Movie Review - “Alien: Covenant”

Movie Review - “Alien: Covenant”

Warning: spoilers are possible, although we still plan to address the scientific issues raised in the science fiction film.

So, the films of 2017 promise to bring a lot of interesting things to fans of fiction. Many continuations of the already beloved classics have appeared. The 7th part (considering the “Alien vs. Predator”) of the “Alien” franchise did not become an exception.

Let's be frank, we were looking forward to this film, because “Alien” is an example of great horror films. Still, skepticism did not leave us, after a slightly faded aftertaste “Prometheus” (2012).

Let's go back to our favorite space monster. The standard of the picture can be considered the second part. But the third immediately spoiled the impression due to the death of Newt at the very beginning, for the life of which Sigourney Weaver and the team fought so hard.

What to expect from the 7th part? It is worth noting that this is the best attempt to prequel, but very much repeats the plot of the first film. Sometimes it's even whole scenes. The story begins with the fact that the crew of the ship for the first interstellar colony is sent to the promised heavenly planet. In flight, they receive a distress signal from the world in which the ship Prometheus disappeared. If you have never watched a horror movie with aliens in your life, then the advice for the future: to go to such a signal is always a bad idea. Your attempt to save others will end in a foul monster clinging to your face, as well as in the death of all your friends.

The film picked up and new actors. So, instead of the beloved Sigourney Weaver, we see its prototype - Catherine Waterston. This is a worthy sequel for fans who know what to expect. It all starts quite slowly and proceeds to the unfolding tragedy.

Was science justified in the new film? Let's start with the positive moments. In most aliens films, they are shown with strange skin, mustaches and bizarre forms, hinting that the human race has appeared by chance. You may have noticed that the whole “Alien” franchise is focused on the parasitic form of the alien life form. In the last film, they chose an even more complex creation. Perhaps his DNA helix curled in the opposite direction? Or is it triple? It is also good that spaceships have to rotate in order to surf through the gravitational Universe.

Well, now for the most pedantic critics a fly in the ointment. They could not know about the future disaster, is not it? In the first scenes, the ship gets hit by a “neutrino explosion,” which turns off the solar panels and destroys part of the crew that is in hibernation. Neutrinos are real, and they pass through solid matter. Even now, millions of them pass through us. A flash is described as a “star ignition event” (flash or new?). The crew members say that they can not be traced and predicted, but even now there are SOHO missions that monopolize them day and night.

Moreover, we know that Betelgeuse and Spica can explode in the form of supernovae. Agree that the interstellar colonizers should be aware of such things. So unpredictable bursts of high-energy cosmic rays would be a greater threat to such a mission.

So, they hear the signal and decide to go there at relativistic speed. All this happens only in fantastic stories, because it seems to them that it is so easy: to jump from one world to another. But a change in momentum and direction is very expensive. If you decide to roll away from the target, you will have to use long stretches of slow acceleration to start the deceleration process, and then go to the desired orbit. Just forget about the possibility to roll at any time.

Movie Review - “Alien: Covenant”

The crew smiles ... but not all will survive

One more thing. The ship's computer finds the source of the signal and gives its coordinates in right ascension and declination. Well ... Right ascension is part of the real coordinate system that is used to search for celestial objects ... on Earth. This is an equatorial system that does not help if you yourself are in space. Calculations based on the galactic plane would bring more benefit.

But if you follow these rules, the crew calmly got to the heavenly planet, but we never admired the new part of the “Alien”. Conclusion: this is a worthy continuation of the series and the best attempt compared with “Prometheus”. Although it still did not surpass the first two parts.

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