Movies

You Have to See ‘Last Supper,’ The ‘Alien: Covenant’ Prequel Film

By  · Published on February 24th, 2017

Short of the Day

It’s just a meal, what’s the worst that could happen?

There’s still a little less than three months before Ridley Scott’s return to deep space, Alien: Covenant, opens on May 19th, but in a move pretty much unprecedented for films of this size and with this level of anticipation attached to them, the studio has released a short prequel film directed by Luke Scott, Ridley’s son, called Last Supper which introduces us to the crew.

I don’t want to spoil too much – not that there are any real plot points up for grabs here – but there are a few things that bear pointing out.

Firstly, James Franco is here and he is indeed the ship’s captain, though from how under-the-weather he says he feels, I wouldn’t expect him to be captain for long. But it’s still fun to see him and Danny McBride interacting without a bong between them.

Secondly, this is the best cast ever assembled for an Alien movie – Franco, McBride, Michael Fassbender, Katherine Waterston (Inherent Vice), Amy Seimetz (Upstream Color), Billy Crudup (Watchmen), Demian Bichir (The Hateful Eight), Carmen Ejogo (Fantastic Beasts…), Jussie Smollett (Empire), and Callie Hernandez (La La Land) et al – but if you were worried the size of it was going to drown out some performances, all indications are you shouldn’t be; in this film’s short span nearly everyone is given some form of development, from the over-imbibing, party attitude of some to the gossipy nature of others.

And lastly, and related to point two, we saw some coupling among the crew in Prometheus, but this time around it feels like everybody’s hooking up, which of course only heightens the intensity and ups the emotional stakes once the inevitable Hell breaks loose.

And yes, this entire, one-scene short serves as a mirror to the infamous last supper scene in Alien; in both the crews are having a meal together before entering cryosleep, and in both a crew member has “an incident” involving their digestive system. I’ve said too much. Or have I? Either way, it’s the first solid indication that Covenant could take this franchise full circle.

Bottom line, if you were excited about Covenant before, you’re gonna be even more so in four-and-a-half minutes. Enjoy.

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