A weapon?

Well, the ship with the black liquid is a weapon, but not just to kill humans. And also, the effect is not to create xenomorphs, but to break down existing life forms and permit randomized new species to come about. The engineers wouldn't nuke anyone because it would waste the material, and to them, one kind of life is pretty much equal to another. Artificial life, however, like David, upsets them.

Trying to figure out the truth? Things don't make sense? You are putting far more thought into it than the writer. For the writer, it's a job. The writer has just enough time to work out a usable plot, with lots of conveniently vague ideas, like a black goo that does whatever mysterious thing the script needs it to do. They figure out just enough to give the project at hand a semblance of logic, then off to the next project.

"one kind of life is pretty much equal to another. Artificial life, however, like David, upsets them." But the engineers did inject their own genome into life on earth, so isn't there something artificial there as well? Or atleast tampering with natural evolution. Also, you mentioned that effect of the black liquid is not to create xenomorphs, but we know from the from the Mural that the xenomorph seems to be highly regarded in engineer society. " You are putting far more thought into it than the writer." This is what worries me the most :(

@Visionary: Seems to me like Xeno's/Deacon is absolutely the end result of goo. Goo + Worm = Xeno Worm (acid blood, cone head) Goo + Fifield = Xeno Fifield (read 'Art of the Film) Goo Sperm + Shaw = Huge Facehugger Huge Facehugger + Engineer = Xeno "Deacon" So yes, Xenos are definitely not just some happy coincidence, they are being deliberatley manufactured. "You are putting more thought into it than the writer" - actually, most of the ideas put forth are from Sir Ridley himself. These are over 30 year old concepts that he's been mulling over since the days of Starbeast. The writers certainly put it together nicely and polished it up, but this is Ridley's baby and it shows. He literally sketched the entire thing on storyboards over and over. Anyway, it's not a 'random plot device'- the goo does one thing, and that is making Aliens. (Or the closest thing to it)

^ Thank you! Well said. The film really is not as ambiguous or vague as many think, there really is many implied answers and bread crumbs of clues and indeed, most of the film's elements have their root in Dan O'Bannon's original screenplay. It is no coincidence that the urns or ampules in the ampule chamber are laid out in a formal fashion that evokes the arrangment of the eggs in the egg chamber, no coincidence that the black substance has demonstrable strands of xenomorph dna, no coincidence that David is demonstrably superior to his flawed human counterparts and would manipulate them to take off their helmets, etc, no coincidence that Vickers would try to undermine the mission by deliberately hiring psychologically unstable characters to thwart her father in order to seize the company, etc, etc, the film is chock full of allegory and subtext and the connections to what happened regarding the derelict on LV-426 couldn't be more obvious. Gladly, the sequel will no doubt settle the remaining enigmas definitively.

I've studied the art of film, with emphasis on directing, for 42 years. Been in Hollywood, California, for 31 years, occasionally working in film in varying positions, always behind the scenes. Not a big shot, just a worker, but I've met lots of Oscar winners and have been in the position to know a few things that are not generally known. It's amazing what you can learn working on a film, or at a Hollywood party. There's nothing like studying film in Hollywood to expand your awareness of how things are done. I've attended films with screen writers, discussed the "do's and don't's" of film logic, that which is likely to happen, that which is unlikely to happen, how to spot when a director is lying to his audience ( Case in point, the remake of Diabolique with Sharon Stone. The director "tells" one lie, invalidating the entire film from that point on). It's not impossible that Ridley Scott has all of these things figured out in his own mind, but is it likely? Be very careful about assuming things. If they spell everything out, all the rules of what the goo does and doesn't do, they damn well better have the entire plot figured ALL THE WAY TO THE END AND BEYOND. Answering too many questions boxes them in, confines them. Until Ridley spells out exactly what the goo is, exactly what it does, I will be thinking of it as "something that causes change", not unlike "radio activity" in 50's sci fi. Need a Godzilla to attack Tokyo? Need a giant tarantula? Giant ants? Shrinking men? Get some good old All Purpose Radio Activity, that'll fix it. The goo, so far, is the modern equivalent. By the end, we may actually know all about it, then again, we might not. It's certainly easier for the film maker to keep it vague. When I read about Ridley "screaming" at Damon Lindelof for pulling out of the project, I had to laugh, because I figured what we are hearing is just the tip of the iceberg, the reality is probably much worse. Considering that movie makers prefer to say "The next script is brilliant! Things are going great, right on schedule!" They must always put the best possible "spin" on things. Don't be fooled. I considered it a dead project, until they finally found a new writer. That was certainly desperate. Hopefully, he's brilliant and can deliver the goods. I was going to say "I'll believe there's actually going to be a sequel when the camera start rolling", but now I think I'll have to change that to "I'll believe there's actually going to be a sequel when filming wraps". I still consider it a project in jeopardy, but that doesn't mean it can't turn out great. The Usual Suspects is a perfect example of a movie that slammed to a halt while in production, for hilarious reasons I tastefully won't go into, only to turn out really well, in the end.

