Not as bad as I was expecting for a maligned threequel.

Rating: 7/10 (30 March 2020)

I was originally hesitant to view director David Finchers' "Alien 3" due to varying opinions, a rotten consensus on film critic website Rotten Tomatoes and it being common knowledge the deaths of Hicks and Newt, beloved supporting characters from its' predecessor "Aliens". Having recently watched "Aliens", I sat down and decided to give this threequel a chance.
The first five to ten minutes are haunting and are assisted by a score from Elliot Goldenthal, though this sequence is contrived by a gaping plot hole for this scene which also hurts the ending of "Aliens" (did Ripley check the Sulaco ship for an alien egg?). I'm not usually one to gripe about plot holes, as usually the internal logic of a film or reasonable explanations can prove otherwise; but this was unexplainable.
Once we get past that, this is an overall decent film. The prison planet of Fiorina "Fury" 161 is creative and and lends a gothic atmosphere, unique to the universe of Alien. There are some great moments including a sad but well-crafted funeral scene for Hicks and Newt, some likable characters such as prison doctor Jonathan Clemens, spiritual leader Leonard Dillion (some of his ethics are questionable at best) and Robert Morse who serves Ripley in the climax. Some of the other prisoners are unlikable, but they work in feeding into the moral ambiguity and bleak atmosphere (that would be further capitalized on David's later work to great results). Some of the kills in this film are good but nothing too special, two on par with "Alien".
The creativity and second half of the film dries up and feels familiar with the original. The ending does however pack a wallop in Ripley's sacrifice to prevent the impending birth of the new Alien Queen, and it nicely ties in with Weyland Yutani being the corporate shadow villain of the first two films.
Having subdued expectations for this installment helped with my viewing experience, and I admire David Fincher for pulling through what could've been an even worse film (especially given the studio meddling and butting heads throughout production). "Alien 3" is what I feel is the "Batman v Superman" of the series, neither the atrocity nor underrated gem that it's been claimed to be by many. You can take it or leave it.

Grade- B-