Generic and empty of the great shakes of the previous entries, this second sequel marks a significant step back in the franchise

Rating: 4/10 (23 May 2017)

Ridley Scott showed a promising career as well as a promising future for the science-fiction genre when he unleashed 'Alien' in the 1979. James Cameron built upon his success with a successfully executed follow-up 'Aliens' seven years later, which established an effective action and horror hybrid in what could be considered one of the freshest extraterrestrial movies ever hit theaters. Both of these films fed good names to the science-fiction genre. So would it be reasonable for a third installment to follow firmly in the footsteps of its predecessors, if not changing the game for the franchise? Certainly. Sadly, that is not the story of this endeavor in the series. Plagued with many production issues involving overwhelming inference with Fox studios, the making of this film was a nightmare, a nightmare that only continues through this generic, soul-sucking addition to the franchise; with David Fincher placed in the director's chair. Lacking the flair and thrills of the previous entries, this movie settles for a dispiriting human vs. alien fiasco that never quite takes off. In an essence, the tagline "three times the suspense, three times the danger, three times the terror" feels like a sham disguising the fresh idea gone terribly wrong. Following the events of 'Aliens', Sigourney Weaver once again returns as Ellen Ripley who crashes land in a distant wasteland where she is taken into a maximum security prison by Dr. Jonathan Clemens (played by Charles Dance). Trapped in a filthy facility by vicious convicts including Dillon (played by Charles S. Dutton), Golic (played by Paul McGann), Morse (played by Danny Web), along with many others, Ripley must once again confront against a terrifying extraterrestrial threat that begins terrorizing everyone.
Whereas the first entry by Ridley Scott shined with a firm suspenseful atmosphere, the second installment by James Cameron prospered with a sweet blend of action and heart-pounding terror. This film flounders in both assets. While David Fincher nicely obtains the same striking chord-striking visual imagery that became a staple in the previous entries, this attempt on delivering the thrills and plot to satisfy come to perfunctory results. Following almost an hour of lackluster exposition, this film occasionally lets loose a few terrifying sequences involving characters being chased and gruesomely gobbled up the wretched alien creatures, but most of the scares and thrills in store are sadly ineffective and rarely come to close to leveling up the titillating thrills the previous two entries are notable for. Watching the prison convicts being chased down the halls through the alien's point of view may be little fun, but it certainly not scary. To add insult to injury, the plot not only falls short of interest but the characters are too dull or unappealing for us to care them even when there lives are at high stake. Even Sigourney Weaver's Ellen Ripley seems to be worn out. While her performance remain stable for most of the duration, the rest of the cast is left drowning in a sea of one-dimensional character development, giving them almost nothing fresh to work with. If there is any other who manages to stand out close to Weaver, it is Charles S. Dutton as the convict Dillon. Then again, he lacks the charisma for a character viewers come to care about. However, there is another actor from the previous film that manages to make a brief return, and that is Lance Henrickson as Bishop who makes a brief appearance as a horribly dismembered android resurrected by Ripley - - now that idea is just silly.
Alien 3 is a disappointing second sequel that marks a significant step back in the formerly powerful franchise. Even if there are few small surprises to be offered in the midst of the loud, gory alien chaos, this film fails to deliver much beyond a feeling of emptiness. That is not to say however that director David Fincher is a shameful director. After all, if it weren't for the studio inference and the constant rewrites of a script that was barely available during production, maybe this movie could have saw better sunshine.