In the beginning, Ridley Scott's Alien was a franchise that built itself on a solid foundation of characters who were fun to watch, yet easy to identify with. After all, if some space creature is going to make its business the deaths of the crew members you're watching on the screen, you're going to want to relate to them before they meet such an untimely death. To a certain extent, the franchise moved away from such moments with each passing film, at least until Prometheus brought some of that spark back to the world of Xenomorphs and man. But now, with a newly released prequel video for Alien: Covenant, we're getting a sense that this film just might be going back to that particularly charismatic well. Take a look for yourself, below.
Thanks to 20th Century Fox's YouTube channel, the prologue to Alien: Covenant, entitled "The Last Supper," has made its way to our eager eyes. While it's short, it's a perfect appetizer to the bloody, severely frightening entree that Ridley Scott's latest film in the series promises to be. There's not a lot of material that looks like it's teasing out the overall story to Alien: Covenant's plot line, but you can already start to see some personal dynamics forming. Not to mention, you get a fair amount of smart-assed Danny McBride doing his thing, helping lend this short film an air of familiarity and comfort; two things that will be in short supply to the crew of the Covenant on their latest journey.
Some details that look like they might be important are buried throughout "The Last Supper," starting with James Franco's Branson reporting that he's not feeling so well. Considering Franco's role has previously been reported as consisting of sporadic appearances throughout Alien: Covenant, as well as appearances in viral marketing material, it looks like his fever might be exacerbated by the impending cryo-sleep. Also, it should be noted that besides Michael Fassbender's Walter, the entire crew of the Covenant looks to be made up of couples. Loving, content, paired off couples, except for the android man that stands alone and can strike a person's back with increased force and no compunction. Something tells us this isn't going to be a good combination down the road.
But perhaps the biggest point of notice, besides Billy Crudup's potentially dangerous crew member who's constantly overshadowed, is the fact that it's almost completely a remake of one of Alien's most memorable scenes. With the 1979 original having its own "last supper" of sorts, the sight of a crew member choking on some food is a trigger that make one think a Chestburster is about to be born. Even Danny McBride's line about the food not being that bad is something the original film did first. For reference, the original dinner table scene can be seen below.
Perhaps this is the biggest reason why "The Last Supper" is a prologue to Alien: Covenant, rather than a flat-out clip from the film. By using those dormant connections and memories to Alien's fateful events, we're given a shorthand of sorts to help us attach ourselves to these characters. Now, when we see something attach to them, it'll probably mean something, as we've already grown to know and like these characters. Here's hoping we'll get at least one more of these prologues before we see Alien: Covenant tear apart the world of the ship's crew in the near future.
Alien: Covenant invades theaters on May 19th.