I never thought about the xeno being "always" the end result of the black goo. I do see it as random. I think the engineer went berserk at the end of the first movie, at least primarily, because he realized what David was. In the theatrical release, you can see this clearly, and in the extended version which shows more dialogue with him, it's because Weyland is putting himself on equal footing with the gods because he created David (as they also created life). The black goo breaks them down, and permits random growths.

I am not saying xenomorphs weren't made deliberately, only that left to evolution and chance, the black goo will create random life. That evolution can be guided, and through that particular creatures cultivated. The xenomorph does indeed occupy a place in high regard, though. The engineers would at least marvel at them like the android in the original Alien movie did, admiring its simplicity (i.e. freedom from morality, and bias), and its survival abilities. He called it a perfect life form. It is not anyone's friend, but it might be seen as an achievement and with its moral simplicity it is maybe seen as the ultimate animal or beast. The animals aren't blamed for man's immoral decisions, but are often symbols of strength and even beloved pets, which I think they could be to the engineers.

The engineers were not happy with man.

"I think the engineer went berserk at the end of the first movie, at least primarily, because he realized what David was." Wow, I don't see it that way at all. It looked to me as though the Engineer actually liked David, and was impressed with his speaking their language. It was Weyland and Shaw arguing that disgusted the Engineer, and the way Weyland had one of his goons silence Shaw. The Engineer saw the that humans couldn't get along with each other. He might have killed them anyway, but the humans arguing with one another right in front of him gave him all the reason he needed to wipe them out. The way he gently touched David on the head seemed to me to say "Well, I like you, but unfortunately I'm going to need your head to smash this vile old man". It makes sense that he would hate the humans. It really doesn't make any sense that he would hate a robot.

You guys also have to remember that the predators do play a key part of pushing the engineers into creating the xenomorph species so they can be used as the ultimate prey which tells that the deacon in this movies wasn't the first to happen. For you got to remember the first aliens movie where ripley and her crew found a ship filled with many eggs that tie in with the pred vs xeno universe.

At the top of the list of things that will NEVER happen, is "Predators" in a Ridley Scott film. You can fantasize about it, but it will never happen. Ridley Scott will not be using any of James Cameron's ideas, you won't see an alien queen. Scott doesn't even want to reuse his own ideas, so no xenomorphs. Prometheus is a step in a different direction. Prometheus is mainly about Shaw, her little crucifix, and her quest for answers/God. It's not about the monsters at all. There will be monsters, but they will be different, as you can see in Prometheus.

Thank you BSS1973 for that insightful post. The radiation/black goo comparison makes complete sense, especially when in context with the numerous scientific inaccuraries present in Prometheus. Visionary Alpha, I think you're kind of you're contradicting yourself when you state that the purpose of the black goo is to make random life but that this life can then be cultivated. Wouldn't cultivating a lifeform be contrary to the purpose of letting loose a random evolution? After all, cultivation is about selectively breeding on certain characteristics. Also, since humans have the same DNA as the engineers it seems obvious that the goal of the sacrificial engineer is not to create random life, but to create a very specific lifeform: humans. Also, the way the Xenomorph is portrayed on the mural as a godlike creature leads me to disagree about your hypothesis about them being pets. I do agree with the part about the engineer going berzerk because of David. I believe that when the engineer caressed David he was sort of inspecting him, and upon realizing that he was a robot, the engineer perceived it as a corruption and promptly decided to wipe out the party. The Predator universe is indeed completely unrelated to the Alien universe. Ridley Scott has himself confirmed that he considers the AVP movies not to be canon.

The Xenomorph / Deacon could be: - a way to resurrect their creators (Gods?), who are extinct, and perhaps the xenocreatures are made with the blood of those beings, even maybe the xenomorph is made in the image and likeness of someone. - A warrior to fight against their gods / creators, or even against another faction of their own race (Elders). - A evolutionary leap for mankind, to create a more advanced race (but not necessarily the gods). - Maybe the Engineers experimented with human in the past,then they injected the primordial black goo (tool life) to test the mankind. The genetics of humans is imperfect and instead of creating constructive life (as the Engineer of sacrifice) the results were horrible monsters with acid blood (the urns). So is that the Xenomorph is the destiny of humanity, a failed experiment and a disappointment for the creators. - As Jon Spaihts says in his scipt; the black goo extracted DNA from an creature to give life to a new lifeform based on the original (again as in the case of Engineer of sacrifice). So, maybe the engineers found a native alien race in LV-223. Then, they injected the primordial black goo in these creatures to create the black goo that we see in the urns, and infected life forms disintegrated.

