FX's Alien: Earth Isn't To Be Confused With This Forgotten Sci-Fi Knock-Off

FX's "Alien: Earth" has started to make waves with its early episodes, thanks to a distinctly fresh (albeit flawed) approach to the enduring "Alien" franchise. So far, the series has bucked the established formula of tense one-location horror by drastically widening its scope, introducing heightened stakes to this revamped worldbuilding. In this reality, cyborgs, synthetics, and hybrids co-exist, but this status quo isn't always peaceful and is disrupted by corporate greed. No "Alien" title is complete without a crisis revolving around the titular perfect organisms, and the series brings more creatures into the fold (apart from the Xenomorph). As we are a long way from completion, we will have to wait and see whether "Alien: Earth" succeeds in adding something meaningful to an already rich, enthralling franchise mythos.

Well, guess what: there's another "Alien" title that can easily be confused with the ongoing FX series, as it's titled "Alien 2: On Earth" (sometimes referred to as "Alien Terror"). No, you haven't accidentally skipped over any canon entries between Ridley Scott's "Alien" and "Alien: Earth," as this 1980 Italian sci-fi flick is an unofficial sequel to Scott's 1979 original. I need to preface this by saying that "Alien 2: On Earth" was always supposed to be a shameless cash grab, as the aim was to ride on the coattails of the overwhelming success that "Alien" enjoyed on release. A female-led space horror that superbly balances tense suspense with full-blown creature feature sets a really high bar anyway, but this Ciro Ippolito-helmed film never attempts to do justice to Scott's vision in the first place.

It is also worth noting that "Alien 2: On Earth" is far from being the only "Alien" knockoff, but its brazen pretend-sequel approach is what makes its premise egregious. That said, can this film be fun, at least in the quintessential B-movie sense, where every unintentionally funny element adds to the experience? Let's take a closer look at "Alien 2: On Earth" to find out.

"Alien 2: On Earth" opens with anticipation surrounding the return of astronauts from a deep space mission, but the focus is quickly shifted to a woman named Thelma Joyce (Belinda Mayne). Thelma is on television to talk about caves (?), but is suddenly plagued by a horrific vision about the future. Soon after, the craft (that was supposed to return safely) crash-lands on a beach, unleashing a strange, pulsating rock that is actually an alien in disguise. Faces are ripped off right after, and the "rock" somehow ends up with the cave exploration team Thelma is part of. After the team descends deeper into the cave, Thelma warns everyone about her vision, but as expected, no one listens. Not long after, chaos ensues.

None of this sounds objectively boring, but "Alien 2" somehow manages to make you acutely aware of its 92-minute runtime, as even the most climactic moments are devoid of immediacy. You should feel dread for Thelma and her team, as they are essentially trapped inside a complex cave system with a camouflaged apex predator. But the urgency of the premise doesn't translate onscreen, as the pacing is sluggish even when the limited instances of gore make things somewhat interesting. 

We also must keep in mind that Ippolito made this film before "Alien" was trademarked, so the goal was to vaguely imitate the premise and use the gimmicky title to attract as much attention as possible. As a result, the flimsy storyline is woven around a handful of CGI-heavy horror moments, with very little effort invested in, well, pretty much anything.

Questions like how these pulsating rocks are moving around, or what their end goal is, are never addressed. We know Thelma's visions are connected to the creatures, but what does this psychic thread mean, or what does it amount to? Apparently, none of that matters. This is a rip-off pseudo-sequel that callously wears its "who cares?" badge, doubling down on its illogical storytelling and even more bizarre creature offshoots.

I think it's better to stick to films like "Pitch Black" or "Galaxy of Terror" if you're in the mood for "Alien" knock-offs that don't blatantly disrespect the original (and are genuinely fun to watch).