 The film received lukewarm reviews . On Rotten Tomatoes , Species holds an approval of 34 % based on 35 reviews . Roger <unk> gave it 2 out of 4 stars , criticizing the film 's plot and overall lack of intelligence . <unk> James from <unk> magazine gave the film 2 out of 5 stars , describing it as " ' Alien ' meets ' V ' meets ' Splash ' meets ' Playboy 's <unk> Fantasies : Forbidden <unk> , ' diluted into a diffuse , <unk> bore . " James <unk> gave the film 2 ½ out of 4 stars , stating that " as long as you don 't stop to think about what 's going on , Species is capable of offering its share of cheap thrills , with a laugh or two thrown in as well . " Owen <unk> of Entertainment Weekly found the film lacking in imagination and special effects , also commenting that Alfred Molina " sport [ s ] a haircut that 's <unk> than the creature . " Variety 's review of the film described it as a " gripping if not overly original account of an extraterrestrial species attempting to overwhelm our own " and that Ben Kingsley and other lead actors " have only two @-@ dimensional roles to engage them " . The review mentions the similarity between <unk> Giger 's design of Sil and his work on Alien . 
