so. pretty.
Last night, I went to a midnight showing of "Prometheus", directed by Ridley Scott. Just to lay down a couple things -- Scott has said that this movie IS in the same universe as the Alien series. Prometheus takes place before the Aliens timeline, but it's not a direct prequel.
Yet. I believe it's fulfilling to those that are huge fans of the Alien series. There are times when it feels like Scott is paying homage to himself -- which you can take as a good thing or a bad thing. There are several scenes in the movie that almost feel like deja-vu, and without giving too much away, I have to say that one of the final showdowns was quite similar to one of the earlier movies.
The strength of the characterization lies in the hands of actress Noomi Rapace and actor Michael Fassbender. Both are, unsurprisingly, fantastic. They also represent the more morally complex of the characters...but unfortunately, Scott seems to take that to mean that they have to be confusing as well. Although I come to like both of the characters in their own way, their motivations and emotions aren't always believable or understandable.
Prometheus falls short in terms of storyline and philosophical murmurings. It poses questions that are supposed to lead the audience into an introspective journey, or to bring to light the question of who we are/where we come from/questions of our creation that are reflected in Fassbender's portrayal of the man-made android, "David" (Fassbender plays the eerie calm of a robot so well, and yet shows that there is so much lurking beneath the surface). However, it doesn't answer these questions or even successfully conclude what the film/protagonists think of the questions. By the end, the philosophical questions feel more like a vehicle/flimsy reasoning to get the characters into the space where the alien "attacks" happen.
For better or worse, the strength of this movie is in the classic alien gore/horror scenes. Scott pulls no punches and these scenes are groan-worthy and at the same time weirdly fascinating in a sick way.
The movie's entertaining and definitely pleasing to the eyes. (But from when was it okay for Hollywood to be about pleasing the eyes more than the intellect and emotion?) In my opinion, it's a worthy addition to the Alien universe. The storyline and the supposed "surprises" and twists to the plot were hackneyed and expected though. And where it tries to be lofty and high-minded, it trips.
Yet. I believe it's fulfilling to those that are huge fans of the Alien series. There are times when it feels like Scott is paying homage to himself -- which you can take as a good thing or a bad thing. There are several scenes in the movie that almost feel like deja-vu, and without giving too much away, I have to say that one of the final showdowns was quite similar to one of the earlier movies.
The strength of the characterization lies in the hands of actress Noomi Rapace and actor Michael Fassbender. Both are, unsurprisingly, fantastic. They also represent the more morally complex of the characters...but unfortunately, Scott seems to take that to mean that they have to be confusing as well. Although I come to like both of the characters in their own way, their motivations and emotions aren't always believable or understandable.
Prometheus falls short in terms of storyline and philosophical murmurings. It poses questions that are supposed to lead the audience into an introspective journey, or to bring to light the question of who we are/where we come from/questions of our creation that are reflected in Fassbender's portrayal of the man-made android, "David" (Fassbender plays the eerie calm of a robot so well, and yet shows that there is so much lurking beneath the surface). However, it doesn't answer these questions or even successfully conclude what the film/protagonists think of the questions. By the end, the philosophical questions feel more like a vehicle/flimsy reasoning to get the characters into the space where the alien "attacks" happen.
For better or worse, the strength of this movie is in the classic alien gore/horror scenes. Scott pulls no punches and these scenes are groan-worthy and at the same time weirdly fascinating in a sick way.
The movie's entertaining and definitely pleasing to the eyes. (But from when was it okay for Hollywood to be about pleasing the eyes more than the intellect and emotion?) In my opinion, it's a worthy addition to the Alien universe. The storyline and the supposed "surprises" and twists to the plot were hackneyed and expected though. And where it tries to be lofty and high-minded, it trips.
