Good entertainment

Rating: 8/10 (20 July 2017)

Having seen only the first Alien and Aliens and missed the rest, I came directly to this wondering about the hype but not having read the critics. I was pleasantly surprised and enjoyed this outing which had instances reminiscent of the first two films, like the opening of the alien eggs and people staring in, the stomach scene, captain vs mother alien fight in space, which I enjoyed. The opening scene starts brilliantly with a bit of philosophy thrown in. This thread of thought gets lost during the proceedings especially when show time begins and the horror of who's next to get the chop starts. This is later regained and the film ends suggestively, indicating where the future is pointing to (which is reminiscent of our human past of the first half of the 20th century). The film does feel at times as if it is trying to fill certain obligations or ticking some boxes, like the death by numbers, obligatory explosions from incidental apparently lesser mishaps, people slipping as they are being chased etc which dumbs down the film . Still I enjoyed the film and the whole concept of it re creation and its manipulation,and thought the way the film wraps up the proceedings remains true to its theme, though I would have preferred a different ending. The acting was very good especially that of Michael Fassbinder who dominates the film with his persona, despite as an android he had to convey a certain rigidity. His (apparent) self kissing is the weirdest scene in the film which also sticks to mind, it sums up what the whole process of creation manipulation is about. I recommend this film, though with an open mind