Alien: Covenant wants to be a heady meditation on creation and consciousness but keeps interrupting itself to show people getting eviscerated by xenomorphs. The result is a movie that doesn't fully commit to either the philosophy or the horror, leaving audiences with a visually impressive but narratively frustrating experience.
Michael Fassbender is genuinely great as the dueling androids, and when the film focuses on David's god complex and Walter's loyalty programming, it's compelling. But then someone has to go investigate a mysterious egg in a dark basement, and we're back to Slasher 101.
The mixed reviews tell the story: critics appreciated the ambition even when the execution faltered, but audiences wanted either smarter philosophy or scarier horror, not this lukewarm middle ground. At 6.4 on IMDb and 55% audience score on RT, this is the definition of "your mileage may vary."
For parents: this is absolutely not for kids or young teens. The violence is extreme and constant. If you have a 17+ horror fan who loves the Alien franchise and wants to see how it all connects, this fills in some gaps. But if they haven't seen the original Alien or Prometheus, start there. This is the least essential entry in the series.





