prisoners.
The film is suspenceful and even if one knows the ending, it is still an entertaining surprise as to who lives at the end, adding a bit of irony to the film with that aspect. I would rate this film a 4 out of 5 stars because although I did not enjoy it as much as the earlier Alien films, it was a wild and entertaining flick right up to the credits.