Alien franchise revival

Rating: 9/10 (20 May 2017)

A couple of nights ago I went to the movie theater with a feeling of excitement mixed in with the fear of yet another Prometheus. My problems with Prometheus were of the logical nature, so many plot holes so vast that no explanation could be found to help me feel it made sense. Well, let's be honest: there are a few plot holes in Alien Covenant. But they are not as bad as the ones in Prometheus. So I am not even going to bother with that. Instead, due to what I perceive as an unfair negative reception, I will go over why I enjoyed watching it.
The whole movie is just beautifully filmed, full of sharp images, loaded with a dark heavy atmosphere, specially on the planet. The action scenes are shot in a way that combines and balances well motion and details. I really dislike movies where things just happen so fast and the camera moves so much that you can't see anything. That wasn't the case here. You get plenty of details in the fire of the action, and yet the action is happening just the way it should, with rapid fire motions. The spaceship, both space scenes, and cramped corridors are perfectly rendered. They give you a good sense of how huge the Covenant really is. And the scenes with the aliens were just perfect, horrifying and yet so fascinating. In this installment, I got what I was hoping for, a sense of re-connection to the original Alien movie. Also, a special mention should be made for the sound track. I am not sure if it's because I was in one of the better rooms, one of those with a wide screen and super duper sound system, but it seemed sharper than usual. The sounds sources where clearer than usual, not dulled by too much music... hahh now that I mention music, the score is definitely subdued in this movie. Another plus as far as I am concerned. Movies nowadays rely way too much on music to control your emotions.
Now let's talk about the scenario. The first part contains a critical moment when a decision is made, but you know without the shadow of a doubt that was the wrong decision, because, well, it's an Alien movie, so you know the protagonists are in for a sh..load of trouble. But then, further down the story line, there is this moment when the plot takes a really interesting turn in regard to androids, this is another particular aspect of this movie which I appreciated. Of course, one might complain that it doesn't get enough time, but hey, the movie is already 2 hours long. With all the that happens already, it would have been 3 hours to explore the android topic properly. Here is something else which Ridley Scott, the directory, (who directed Alien, and Prometheus) did and which I really loved: there were some of these classic horror moments when everybody in the theater reacted with anticipation and amusement, because the director staged scenes you instantly recognize if you have watched Alien (the original). But he added a little humor. It was a little like a wink from the director, to all the Alien's fans out there. It was also one of these horror moments when you know something bad is about to happen and you know who the victim is going to be and... but, hell, you know the drill, the tension, the tension rising, and then the release. When flawlessly executed you get this intense feeling of satisfaction. Don't forget that hot moment when you felt the rush of blood, not just the one out of the victims, no not that one (although yeah it sure happens a few times in this flick), I am talking the one that happened when your heart started pumping like your life depended on it. I haven't seen such a good science-fiction/horror film in a long time. On top of that it is the revival of the Alien franchise I was waiting for. I am giving it a 9 stars.