Director Report Card: Ridley Scott (2017) - Part One

24. Alien: Covenant

From the beginning, Ridley Scott envisioned “Prometheus” as a trilogy. In the run-up to the film's release, he talked often of his future plans for the burgeoning franchise. He saw the “Alien” connection as a jumping-off point for a new epic sci-fi series, that would explore huge questions about existence and creation. “Prometheus” was not a box office flop. Yet its gross was not spectacular either, which is not the kind of news movie studios want to hear when planning a big-budget science fiction franchise. For years, Fox waffled back and forth on whether or not a “Prometheus” sequel would be moving forward. It wasn't until after the massive success of Scott's “The Martian” that Fox agreed to fund a follow-up... Which was pointedly advertised not as a “Prometheus” sequel but as a new entry in the “Alien” mother franchise. “Alien: Covenant” would open in summer of 2017. 

Ten years after the ill-fated voyage of the Prometheus, the colonization ship Covenant has gone into space. The crew is seeking out the planet Origae-6, with the intention of building a new home there. As they rest in cryo-sleep, and are watched over by android Walter, a solar flare rips through the ship. The crew is woken up and several sleeping members die. As they make repairs, a strange signal is detected. This leads them to an uncharted planet that is seemingly an even better fit for human life than their intended destination. Upon landing on the world, several crew members are infected by strange spores. This causes a bizarre, fearsome monsters to grow inside their bodies and burst out. The remaining crew, including Walter and Katherine Daniels, are rescued by the android David, the sole survivor of the Prometheus... Yet David is not what he appears to be and more horrors await the team of the Covenant.

After the release of “Prometheus,” Ridley Scott publicly said that the star monster of the “Alien” franchise would not be appearing in the sequel. The director felt the xenomorph was overexposed and no longer scary, saying “the beast is cooked.” It's become increasingly obvious that “Prometheus” was an attempt to launch a new sci-fi series off the back of “Alien's” iconic status. Fans were not receptive to “Prometheus” tip-toeing around its prequel status, which might've contributed to its only good, not great, box office. And so the studio went into damage control mode. “Alien: Covenant,” from the title on-down, announces its connection to the sci-fi/horror franchise. In fact, “Covenant” goes out of its way to remind viewers of “Alien.” It has a strong, female protagonist fighting off a monster as it stalks her through a cavernous ship. There's eggs, facehuggers, chestbursters, and lots of gory monster mayhem. “Alien: Covenant” is so eager to return to the franchise's roots that it sometimes feels like a greatest hits reel of the more ambitious entries in the series. 

“Alien: Covenant” isn't just eager to remind fans of the “Alien” movies they actually liked. It's eager to bury “Prometheus'” lingering plot points in as brisk a manner as possible. Elizabeth Shaw is killed off-screen, Noomi Rapace appearing strictly inside a prequel short that was released as part of the movie's promotional circuit. Instead of digging more into the Engineers' society and their connection to humanity – which was presumably the original plan for the sequel – the entire race is killed off in one spectacular act of genocide. Yet as much as “Covenant” wants to distance itself from its controversial predecessor, it can't help but resemble it in some ways. Much like in “Prometheus,” these space explorers get themselves into some serious trouble by acting foolishly. If the Covenant crew had kept their space suits on after landing on the mysterious planet, the entire movie's plot could've been avoided. That seems like common sense when landing on unknown alien worlds.

This is not the film's only relationship with its contentiously regarded forerunner. “Prometheus” was sold as a prequel to “Alien,” that would finally reveal the definitive origin behind the mysterious monster. The film pointedly did not do that, much to fans' consternation. “Covenant” seeks to provide answers which, as answers all too often are, prove deeply unsatisfying. The reveal that the Xenomorph is the creation of one unhinged android with a God complex sure doesn't feel like the mythic origin point fans have always imagined for the murderous beasts. It would also make complete mincemeat of the series' timeline, including some events in “Prometheus.” This has led to debate and argument among fans, nerds, and Wiki-editors. (Apparently, earlier drafts specified that David was merely seeking to replicate the Engineers' creation but this line was cut from the final film.) Whether “Covenant” is meant to depict the birth of the entire xenomorph species, or merely an off-shoot of it, is besides the point. Within the movie, it still feels like a half-baked excuse to get the classical alien into the story.

However, I do think “Alien: Covenant” does a better job than “Prometheus” of balancing its status as a philosophical sci-fi movie with big ideas and a gory, lowbrow monster movie. From the beginning, the movie wears its high-minded ideas on its sleeve. The opening scene is a discussion between David and his creator. This immediately establishes the movie's obsession with conception, fatherhood, and creation. The Covenant mission is designed to populate a barren planet, with the crew made up of couples and a payload of freeze-dried test-tube babies. David wants to create life himself, to birth a perfect specimen. Considering the “Alien” series has always been concerned with impregnation and sexual violation, it makes so much sense to theme an entire prequel around giving birth to life forms. 

Of course, these ideas connect organically with “Prometheus'” own themes. Scott's overly ambitious previous entry in this universe was about finding and confronting our own creators. This tied into not just the director's long-held fascination with religious imagery but also themes of fatherhood. That is taken even further in “Covenant.” David met the Engineers, humanity's fathers, and now he has killed them. Having murdered these gods, he seeks to become God himself and do their creation one better. The deeper implications within these ideas, of a creation of mankind destroying mankind's creators and seeking to make something himself, are rich and can be discussed into the ground. 

