After two stellar successes, 3rd time was definitely the charm with Alien 3, and they should've left it at that. Sijourney Weaver returns with one of the great heroine roles of cinema as the undaunted Lt. Ellen Ripley, and co producer, to fight off the alien of aliens "Dragon" (Tom Woodruff, Jr.). Who didn't return makes a greater difference. No more blockbuster directors like Ridley Scott or James Cameron. Only the recent, Alien: Covenant, was able to return the series to its former luster.
Rookie Director David Fincher did beguile us, creating another geunuinely alien world, true to its franchise known for Oscar-winning attention to details. Lt. Ripley crash lands onto maximum security prison planet Fiorina 161. Oil rigs bedeck the dreary landscape as monk-like convicts roam the oil slicked beach. The appearance of the orphan girl and the beheaded remains of android Bishop from Aliens provides great continuity. Clemens (Charles Dance) plays the prison doctor, cold and utilitarian, as the previous androids, but bonds with Ripley like none of them could.
Both Fincher and story creator Vincent Ward botched the rest by drawling out a new format. 'Dragon' almost instantaneously reached its birthing stage bursting out of one of the oxen's stomachs during the first quarter of the movie; yet, an alien queen embryo resides in Ripley throughout the film. The prison is more of an insane asylum. With no armed guards, the only thing keeping the prisoners in line is the gritty leadership of religious zealot Dillon (Charles S. Dutton). That fits the mold for a futuristic prison, but it's wrong for this series. The actors seem sucked out of a Mad Max movie: British accents, peculiar gestures, unpredictable schizos and all. Hallway chases increase a dreamy, hellish effect augmented by an operatic score. Dragon deevolves back to the nearly indestructible quadrupeds from the prequel Alien: Covenant. Yet, the enemy is not just the xenomorphs anymore.
The ending recovers some of the Alien trademark. It is Ripley to the "core." The visual effects that ruled the franchise kick in with the close camera shots of Dragon teasing Ripley. Bishops' maker (Lance Henriksen) even shows up to represent a "friendly face" for the ruthless company. Again, the real battle is between the Big Brother world superimposing their bottom line vs. the human dignity of life. The climactic ending allows me to tip it over to the Winning 45 yard Line.
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