By Marc S. Sanders
I imagine it would take a defiant personality to become a God and bearer of life. That individual would most likely have to be beyond human to follow through on such an endeavor. In cinematic fiction, to occupy such a role would require an exceptional actor with a calm yet powerful command. It is fortunate that in Ridley Scott’s follow up to his Alien prequel, Prometheus, that he was able to recruit Michael Fassbender in the role of David – the android invested in discovering new amalgamations of life from unknown sources within a very deep universe.
I understand Alien: Covenant left many fans and critics divided and that it was not the box office success many were hoping for. In addition, a follow up chapter to this film seemed more unlikely following Disney buying out 20th Century Fox. Nevertheless, none of these occurrences dismiss one of best dual role performances I have ever seen, compliments of Michael Fassbender.
The actor first appears in a prologue as David discussing challenging questions with his maker, the wealthy industrialist Peter Weyland (Guy Pearce), a younger looking iteration than from the prior film. David has met his maker. However, he questions who created his own maker. No satisfying answer comes from the conversation and thus it ends with Weyland commanding his “child servant” to a menial task of serving him tea. David, we learn, will resent humans who opt to subject his incredible capabilities to menial tasks. He is destined for greater achievements than servitude. David is meant to be a God.
The film diverts to a period eleven years after the events of Prometheus. A massive ship known as The Covenant is embarking on a journey to a paradise where the cryo-sleeping colonists and the hundreds of human embryos in storage will set up a new civilization for themselves. They have just over seven years left of their journey. The crew of fifteen who command this expedition are also sleeping while an android named Walter (Fassbender in another role) oversees operations. Following a collision with a storm-like phenomena in space, the crew is violently awakened and the captain (James Franco) does not survive. A reluctantly nervous replacement named Oram (Billy Crudup) now must lead, and it appears fortunate that Covenant has come upon another nearby planet sending a signal source in the form of a John Denver song. Why John Denver????? I guess the Beatles and Rolling Stones were too expensive. This locale might suit the colonists’ needs and save them another seven years of travel and unexpected risk.
Oram and the former captain’s wife, Daniels (Katherine Waterston), lead a team down to the planet. A wheat field is surprisingly found. There’s beautiful blue sky and mountain ranges. Water is found. Still, there’s a disturbing realization. Not a single animal or life form is anywhere. No insects, no birds, no wildlife, nothing. Like prior installments in the franchise, it is not long before some crew members get ill, very, very rapidly. Then the first of several terrifying episodes begins. All of that is visual and not necessary to recap here.
David makes an “Obi Wan Kenobi” like appearance amid the mayhem and calms everything down. The highlight of Covenant is when Fassbender as Walter (a down to earth American interpretation of an android) encounters Fassbender as David (a refined English example). Upon entering David’s habitat, it is clear he has been busy over the last decade since he and Dr. Elizabeth Shaw (Noomi Rapace, from Prometheus) arrived on this uncharted planet that was once populated by The Engineers, also from the first film.
At the risk of mild spoilers, I offer the following observations, because the thought provoking aspects of Ridley Scott’s third monster movie, are worthy of insightful conversation.
Walter and David are undoubtedly the most interesting characters of Alien: Covenant. They possess two totally opposite mindsets. Almost like they are the angel and devil figures found on a person’s shoulders. They regard the value of people differently. Walter holds humanity in high esteem, ready to assist while they continue explorations of great beyonds. David is prepared to dismiss them, though they serve a valuable purpose in his own selfish discovery to harbor a new breed of creature – one considered to be a perfect organism. Experimentation has been David’s sole focus. Now he may have finally uncovered precisely what he needs for his masterpiece of creation.
There are staple moments and happenings that are no longer surprising in Alien: Covenant because there’s a formula that traditionally worked in the long gestating franchise before. Nevertheless, the film is far from stale. The story offers up a well-conceived history to the origins of the alien breed, known as Xenomorphs from other films. Why and how they came to exist are provided. Hey, I’ll happily say this is more definitive than the Old Testament.
To witness one actor on both sides of a debate discussing the purpose of human preservation and what value people serve from this point is really a thrill. Both Walter and David are artificial intelligence. They are so advanced that they have usurped humans as the greatest thinkers in the universe. It’s not farfetched in this age of smart phones and an over reliance on technological innovations to incorporate this into a monster movie. It only enhances and improves upon a tired old Godzilla cliche. Movies are sometimes quite prophetic. So, it’s not even ridiculous to categorize a film like Network with a bloody sci-fi horror film like Alien: Covenant or even a couple of Tom Clancy political thrillers.
Alien: Covenant boasts a good cast particularly with Katherine Waterston, Billy Crudup, and an unusually serious Danny McBride as a good ol’ boy pilot named Tennessee. McBride does well with the drama and horror to come. He’s not a novelty act. While these actors may be playing well developed characterizations, I know they are only here for the body count and to keep David and the aliens busy.
Again though, the film especially belongs to Michael Fassbender. A brilliantly inspired casting choice for the first film in this more recent resurgence of the franchise. It’s only a huge blessing that he returned, and this next film pounced on his capabilities to balance the two roles on opposite ends of the spectrum. Regardless of whether he’s playing Walter or David, Alien: Covenant only gets more interesting when Fassbender occupies a scene.
An especially telling moment is so wisely written with a kind of seductiveness between the androids while one teaches the other to play the flute. Humans no longer need to program computers. The computers can work it out themselves, and even develop an intimate attraction for one another. What’s most delightful is again, I remind you, that Michael Fassbender is the only one working in scenes like this. How often has an actor gone in for a kiss in another role that he is playing in the same scene? He hides so well in Walter and David, that you lose sight of the fact that you’re watching only one performer doing all the work.
The final scene of the picture caters beautifully to what Fassbender offers in his two roles. The story’s conclusion will leave you thinking and wondering what comes next. Intentional or not, I regard the ending of Ridley Scott’s picture as an homage to other great films like The Silence Of The Lambs and The Usual Suspects. You may feel shockingly haunted as the end credits roll.
Overall, Alien: Covenant is a chilling, mind-bending masterpiece of science fiction horror and what-if prophecy.
2 UNPAID MOVIE CRITICS!!!! 