Overrated, but damn good story

Movie Review: P R O M E T H E U S By StarbeastEngineer0001 Once again, British director Sir Ridley Scott has returned to the genre he helped redefine and expanded on the world he helmed in his 1979 classic Science-Fiction/Horror film, ALIEN. Fans of the original film will undoubtedly remember the scene inside the downed derelict spacecraft on the dead moon (later LV-426 in James Cameron’s [i]ALIENS[/i]) where Veronica Cartwright, Tom Skerrit and John Hurt discover the cockpit with a giant dead biomechanical skeleton. I am, of course, referring to the creature known since as[i] “The Space Jockey”[/i]. In all the following Alien sequels (and that goddamn awful Alien versus Predator mess) it is never mentioned or seen again. Now, 33 years later Scott has returned to the universe of the original tale but instead of a direct prequel, has gone in a totally opposite direction. With PROMETHEUS, Scott shows us that the Alien we all admire (and steal from occasionally) is only a small part of a much larger cosmos and original story. This time, however, our main characters are not blue-collared miners stumbling upon viscous black exoskeleton monsters, but serious scientists and explorers searching for the origins of life on Earth on the distant moon of LV-223. [size=200]*** [/size] The Beginning, primordial Earth. Atop a large waterfall with a flying saucer literally hanging above, a tall clear-white humanoid with dark eyes drinks a potent liquid decaying his body and so that his DNA can intermix with the early planet’s elements. Flash-forward several million years (if not billions) to Scotland where archaeologists Elizabeth Shaw (The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo’s Noomi Rapace) and Charlie Holloway (Logan-Marshall Green) discover cave paintings of people worshipping giant beings pointing to the stars, which they take as an “invitation”, and set out to discover their makers- [i]“ The Engineers”[/i] (The Space Jockey race). Funded by the Weyland Corporation’s Sir Peter (Guy Pearce), the starship Prometheus reaches their destination two years later in 2093. Captained by Idris Elba’s Janek, fellow scientists Milburn (Rafe Spall) and Fifield (Sean Harris), the mission is closely monitored by the company’s “ice queen” representative Meredith Vickers (Charlize Theron) and trusty butler-esque android David 8 (wonderfully played by Michael Fassbender). They land on the desert-like moon, and begin to investigate a series of chambers inside a large temple with a giant monolithic head and urns oozing mysterious black goo. Sure enough, their discovery leads to darker implications and all hell breaks loose: Acid melts a man’s helmet and mutates him into a violent space zombie, an infected man is immolated at his request, and a giant humanoid being beats the living daylights out of four people with his own bare hands. But what makes Prometheus interesting is not so much its near-perfect pacing and acute characterizations (which are summed up below), but the grand ideas that fit in with the story and the impressions they leave on the viewer. [size=200]*** [/size] A major element at play is the idea that early human civilization was influenced by extraterrestrial visitation-“partially” inspired by Erich Von Daniken’s Chariots of the Gods? Of course, the pseudoscientific Ancient Astronaut theory has been diluted, but the implications and concept stands out-much like in the original ALIEN, there are living elements and intelligences out in the cosmos that act behind the curtain of fear, undermining our own agendas and curiosity with the explicit and nasty idea of [i]biological engineered living weapons.[/i] Character development is on-par with Scott’s other films, but there is a lack of evolution and dynamic (save for Rapace’s Shaw, Fassbender’s David, and Idris Elba’s Janek) overall. A scientist and a believer, Shaw’s faith in the Almighty is put to the test when she realizes the planet they’ve landed on is anything but the home of the Engineers; Striving to find answers, but becoming similar to Sigourney Weaver’s survivor, Ellen Ripley, she reluctantly accompanies the sinister and megalomaniacal intentions of Weyland and David. The latter is neither a malicious Ash from ALIEN nor a benevolent Bishop from ALIENS; rather, he is a more capable and diverse synthetic who has no issue following orders at the whim of the company, but has his own curiosities and agenda which almost needless to say, help bring the wrath of the “Gods” down on the crew of the Prometheus like the Greek myth. Consequently, Elba provides a calm but authoritarian man, showing his true toughness and responsibility in times of crisis halfway and near the end of the film. Lastly, I offer praise for Logan-Marshall Green’s performance as scientific sceptic but ambitious adventurer Holloway-who exceeded my expectations (for once I was seeing a young scientist of my generation who actually cared). Visual designs are fairly decent (if not excellent). Instead of alien eggs and face-hugging sexual organs a la H.R. Giger, we find various forms of biology and the actual Engineers themselves-Greek Gods in biomechanical suits with overpowering strength and intelligence. The titular ship itself, space suits and medical facilities all reflect the optimism and classic nature of the Nostromo, but are much brighter and clean. I must mention Marc Streitenfeld’s soundtrack: Although it is not as par excellence as Jerry Goldsmith’s original haunting and mysterious score, it definitely “keeps the faith” via ominous droning, thrilling action compositions, and a hint of the original theme from ALIEN. [size=200]*** [/size] A main point of contention for PROMETHEUS’ failure to fully satisfy comes from high expectations and predictability: Online fan communities and mass media which played to our fears and expectations, giving us a somewhat unenthusiastic set-up in the theatre. Some of the characters just act downright stupid: Holloway decides “Let’s go explore the Engineer temple even though we just landed!” and Milburn & Fifield’s fatal encounter with a cobra-esque alien and humans foolishly challenging the Engineer’s potential is a doomed mission almost from the minute the ship touches down. Obviously, it shows that either the future lacks common sense, or the opposition to corporate risk-takers. ` Even the plotline-which is deviated in favour of Shaw’s medical emergency and Weyland’s massive ego-gets in the way of asking the most serious philosophical questions that Scott promised to ask. No doubt, they’re present but they appear more subtle and raise more questions than those that are answered: Thus, we have an ending which sets us up for a sequel. It would be more promising if the story could stand on its own, and hint at a continued storyline- As if someone had lazily said, “f*ck it-we’ll throw in the original kitchen sink” Damon Lindelof’s over-sensationalized and maverick writing abilities aside, it seems that his take on Jon Spaiht’s revised script that dialled down the “ original elements of Alien DNA” have been replaced with mirror elements of extraterrestrial rape, space exploration and colonization, shadowy corporations and androids and faulty plot lines and some bleak character. Nevertheless, PROMETHEUS is not entirely lost. It is still a visually and adventurous thriller with thought-provoking mentality and philosophical impartiality. Where it loses in faulty plot structure, bland (but original & unique) characters and illogic it makes up for with production designer Arthur Max’s team of artists and effects, an ensemble cast of well-balanced performance and a brilliant plot “engineered” by the “lovescript” of Spaihts/Lindelof and of course, Sir Ridley Scott. Rating: 3.5/5 (A half-hearted "(don't care for)" to Damon Lindelof for the sequel. And to parody the Iranian Ayatollah Khomeini's [i]fatwa[/i] on Salman Rushdie's [i]The Satanic Verses and the over-sensationalized trap of excessive fandom from this site and the internet[/i]: [i]"Even if Damon Lindelof apologizes, licks the boots that Sir Ridley wears, and writes a beautiful treatment of 20, 000 Leagues Under the Sea (Dear God-F*ck no!!) it is incumbent on every single fan of Ridley Scott, Alien, Blade Runner, and Aliens to send him to write for the Asylum Film Studios" [/i] (P.s-Perhaps things will be rightened in the end-after all: in order to create, you must sometimes destroy)