Solid slithery, splattery entry Winnipeg Free Press [Video]

Since its chest-bursting arrival in 1979, the Alien cinematic universe has encompassed everything from the lofty theological yearnings of the Prometheus and Covenant prequels to the B-movie side hustle of the Alien vs. Predator flicks. The latest instalment in the series throws out some clever callbacks to earlier entries while making its own slithery, splattery way forward.

Director Fede Alvarez, who co-scripts with Rodo Sayagues, has some experience with franchises — he’s helmed updates of The Evil Dead and The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. Here he works within Alien’s larger mythology, but he’s crafted a (mostly) tight, effective piece of stand-alone sci-fi horror.

Slotting into the franchise timeline between the events of the two classic instalments, Ridley Scott’s 1979 Alien and James Cameron’s 1986 Aliens, Alien: Romulus draws on both, combining a lot of Scott’s gothic murk with some of Cameron’s more straight-up, gun-toting action.

The story centres on Rain (Priscilla’s Cailee Spaeny) and Andy …