Comments on: Review: Prometheus

By: mark

mark — Mon, 29 Oct 2012 21:06:22 +0000

Cheers Dan … you’ve helped me feel less foolish. I too went through the subtle clues before my mea culpa, not least of which was the big stone head. And yes, for anyone familiar with the original franchise the weather/climatic conditions should have been a dead giveaway.

All things being equal I too will rewatch it one day. Not that I have any great hope of coming to appreciate it; I just think Ridley is such an accomplished film maker that he deserves our attention, regardless of how misfired that sometimes might be …

By: Dan

Dan — Mon, 29 Oct 2012 16:13:18 +0000

@mark: An easy mistake to make given the fact we were all (I think) expecting Scott to return to THE alien spacecraft in his original film. The obvious similarities to the ship also point to the fact it is the same ship but of course it isn’t which for me was disappointing. I thought that was Scott’s reason for returning to the story but clearly it wasn’t. Perhaps something to do with his ego – “I’ll do what I bloody well please so f*** ***!!”

I had to be corrected by a fellow viewer in regards to this being a different ship and planet. Although there are subtle clues – the name of the planet not matching up to its description in Aliens, and the completely different weather conditions suggest we’re not in Kansas anymore (as well as the revelation becoming apparent by the plot not matching up to Alien’s events). I initially put it down to being from a earlier period – ie. the planet gets a new name decades later while some freak weather condition leaves the planet Ripley has fun with in perennial darkness.

Prometheus isn’t the film I wanted to see (I’d much prefer the monster-in-the-house horror tactics of Alien) but there’s plenty to chew over under the surface. I think the film will grow in stature and hopefully, when I get around to seeing it again, I’ll enjoy it even more.

By: mark

mark — Sun, 28 Oct 2012 12:32:08 +0000

Probably shouldn’t draw attention to my idiocy here – and maybe I should have read some of the spoiler stuff beforehand – but yes, I was wrong. Different ship, different planet.

OK, so I’m a clown. Nevertheless, it’s still twaddle ….

By: mark

mark — Mon, 22 Oct 2012 04:43:43 +0000

Only saw this for the first time last nite (Oct 20) – the clowns who now run the video store down the road insisted on putting the DVD through the buffer/cleaner, despite the fact the disc was only four days old. Anyway, they f@*?!! it – thing has a scratch on it (kicks in just after the crew sees the ghosts).

I seem to recall in the original Alien that when Hurt, Skerritt et al arrived at the spaceship, the dead space man in the helmet with the hole in his stomach was sitting at the control turrent – is Scott now suggesting he crawled back to his chair?

When Noomi zooms off with the robot’s head, it’s kinda like Sigouney with Bishop at the end of part II in series one. Does that mean she will end up on a prison planet in the next film?

So the Alien was really partly us all along. Great twist. Two words – Tyler Durdon. And even then the idea is hardly original.

Nevertheless it was fitting that Guy Pearce, an Australian, got to play Rupert Murdoch.

I agree with the person who said it was twaddle ….

By: Claire

Claire — Fri, 08 Jun 2012 12:02:36 +0000

As always, Dan, a very well written article that sums up how a lot of people feel. As I wrote in my own review, I’m not that well versed in Alien knowledge so was able to enjoy this more as a standalone film.

Visually, it was stunning, top notch, and Fassbender and Rapace were both very impressive, especially the former. I think you’ve got it spot on here: “Fassbender, as the ship’s artificial person, has a particular tough task given the limelight left by Ian Holm and Lance Henrikson in similar roles exhibited within the Alien franchise. However, his impassive expression is unmoveable, giving the character an air of mystery throughout.”

By: Alex Thomas

Alex Thomas — Thu, 07 Jun 2012 13:32:59 +0000

I really enjoyed it!!! I was a huge fan of the Alien quadrilogy, but tried to distance it from Prometheus which I think helped me too. Visuals were stunning.

By: Dan

Dan — Thu, 07 Jun 2012 13:28:07 +0000

@Chris: As with every film I’ve seen in the cinema in 3D I invariably enjoy it a lot more when viewed in 2D. But I do think Prometheus will grow in stature.

As for the film’s suspense – or lack of – I think it begins with the planet itself. Yes, it’s probably cliched to have this dark, brooding planet of wind, rain and jagged rocks like Alien but I think the bright Saharan desert looked far too welcoming to really get the film off to on the right footing. Ever time they were in the alien spaceship I thought the film went up a gear but I never felt truly on edge…perhaps that goes back to the characters themselves and never caring about them being in peril.

By: Chris

Chris — Thu, 07 Jun 2012 12:12:04 +0000

As you wrote, Dan, I think this film could be a grower…I think if Prometheus was a stand-alone film, it would have stood a better chance of geting more love, because then it wouldn’t be compared to classics…removing this notion when watching is tough as you point out. The bar has been set so high, tough for Ridley…
You really think it fails for suspense? I disagree, the new film kept me on the edge of my seat, and I seem to be in the minority who actually liked the thoughtful, if sommewhat erratic script. I think Ridley had to betray the Alien followers, he had to make something different, otherwise, what’s the point?

love this quote from your review (Spoiler): “the notion that mankind’s overzealous pursuit of power has a hand in the creation of the monster that will destroy it”

Here’s my review:

http://moviesandsongs365.blogspot.com/2012/05/monthly-recap-what-have-i-been-watching.html

By: Nostra

Nostra — Wed, 06 Jun 2012 09:53:10 +0000

Watched it yesterday and I absolutely loved it. It has its flaws and I agree with your points, but have given it a high score.

By: Dan

Dan — Wed, 06 Jun 2012 08:18:08 +0000

@Scott: Despite my reservations I think I would have liked to see the film in an IMAX. I think this film will be a grower…at least I hope so. But that, I suppose, suggests I didn’t enjoy it. I did like it but I think 3 out of 5 is a good indication that I’m on the fence a little…is it really a 4/5 or is it a 2/5?