Just watched it! Here`s my short thoughts. Some Mild Spoilers.

well Jeri.theSOB you have a point. There is a chance we get to a dead end here. Bait and switch like someone said. But the good thing is that someone else can make the movie you just described and kickstart a new franchise under a different name :-)

 I do hope things are explained and my worries are setteled in another film or book to bridge some gaps or even an extended cut. 

I do very much enjoy the "alien covonant animated series" thats got that one episode up. It has that feeling of a bigger picture and mythos that alien stems from. 

Hell even Prometheus gave me that feeling as i genuinely felt uncomfortable seeing the engineer structures and murals. It did feel "alien" id hate to see the potential wasted on a mad robot or frankenstien or simpler story when theres so much to work with and develop

Well I haven't seen the movie and always watch the movie for myself and see what the movie has to say for itself, disregarding any and all reviews and spoilers before seeing it.

I lurked on these forums when Prometheus was being promoted, then after all the spoilers and reviews came out damning the movie, I disregarded these and actually enjoyed the movie for a sci-fi movie it was middle of the road, not particularly highbrow but also not relying on slasher gore to carry it either.

In spite of some of the reviews I'm still going to see it. Then and only then will I compare what I saw and experienced with the reviews and spoilers... it's the only way to give justice to the movie.

I think we can all have our own opinions... as long as we all try and be respectful to each others...

I think there are SPOILERS HERE.. so i will modify the Topic.

Righty....

I think i will try as much as i can to keep my TWO Cents to myself, and wait until most have seen it as i dont wish to effect people opinion prior... as even trying to not be a Spoiler... a persons review however mild can still give away some plot points.

For example... could effect people who are going to watch it for some answers, if they know the potential lack or limited amount they may get.

I will say while trying to Shoehorn things a bit... this will leave many many debates for us all to have.

"If you mean the same fanboys who whinged about the lack of Aliens in Prometheus then IMO they do not have the right to be brokenhearted, they've done it to themselves."

To a degree this is correct... Prometheus had its flaws, but ignoring how Plot Points was carried out and how Characters was... the Plot basically did not sit well with a lot of fans.

Casual Fans could see no connection to Alien, Aliens Fanboys was upset there was no Xenomorphs, other Alien fans was disappointed we never got enough clues to the Xenomorph.

Blomkamps Alien 5 seemed to spark more interest, and its made FOX and maybe Ridley Scott realize that if they are to long term Plug any ideas of Engineers, they first have to feed the fans the Xenomorph Fix... and Answers.

They realized going away from the Xenomorph, and having a 2nd movie that failed to deliver, will damage the chances of getting another more Alieny movie off the ground and making $$$$

So they decided to bring the Alien back, i am not sure Ridley was a fan as much because his comment "they want F-ing Aliens, ill give then F-ing Aliens"

There is a slither of hope this movie sets up fans to want to ponder the Engineers after this movie.

We need to remember Critics of the movie that caused a Change of Plan to give us Alien Covenant, could help mold the next movie in a different direction.

POWER OF THE PEOPLE...

Even If Ridley Scott has decided he does not want to mess about no more and has a direct vision of how he wants to proceed.  ULTIMATELY... If concerns are raised that this vision would sell better if a few things are changed again and thus will make more $$$$ than Fox could force a few changes again.

This depends if they have more Faith in Ridleys Vision, or Fans Aspirations for seeing the movies they want.

I just watched it. Contrarily I enjoyed the film.

Yes, I had a shitload of expectations but after Prometheus, it couldn't get worse I figured. So I watched Alien: Covenant.

Can you see a lot of the Engineer city? Yes, a few aerial shots. But not too much that you can make out the features.

How does this compare with Prometheus?
At least the characters seem to react with more common sense than they did in the other film. LOL. The choices they made in Prometheus... I laugh when Charlize Theron runs from the falling Jauggernaut directly in its oncoming path.

On the other hand, I think they relied a lot on the marketing to fill you in on some of the relationships and such. There wasn't as much character-building as compared to Prometheus to me.

I agree that the pacing was a bit choppy. Perhaps clovenberg2 was right in that they had to cut certain scenes due to run time.

If you asked me to watch Alien: Covenant 4 times in a row would I?
HELL YES.

I'd like to see how they continue to story to where we know it comes in.

I really was hoping this film would be 2'30" or more. The mythology of the whole universe is what makes this thing more interesting that normal everyday SciFi, and that is the greatness that Prometheus introduced into the epic. I would absolutely bet that we will get a MUCH better "Director's Cut" with the DVD. Fox got VERY heavy handed in editing to try and keep it around the 2 hour mark to achieve "summer blockbuster" status, understanding how much $$$$ they spent on it. I still haven't seen it yet, but MOST reviews are quite positive.

So long as the populace has a short attention span, I think we will continue to see alien movies cut up to meet an "accepted" run time. I believe most of us here are the type to watch DC/AC, and the extra time for storytelling makes those cuts better in every way. If the common gripe is pacing and a choppy script, it is much easier to swallow than blatant tomfoolery ala avp and prometheus. 

Gracchus:

“I think he knows what Fandom is. Fandom is the mob. Conjure magic for them and they'll be distracted. Take away Prometheus and still they'll roar. The beating heart of fandom is not the threads of the forum’s, it's the movie of the franchise. He'll bring them death - and they will love him for it.”

