Contamination (1980)

aka Alien Contamination

A gory B-Movie rip-off of Ridley Scott's Alien (1979), directed by Italian filmmaker Luigi Cozzi. It even has a strong female character. Although it's set on Earth, not in space, because to do otherwise would cost money.
When it sticks to its borrowed plot it's really quite good. The tension is there and the sense of impending danger lurks nicely at the edge of the frame. Cozzi clearly has some talent. But when it veers off course to do its own thing the result is less than impressive, it gets dull.
The one thing the production has that its influence didn't have is a score by Goblin, which helps make everything seem better than it is.
A onetime banned 'video nasty', it's now available fully uncut with a 15 rating. How times change~. Make sure you get the correct version.

2½ green yolks out of 5