Alien 3 suffered from serious negative criticism. Very few critics liked it. The audience had mixed feeling, but they gave it some business though. Most critics had been unfairly compared the film to its director David Fincher's past work as music video director.

Sequel plots need not to be explain. This time it happens in prison/planet with monk-like inmates. Ripley (Weaver) is the only woman there. No one from the previous film survives, with exception of Bishop (Henriksson), who first appears as bashed up droid and later as the creator of that droid. The emphasis this time is horror and suspense, than action and pyrotechnic.

The biggest fault lies on characterisation again. Too many bald people, including Ripley, all with attitudes and most with English accent that you just don't care. Especially when they are killed by the alien. I liked Clemens (Charles Dance) and Dillon (Charles Dutton), but that's about it.

In my book it gets slightly lower mark than Aliens, but not that low. It still has plenty of moments. I feel that Fincher wanted to go back to the original dark and intense look. In fact, there is only one main alien to fear in this movie, much like the original. It is just that the sense of fear is not there most of the time. The camerawork is brilliant at times, especially when done from the alien's point of view, but you don't sustain the interest long enough. Repetition can make you get bored.

I guess the best part of this film is Ripley herself. She has become tougher. Weaver has now a clear and firmer grip of the role and here she doesn't play much of that spooked-out what-to-do character again. Ripley carries with her the embryo of another Alien and she has to dispatch it, even is she has to....well you gotta see it. Weaver handles the whole situation and you will feel real comfortable with her this time. She is the leader and she knows what she is doing.

I liked the movie very much. The rank of all the alien films goes according to chronology. The first being the best. Have a jolly good time.

Note: Why must the freakin' Alien drool all the time?