As expected, some people dislike it and others like it.

after Prometheus, it couldn't get worse

That's my mindset as well, sure I expect some plot holes and dumb decisions in A:C, no film is perfect, but Prometheus easily takes the prize in human idiocy, all thanks to a flawed script with some really bad dialogue and extremely dumb decisions.

I went to film school because of Ridley Scott and Alien. I have Brennan Fan for years and never bailed ship. I've always been on board with Scott. He has made some great films and some that are not good but that is it how goes. As for Alien, he can do what ever he well pleases. We all want Alien to be what we want but the truth is, it won't. Yes, people are not going to like it as others will appreciate it and who knows, perhaps we will get a directors cut of the film when it hits home release. What ever the case, not all will be pleased and that's natural. I'm not going to bail out of the Alien story line cause it didn't go my way. Anyway, that's my two cents. I have been on this site since Prometheus and appreciate everyone here and we are here for our love for Alien. 

So...as Wayne would say..."Party On".

Batchpool

GREAT quote from GLADIATOR!!! and yeah, quite relevant.

The bit about hearing how FOX got it's paws into editing, yeah, I frikking thought so...when I heard about the 'choppiness' that rung a bell as R. Scott doesn't do 'choppy' editing.

It all boils down to politics in the editing room now, not creativity anymore. I worked as an editor and I was always caught in between of the director and the producer. It's all about Box Office numbers not substance and originality. 

David 7 i'm not jumping ship because "things didn't go my way" yes Ridley scott can do what he wants, but i dont think its wrong to point out his shoddy work and utter lack off attention to details and thematic ideas presented in the first film as well as prometheus.  

the way hes handling the story (if he's really going a frankenstein/david creator route) is almost insulting the original movie and what its meaning was as well as creating a very short sighted and simple back story to a classic creature that's existed in film and other media since befor space horror was even a popular genre. 

It just takes what the original movie stood for and pulled away the whole " fear of the unknown".it also destroys that idea that space is so vast that this one truly "alien" thing exists out there and we have no way of fully comprehending its existence. 

if Ridley goes down this path he's putting the "Alien" and the mythos behind it into a small bottle and stripping it of half of what made it scary to audiences in the first place. 

He would essentially be changing the meaning and themes of the originals into " don't play god and build robots that are sentient" or "don't mess with creating life" like frankenstein. while this is a cool concept for the david character it just rewrites to much of the underlying themes and concepts brought forth by the previous films.

It would be a cool spin off or alternate story, it shouldn't be pegged as a prequel if it's just going to rewrite the originals as well. it would be a better outcome for the films continuity and fans if it were somehow shown that david just learned how to make one from the engineer's records of the race or something he found while looking through their history or was able to learn enough to get him close at least. 

it just seems like the writing could have been better or at least smoother to keep in line with the other films (alien) and (prometheus) 

Based on how "Covenant" will ignore the mystery and uniqueness of "Prometheus", I give "Covenant" 2/5.

(Almost as bad as AVP)

My impression after my first watch: (no spoilers)

PROS:

1. Opening and how the movie title reveals. It's clean and thoughtful. Opening music score is beautiful.

2. The scene where Michael Fassbender meets Michael Fassbender. I love the dialogue, scene setting. Its tone somewhat reminds me of Alien 3. I LOVE the moment how David first shows up. So freaking cool. 

3. For actor performances = thumb ups. I care those characters more than those in Prometheus. I especially surprised by Katherine Waterston's great performance. She really delivers the character. 

4. Special effects, art effects are beautiful. The two neomorphs are cute (in a sinister way). 

CONS:

1. That Xenomorph is not really my cup of tea. It looks even a little funny in some moments.  

2. The movie is not as scary as I thought. I guess for those who haven't seen the leaked backburster & mouthburster part would be glad seeing this first time on HD screen. It's the juiciest bloody part. I somehow wish I haven't watched that leaked footage lol. 

SUM UP:
For me, the best part is the middle, where the crews are in the derelict. That part takes me back to the Prometheus nostalgia, with a little flavour of Alien 3 mood. I actually do not have a part that I dislike, even the Xenomorph scenes are not something I prefer, I still enjoy watching those moments. 

I feel the tone of Alien Covenant leans towards Prometheus more than Alien. The story doesn't add or take away much of what the 1979 Alien possess of, but I am glad to see some little details/setups that pay tribute to 1979 Alien. Overall, I have to say David is the main course of the movie, while Covenant and Aliens are side-dishes, but still yummy.

I am still digesting the storyline, and will definitely have a second watch. Thanks Sir Ridley for resurrecting the Alien Saga. 

Also thanks @blackwinter-witch, @dk and @joylitt for the kind words, hope you guys enjoy the movie as well as I do.  :)

I have this debate once a week - Prometheus is awesome and one of the most under-rated movies.  

There were several cut scenes from 'Prometheus' for "ideal" timing that I wish were still in it.  Sounds like there may have been some scenes cut in 'A:C' for timing again.  This may be because the studio is looking to increase showings and thus, money.

When you look at studio interference, 'Alien 3' also suffered tremendously.

And then there is 'The Thing (2011)', where the studio had the director cut tons out so they'd get to the monster faster.  Plus, they basically threw out much of the character development, practical effects and the original ending.  I have read the original script and seen some of the practical effects including some of the original ending and it doesn't take a genius to realize if the director was given freedom to do what he wanted and keep those things intact, that film would have been much better.

Sometimes, those with the money don't always make the best decision.  Just the calculated, most profitable one.