During the opening sequence of Alien: Covenant, the latest prequel in the Alien universe, a very creepy Michael Fassbender as a synthetic android speaks to his “father,” the Weyland corporation CEO played by the equally eerie Guy Pearce. It’s a taste of what’s to come in the tightly packed horror movie, a much improved sequel or companion to 2012’s Prometheus.

In this film, famed director Ridley Scott returns comfortably to first principles, that keen sense for terror and action that made the original 1979 movie an all-time classic. He builds fear through slow suspense, sort of blindsiding you when things go wrong (and they go way wrong for those onboard The Covenant vessel). The combination of intense sequences with the rapacity of the creatures that eventually assail the unsuspecting crew is particularly effective. Disturbing, in a way that he clearly set out to do. Combine it with a methodic and pitch-perfect soundtrack by Australian guitarist Jed Kurzel (who also scored, for example, The Babadook), and you have the makings of what is probably one of the best films since the original.

Things begin innocuously enough after that ominous opening prologue (few things are as scary, Scott seems to think, than two guys speaking slowly to each other with impeccable diction and a British accent). The colonization ship Covenant is on its way to a promising location, carrying aboard earthlings, embryos, and a mismatched crew that is obviously there to serve as incubators for the xenomorphs which will eventually appear. Onboard is also Walter, another android similar to David and also played by Fassbender, in sweatpants.

The crew is rudely awakened from its slumber by a “wave of neutrons” and, eventually, a mysterious transmission from a nearby system. Heading out to investigate is a big no-no in horror flicks, but of course the characters do not have that self-awareness. In fact, the ship’s religious first mate Christopher, an intense Billy Crudup, believes that the Covenant’s trip is destined by God. Really, it’s Ridley Scott calling the shots, and the destiny he has in mind for Christopher and his group is much different than that which the first mate imagines, but you get the idea. Before he gets there, though, Scott resists the temptation (whose indulgence doomed some of the films in the series) to jump into the carnage of the aliens too quickly. The payout is well worth the wait here.

Some of the themes that the prequels purport to be exploring involve creation, origin, and destiny. Most fell flat or felt contrived in Prometheus, but work more effectively in this sequel—in no small part thanks to Crudup’s ability to both preach and shoot at the same time. The tension between survival and corporate greed—another staple motif of all Alien stories—is also in play here.

But the central character of course is the female crew member, in the tradition of Sigourney Weaver’s Ripley. Here, the centerpiece is Daniels, played with her characteristic mousiness by Katherine Waterston. Comparisons to the unmatchable Weaver would be unfair, but Waterston is nevertheless arguably one of Covenant’s weakest links. The problem is not of her own doing—she is a good actress that acquits herself decently during the decisive final battles. But her entire presence is not as threatening as it needs to be—she is one notch too far into the range of innocence, and her unassuming nature makes her somewhat ill-suite to play this role. Even Noomi Rapace (the lead in Prometheus, whose ultimate fate is further explored here), was more intimidating.

The rest of the gang is decent enough, to the extent they’re used at all. It includes Danny McBride as the chief pilot of the Covenant, Carmen Ejogo who also appeared alongside Waterston in Fantastic Beasts and here plays a scientist, and Demian Bichir as the head of the security crew that is accompanying the mission. Most of them are not long for this earth (or that galaxy) as you’d expect, though Scott does find unexplored orifices and body parts for the creatures to hatch from.

Alien: Covenant offers few if any actual new tricks. Most of the ground it threads has been explored repeatedly in prior installations. But it does offer a number of treats through Scott’s signature heart-pounding, or heart-stopping, as the case may be, style. And some of the meatier parts of Covenant do come from its story, particularly the moments that connect the film directly or indirectly to what happened in Prometheus, making the development of the universe through this movie interesting in its own right.

With Ridley Scott back in his game, the future of the sequels seems promising, and I expect audiences will be asking for more after this genuinely terrifying ride.

Grade: A-