Even if fans were split on “Prometheus,” most agreed that David was the most interesting character in the film. Building a large chunk of the sequel around the android was a smart idea. Even smarter was pairing David with Walter, a nearly identical later model of android. Contrasting with David's obsession with perfecting life, Walter is a refined version of David. His behavior is more mechanical than his predecessor, because David's human-like behavior stumbled into the Uncanny Valley for many people. David wants to make life, make art, while Walter is content just being a servant to humanity. (Acting a lot like “Aliens'” Bishop.) The contrast between the two machines is really interesting. It also allows Michael Fassbender to create two distinct, fascinating characters – that can never be mistaken for each other, despite sharing a face – that play off each other beautifully. 

“Prometheus” would ultimately tease fans, by giving us a peek at a xenomorph-like creature literally right before the credits rolled. “Covenant” presents us with its own prototype xenomorph but this one gets a starring role. The so-called Neomorph enters the world in an even ghastlier parody of child birth than the typical “Alien.” It bursts from whatever orifice is most convenient, a disgusting escalation of the original monster's already horrific birth. The creature emerges as a screaming, pale fetus that lashes out violently minutes after being born. Its semi-translucent, pale flesh resembles a baby, sperm, and an anus, which fits in with the franchise tradition of disturbing, casual sexual imagery. It's an effective contribution to the “Alien” legacy.

Yet, because it's so determined to recall previous entries in the series, “Covenant” most eventually introduce a more traditional xenomorph. (Though it has some subtle differences from the classic version.) At this point, “Covenant” leans the most into paying homage to the original films. That doesn't mean these scenes don't work. Ridley Scott knows how to direct a monster movie. The alien leaping from the shadows and attacking is intense. There's a soft creepiness to the security footage of the monster slithering around the ship's interior. A fight with the monster aboard the ship's deck suitably escalates in intensity. This alien is a slobbering, fearsome beast that smashes through glass, runs at high speeds, and refuses to die. When paired with the twitching, sickening body-horror of the first act, it makes for a good time. This is a solid monster movie.

“Covenant's” Katherine Daniels may stand in the shadow of Ellen Ripley but I found myself liking the character anyway. She's more vulnerable than Ripley, crying for her dead husband all throughout the movie. (Denied her own chance at off-spring, making her stand apart from the movie's obsession with conception.) Mostly, I like the character because Katherine Waterston is fantastic in the part. She so perfectly vulnerable in the early scenes, making you care about her. When she straps on a machine gun and goes after the monster personally, you believe that too, Waterston making for a convincing action heroine. Like the xenomoprh, she's a survivor that keeps fighting and doesn't give up easily. She's a worthy successor to Sigourney Weaver, if there ever was one.

Unfortunately, Daniels is also the only crew member of the Covenant that you really care about. There's thirteen people on the ship to begin with, which is way too many. Most of these characters end up being slaughtered by the aliens, in various way, and their deaths have no effect on us. Some of them, like Amy Seimetz' Faris, end up dying because of their own foolishness. Danny McBride and Billy Crudup attempt to flesh out their characters but they never get far beyond the thin descriptions of “cowboy-style pilot” and “religious conservative captain.” “Alien: Covenant” has been unflatteringly compared to eighties slasher flicks. Considering its forgettable characters exist largely to add to a body count, with two of them even deciding to jump into the shower for some hanky-panky at the worst possible moment, the comparison isn't unreasonable. 

“Prometheus” was a deeply, deeply flawed movie but it looked fucking nice. The same is also true of the sequel. Ridley Scott digs deep into his toolbox to create a movie visually inspired by the gothic horror tradition. The caves and ships of the unnamed planet resemble the tombs and chapels of a vampire movie. (Along with some lit-by-candles style lighting, presumably because Sir Ridley couldn't help himself.) The interior of the space ships feel like the winding hallways of a haunted house, full of panels and computers glowing ominously in the dark. The movie has the same overly gray coloration that Scott has utilized too often in the last decade but it's still a pretty slick looking motion picture. Especially in the climatic fight in a loading bay, when the ship's gravity and the weightlessness of space create an uncanny floating affect.

Like a lot of sequels that attempt to win back fans after a divisive entry, “Alien: Covenant” ended up pleasing few people. Those that liked “Prometheus” were disappointed that “Covenant” fled from the previous film's story and themes so bluntly. Those that didn't like “Prometheus” accused “Covenant” of being derivative and desperate. Neither of these critiques are wrong. At the same time, a gorgeous sci-fi spectacle that fuses gory monster movie chaos with high-minded themes is right in my wheelhouse. “Alien: Covenant” made about half as much as “Prometheus” at the box office, making its sequel-teasing cliffhanger ending seem hopelessly optimistic in retrospect. While Ridley Scott was hopeful he'd get to finish his new trilogy at one point, the acquisition of Fox by Disney has thrown the entire future of the franchise into question. If this really is the end of the line for the face-hugging, chest-bursting, extra-jawed terrors from space, it's far from a satisfying one... Yet it's also not bad either, managing to entertain on its own merits more often than not. [Grade: B]