Frustratingly Disappointed

Rating: Null/10 (23 June 2001)

**SPOILERS AHEAD**
I can't help thinking how much better this film could have been, had a more talented writer and director been set to work on it, artists who had a better feel for the series. As it is, I just try to believe that this and it's successor are bad dreams Ripley had after Aliens.
The plot holes indicate either a lack of commitment by the creators, or a lack of respect toward the viewers. For example, there is no logical way an egg could've gotten on the Sulaco, which means that the events in the film couldn't have occurred in the first place. Ripley's "great sacrifice" at the end is meaningless, as there is an entire shipfull of eggs ready for collection back on LV-426.
Clemens is introduced as the only truly interesting and sympathetic character in the film besides Ripley, and yet is killed off for nothing other than (existential? Ironic? Both?) shock value; all that building-up of a character, which is then flushed down the toilet for no good reason. The other characters are largely nameless and forgettable (excepting possibly Dillon and "85"), existing only as cannon fodder to remind us of how mean and scary the Alien is.
Many pro-Alien3 fans point out what an alleged departure this film is from the first two, yet the plot is essentially identical to Alien, except with no real suspense and no characters to root/fear for. We've become well-acquainted with the creatures by now, so there aren't any new surprises there. The action scenes themselves are rather flat, and Fincher completely lacks the subtlety Scott employed with his "impressionistic" shots of the Alien in the first film.
Fincher's cinematography is well-done, but it's overly stylistic and distracts the viewer, like he's saying to us, "Look how clever and talented I am!". Weaver gives a good performance, but I just wish she had better material to work with. Alien3 is primarily of interest to film buffs interested in how not to make a successful horror film.

Sad, really.