Over the weekend, I got some shit (FROM NERDS) for not liking Prometheus enough and comparing it too directly to Alien in my review. To which I will say this: I went to see the film again, for two reasons:
1) To see if watching it as an Alien prequel did, if fact, do Prometheus a disservice.
2) To see if Prometheus was any less disappointing or nonsensical a second time.
In the case of 1) No. In fact, comparing it to Alien actually does the film a huge favor. Despite Ridley Scott’s waffling on whether or not this thing’s a prequel to Alien, it completely is; in fact, knowing what comes later in Alien is the only way a lot of stuff in Prometheus even remotely makes sense. Not only is it willfully obtuse to pretend Prometheus isn’t an full-on Alien prequel, but doing so somehow makes the film, and the things that happen in it, even more silly and even less interesting. So while it might not be fair to compare a crappy movie like Prometheus to a great one like Alien, it is important to think about how a prequel relates to the film it’s been spun-off from.
As for 2), I was really, desperately hoping this would be the case—as someone who finds the whole Alien series, both the good and the bad films, pretty fascinating, it’s a foregone conclusion I’m going to be thinking about, and watching, Prometheus for a while yet. This would be a significantly more pleasant exercise if the film was smarter or more enjoyable. But it isn’t: It is an astoundingly gorgeous thing to look at that and listen to, and it nobly tries to do a whole lot of very admirable things, but by the time its end credits finally roll, it’s broken and bland and goofy. Via Mike Russell (who spent most of the weekend complaining about the film on Twitter, and I think liked it even less than I did), comes a pretty great explanation why the film, despite trying as hard as it does, fundamentally doesn’t work. The relevant part starts about 3:30 in:
And then: I’d just like to point out the fact that our popular culture has arrived at a point where the South Park dudes are capable of schooling Ridley Scott. So that’s something.
Pretty interesting and spoiler-filled discussion over here:
http://www.hitfix.com/motion-captured/prom…
I had several beefs with the film. The main being the timing of the movie. I hated how it played.
Yes, I am going to compare to Alien because duh. Alien had a beat that was super unique and made me love the film. There were vast amounts of negative space between these short bursts of percussive violence. For my entertainment that is what made it such an unforgettable movie.
Prometheus was a very well polished and expensive version of a cheesy alien/horror blockbuster movie.
My 2nd beef, the philosophy lessons and religious subtext. Holy mother of fuck seriously? How much are you going to cram in there? FATHER?????
I paid the $17.00 to see it in Imax and I don’t regret it. But I do regret laughing out loud when Charlize Theron delivered the FATHER???? line. I was the only one… Did some snorting. Felt bad man.
I may go see this at Cinemagic. But only if someone assures me that there’s actually a prom in the movie.
SO MY UNDERSTANDING IS THAT THE XENOMORPH FACE-HUGGERS SOMEHOW EVOLVE OUT OF THE BLACK GOO AND HUMAN DNA… OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT. BUT PREVIOUS MOVIES HAVE ESTABLISHED THE EXISTENCE OF THE FACE HUGGERS AND WHATNOT PRIOR TO THIS MOVIE. SO… YEAH… THAT.
Always send in the drones. Never the people. Has Obama taught us nothing?!?
the point i keep returning to when re imagining prometheus is the stark juxtaposition between the lofty themes the movie flails at and utterly drab and utilitarian luggage.
the expedition, which seeks to explore and ultimately confront humanity’s creators does so furnished with unbelievably lame luggage. outfit up you motherfuckers! you are embarking on a mission of limitless grandiosity. its depth of purpose as deep as the pockets of those bankrolling the whole thing. and yet, the space duffles produced to get the mission done are drab? limey? one cavity for storage? no nifty compartments?
the mission called for luggage equipped with tons of eccentric design choices: outlandish pockets, meticulous closures and the kind of panache and swagger that refuses to be ignored.
shame on you prometheus.