Karl’s review published on Letterboxd:
It seems many detractors came into this expecting a film on the level of "Alien" and "Aliens". I walked in expecting a Fede Alvarez film and that's what I got. Similarly to "Done Breathe" we've got a ragtag bunch of young people trying to escape their dire circumstances. They break into the wrong place and all hell breaks loose. It's damn exciting and at times even breathtaking. I loved the imagery, especially the way space is visualized. The clunky ship and the effects are so tactile.
The sequence that really won me over involves gravity and acid blood. It was glorious and I've never seen it done in any of the others. I could've done without some of callbacks in terms of dialogue. Though I did appreciate the mentioning of cornbread.
Best in show among the cast is David Johnsson as Andy. I can't imagine anyone else playing the part. He owned it. As for Cailee Spaeny, yes she looks like a little girl, but she eventually proves formidable. If I want to see Ripley, I'll watch the first two and if I really need my Ripley fix I'll watch all four. Yes these characters are nothing like what we've seen in the previous version.
Again this is an Alvarez film. I respect his choices. I admit a few of the characters/actors are a bit bland (pretty boy Archie Renaux was easy on the eyes though). They can't hold a torch to Harry Dean Stanton, Veronica Cartwright, Yahphet Kotto, Bill Paxton, Jenette Goldstein, etc but they make for some fine victims of Alien savagery. I got what I wanted. A heart pounding roller coaster of a movie set in space with just enough emotional weight to make me care.
My four star rating may be generous. The enthusiastic crowd and the awesome sound design and visuals made for a divine movie going experience (something I highly value)/ There are some lines of dialogue that annoyed me, but not enough to overshadow everything I loved. I'm going to see it again on Tuesday to see how it holds up.
