In 2142, a Weyland-Yutani space probe investigates the wreckage of the USCSS Nostromo last seen in Alien (1979). On a miserable Weyland-Yutani terraformed mining colony, Rain (Cailee Spaeny), and her adoptive synthetic brother Andy (David Jonsson), are despondent after learning that Rain’s contract is being forcibly extended. Desperate, Rain agrees to join her ex-boyfriend Tyler (Archie Renaux) and his friends in ransacking a derelict space station for cryostasis chambers that are necessary for them to make the trip to a bigger and brighter future.

Nostalgia is a billion-dollar business these days thanks to the success of Spider-man: No Way Home (2021), The Flash (2023) and Deadpool and Wolverine (2024) which all resurrected old characters to accompany the new, capturing audiences that spanned generations. Whilst Alien: Romulus purported to be a stripped-back affair with a fresh new take on the Alien mythos, the movie instead plays as the greatest hits of all Alien movies that came before it, including a few videogames set in the universe.

The young cast are shades of their original counterparts, apart from David Jonsson who plays a duplicitous but sympathetic synthetic.

While director Fede Alvarez makes the point to use as many practical effects as possible, the story relies too heavily on what has come before, leaving very little new space to explore. Story beats, visuals, catchphrases and score cues all harken back to previous entries, distracting from the movie itself.

Verdict: While a solid production, the movie is a disappointing retread that fails to move the story forward. 2 stars.

Luke McWilliams themovieclub.net. Viewed at Dendy Cinemas.