Riddley Scott has a surprise for Alien fans with this pseudo prequel film called Prometheus. Scott has quite a lot to live up to compared to the cult classic that was released back in 1979. Does this movie explain enough to stop us from scratching our heads and does it live up to the cult status of the original film? Watch your step, avoid the acid blood, and let’s find out.
Side Note: This review will have some minor spoilers, this is necessary to fully critic the movie. If you want to avoid the spoilers skip to the conclusion.
The Good
Scenery: Large vistas are quite vivid and really add to the surrounding environment. I saw the movie in 3D and things really seemed to pop out. Simply put, there is a real sense of immersion and connection to the world presented throughout the film.
Some great tie-ins to Alien: There are quite a few moments where viewers of the original 1979 classic will feel a sense of nostalgia. The films specifically answers some questions you may have had about the Space Jocky that appeared in the original Alien film.
Great Sci-fi Atmosphere: There are transparent touch screens, suits, holograms, ships and more. All of the aspects of a classic sci-fi horror are intact and the overall atmosphere of the movie stays satisfyingly consistent. However, it isn’t as scary as the first Alien film. Basically, Prometheus is a bit more of a Sci-fi film than it is a horror film.
3D: Those glasses are worth the price for this movie. 3D did not take a back seat in Prometheus and you will notice all sorts of nice touches here and that will please your eye. However, if you don’t fell like seeing Prometheus in 3D you will still get a visually pleasing experience with the awesome scenery.
The Bad
A lot of questions are left over: While you may think a movie that leaves the viewer with a bunch of questions is good, this prequel opens a plethora of problems that have yet to have been solved. There could have been more of a focus on explaining why instead of opening an onslaught of new possibilities.
In addition, the viewer may not understand until later that the planet being shown throughout the film is LV-223 and not LV-426 from Alien. Hardcore fans may recognize that fact right away, but some other fans may accidentally be mistaken. So, this means that the ship that they are exploring isn’t exactly the same as the one before. Consequently, the Space Jockey’s location is going to be different. However, Scott has suggested that if the movie does well enough there will be a sequel that may explain things bit further.
Slight discrepancies: When the Space Jockey from the first film appears, it is clear that the creature does not wear a helmet. In Prometheus we are met with a retooling of the original concept with a few twists.
Missing that cult classic feeling: Unfortunately, Prometheus isn’t really up to par with the original alien film. Yes, the movie is decent, but it’s just missing some of those moments in the original Alien. Of course this is debatable, but I would have liked to have seen more scenes with spooky corridors with red lights flickering that really boosted the tension level.
Conclusion
If you are a fan of the original Alien film, then what are you waiting for? This is a must see for followers of the Alien universe! However, Prometheus opens a slew of new questions to fans of the original movie and it is clear that this movie will be talked about for quite some time. The 3D was also great in the film and it doesn’t feel like an afterthought, but with that said, the experience won’t be hindered if you don’t see it in 3D.
Ultimately, Prometheus was an enjoyable watch with few dull moments. However, it wasn’t as much of a cult classic as the original film. This does not mean that Prometheus is bad by any means, it’s just that the movie didn’t live up to that cult classic feeling that the original Alien had and it really depends on what you were expecting out of this film. Simply put, if you were really hyped for the film and you were expecting it to position itself as a cult classic then you may be a bit disappointed, but you will at least have a few questions answered regarding the Alien universe.
Prometheus review by FacTor-X and XMACHINE9000
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I agree with you that one of the best things
(probably the best thing) about the film was the way that it looked. However, David
was the best character in the film, despite the fact that he was an android.
This illustrates how essentially soulless this film was. ‘Prometheus’ is
certainly at times a good-looking film, at others an ugly one, and contains the
occasional shock and a number of stomach-churning moments for the squeamish;
but it is underscripted, underplotted and lacks a satisfying conclusion.
Originality was absent, and even its best characters are two-dimensional: http://durotrigan.blogspot.co.uk/2012/06/ridley-scotts-prometheus-review.html
Michael Fassbender was pretty good as David and yes he did outshine the other cast members at certain points in the film. Also, on a side note, I think another computer said “Hello Dave” at some point in the beginning, which felt like a reference to Space Odyssey :). Thanks for the feedback, and you wrote a pretty nice review. However, in the future though please be careful about linking to your blog as it makes it look like you are posting just to advertise it. Thanks
Indeed a good film but that’s all unfortunately. I was thinking it’d be great… 🙁
Watched it two weeks ago. It was a disappointment for me both as a fan of Alien and Sci-Fi movies. Plot is just terrible. And I’m not even talking about unanswered parts. It is just the way characters made their decisions and overall feel on so called “science expedition”.
Visuals, David character were the strong parts. Engineer technology and Alien design were awful.
Actually I was expecting that plot will suck because screenplay writer (whatever his name is) was writing scripts for Lost series. And we all know how it was both intriguing and lacked substance to resolve it.
6/10