"Thank you BSS1973 for that insightful post." Many thanks, and a garland of Martian Fire Flowers. I've watched it many times and will take another look at this specifically, just to be sure, but I still find it impossible to believe that the Engineer acted because David was a robot. Are we given any reason to think that at all? Remember, the Engineers had ALREADY decided to wipe out the humans 2000 years ago, that's motivation number one. Then there's Weyland diplomatic debacle. They approached the Engineer in the most stupid, thoughtless way imaginable. The intruding humans had the audacity to have a tacky, tasteless tantrum in front of the Engineer. One human hits another and the Engineer sees it. He sees the pathetic, foolish old man give the order, and then have the nerve to ask for a favor. That's no way to approach a superior being, who just woke up. That simply isn't done, in polite society. He was probably grumpy after 2000 years in bed. Imagine, the interrupted dreams... Keep in mind that in the works of great directors like Scott, nothing is extraneous. The ugly little spat between the humans serves a DEFINITE purpose, plot wise: to infuriate the Engineer. There's a domino effect. Motivation number two. Human arrogance and the inability to get along with their own kind could easily be all the motivation the Engineer needed, and may have been their original motivation for wiping us out. I think the Engineer had to make a split second decision: to choose between his admiration for David, who had the major plus of speaking his language, and his disgust for Weyland. The fact that there was a[i] decision[/i] to make between the two seems like better story telling. They way I see it, the Engineer did not act to kill David, he acted to kill Weyland. David's artificial head just happened to be a convenient weapon. It wasn't personal. I'm inclined to think that if the humans had waited quietly back at the opening of the hallway and let David approach alone, things might have been quite different. Their diplomatic failure just added to feelings the Engineer already had. I think it was Weyland's impatience that got him killed. That one scene, where everyone dropped dead at once, reminded me of Shakespeare.

[quote] I think the Engineer had to make a split second decision: to choose between his admiration for David, who had the major plus of speaking his language, and his disgust for Weyland. The fact that there was a decision to make between the two seems like better story telling. They way I see it, the Engineer did not act to kill David, he acted to kill Weyland. David's artificial head just happened to be a convenient weapon. It wasn't personal.[/quote] I'm not too sure about that, in fact, we can see the engineer hit one of the mercenaries, throwing the man several meters against the wall. That is, He could kill Weyalnd without using any weapons, especially considering that it is an old man.

Apparently the Engineers are more passionate than what we were thinking, using emotions over reason. But certainly the Engineer seems to feel admiration for David at first.

"He could kill Weyland without using any weapons" You're absolutely correct about that. It may have been a strategic move. The Engineer may have sensed that David was the strongest, and had to be disabled first. Although, the real reason it happened the way it did, might have been this: It was good cinema. It looked cool. That is often the reason. I almost forgot, Ash lost his head, too, and was able to talk afterward. That seems to be a tradition. Maybe Ripley, whoops, I'm mean Ridley wanted David to end up as Ash would later. Ash was Advanced Super-Evil, and therefore had a really grizzly death. David, being basically only as evil as Weyland made him for certain tasks, was only temporarily beheaded. A character goes through changes. For Shaw, its to become a warrior who fights her way to her creator. I think David can make the transition from dubious to dependable. Another reason: Shaw and David are going to face other enemies and the two of them working together increases their chances. If David is evil, out to get Shaw, he could kill her as soon as he is fixed, but then the story would be over. That would be a short movie. Another reason: the plot would be too cluttered. How far can Shaw get without him? The sequel's first shot of David could easily be the last step of his repair, and then suddenly, he's good to go. They'll want to show that, but it will be done quickly. The sooner David gets his head back, the sooner they can stop using CGI to make him look that way. And he'll be more interesting once he's back on his feet. I can think of one reason he went after David, first. Weyland made David, as The Engineers made Us. Imitating them might have upset them. Even though humans were smaller and weaker, I think the Engineers still saw us as a potential threat. If we could reach their world, we might end up covering it with litter and graffiti. First chance I get, I'm going to look at this scene again, in case you guys are seeing some subtlety I'm not. You may have been looking more closely than me. Hope to do it tonight. If I ever run into Ridley (have never met him) down at the Grove, I'll have to ask him about it. Hopefully he would find it a worthwhile question.

I like the analogy of the black goo to ratiation, it makes as much sense as anything I've seen so far. I long ago gave up on coming up with a logical explanation for the goo. I chalked it up to dark magic or in a flight of fancy even contemplated the notion that the goo itself could be an entity unto itself with a will of its own. As to why the Engineer went nuts at the end, it seems to me that he was offended by the behavior of the people rather than by the fact that David was artificial. I remember thinking he was going to pat David on the head like we would a puppy, but then all hell breaks loose. I think we can assume that the Engineer did perceive humans as a threat because we had mastered space travel, we had violent tendencies, and we found their weapons facility. So as a service to the universe, the Engineer had no choice but to exterminate these pesky humans.

@preds: Thanks for the reminder. The xenos are grown for the preds, and they represent the final product of the engineers' work to cultivate the perfect prey for their hunts. I believe the predators conquered the engineers' home world long ago, and we're in for quite a lot of fun in the sequel!