PROMETHEUS the Film: Not the Absence of a Liver…But of a Heart

Having seen PROMETHEUS in the standard format and in IMAX 3D, I’d have to say that I really enjoyed it, though not thoroughly. For me, the weakest aspect of the film is its lack of compelling emotional drive. When Ridley Scott took the helm of the original 1979 ALIEN, I can imagine him thinking…or even declaring, “I will win the crowd…I will give them something they’ve never seen before,” as the protagonist once uttered in Scott’s GLADIATOR. The thing is, back in ’79 there was much that crowds had not seen…cinematically. In the 33 years since the original ALIEN, audiences have become jaded, callused, and even desensitized to the types of scenes that utterly shocked people in times past. In 2012, even children have seen more violence and disturbing imagery through films and video games than would’ve ever been dreamt of by society in ’79. If seen in the 1970’s…the cesarean section scene in PROMETHEUS would’ve probably have the same effect on the audiences and media as the original chestburster scene in ALIEN…maybe even stronger. So, In my opinion, Ridley & company should have sunk more effort into developing the emotional aspects of this film. This would facilitate the viewer’s personal interest and emotional investment in the characters. I didn’t love anybody in this story, nor did I hate anybody. I wasn’t laughing, but wasn’t crying. When people died, I didn’t really give a shit, and for a film to be great…or excellent…I have give a shit, I have to care. I think the following tweaks would’ve helped immensely: •Clarify Shaw’s beliefs and goal. •Give me a reason to fall in love with Shaw’s character. •Make me care about Capt. Janek, so that his and his crewman’s sacrifice would mean more. •I needed a more malevolent, human antagonist, Vickers and David were too ambiguous. Anyways, etcetera, etcetera… I DID enjoy the movie, but I wanted to FEEL more. Obviously, there were many other problems with it, however I think that the biggest flaw was the less than adequate emotional investment in the script/characters…at least for me. Thoughts…anybody agree…disagree? Peace, Neurion P.S. I hope Shaw can find a good fastfood restaurant while searching for the Engineer’s home world, otherwise it's going to be a short trip. Ha!