Prometheus is an action movie, in the worst sense of the word. Don't let the lofty themes fool you. While the movie begins with noble presentation and grand ideas, it follows through on none of them.
To list out the number of offenses Prometheus commits is to go through a laundry list of bad story telling. Let's begin with the plot and, as importantly, the plot holes. The plot is convoluted despite being so simple. Conflicts are presented that are never resolved or fully explained. The motivations and actions of the Engineers are so horribly convoluted that it makes you wonder why a race of advanced beings, capable of genetic engineering and interstellar flight, would ever need to go through the lengths these beings do in order to develop bioweapons.
Which is the essential plot of the movie. Bad alien beings developing bio weapons, and the process of doing so will destroy the Earth. Nevermind the silliness of how complicated it was to seed Earth with life in the first place, only to wreck it later. Further, the Engineers are not Aliens. With an Alien, you could expect the brutal, the unexplained. It was a creature of sheer instinct, your visceral fears manifested. The Engineers are posed as godlike beings, worshiped, leaving instructions on starmaps throughout the planet that would lead people to them. Except we learn that the Engineers left a map not to their homeworld, but to the interstellar equivalent of a weapons facility. And for what? To produce bioweapons by merging humans with their experiments? It would have taken hundreds of millions of years to bring their plan to fruition.
Perhaps I'm wrong on how I'm interpreting the plot, but that falls on the writer and director. There is lack of clarity, exposition that takes seconds and explains nothing, and then long talks that lead nowhere. Too many characters say too many things, and not enough focus is placed on any of them.
But the true offense is that the movie makes you feel nothing. The first half hour to an hour is perhaps the best, when the movie is inspiring wonder. David, the android, sets up the movie incredibly well because the audience is able to discern how David is attempting to mimic humanity. This would have been an interesting theme to follow, and it leads nowhere. It vanishes, punctuated by unexplained moments of behavior from David. Is he acting the way he is because he truly is becoming more human than human?
In fact, I'd venture to say David would have made a better villain than the Engineers. That sense of awe falls away as soon as we're introduced to the creatures. Again, as opposed to the Alien, the audience expects something of a race capable of interstellar travel and genetic engineering. What we get is a rampaging brute that shows just how strong he is but never provides fear. The sense of awe, of wonder, that permeates the question of what makes a human human, and why we search for our origins, falls away. It's replaced not by the stark horrors of space, but large, set piece action sequences and revelations that are neither shocking nor insightful. It's all quite boring.
I am not a big fan of Alien, but I appreciate it for what it was. I took the girlfriend. Neither of us found the movie interesting after the first forty five minutes. I actually began to drift off during the last half hour or so. One of the 'pivotal' deaths is so comical I couldn't help but grimace, and the last set of action sequences becomes, essentially, Die Hard in Space.
Edit: OH! And the ending is offensive. It seems to pander for a sequel.
I would give it a 5/10. The last 10-15 of fan service was a bit of a slap in the face, I'm sorry to say. I'm not one who thinks everything in a movie NEEDS to be explained and tend to hate movies that do that(so the unclear motivations and plot weren't my problem), On that note, I do believe this movie would've actually been really good...without the last 15 minutes. Ridley, die hard fans can make the connections and non-fans don't care about them, so doing them yourself is very pointless and just leaves everyone with a big "what the fuck?" after all of it. I'll buy it on Blu-ray, but I won't be seeing this multiple times in the theatre. It was alright. Still WAYYYY better than Resurrection...and by the way, people, this movie completely removes any thought of the AVP movies being cannon(which, I must thank them for that).
Prometheus is an action movie, in the worst sense of the word. Don't let the lofty themes fool you. While the movie begins with noble presentation and grand ideas, it follows through on none of them.
'Prometheus' is a film that falls within the science-fiction, action-adventure and horror genres. You do it a great disservice by describing it as simply "an action movie", regardless of whether or not you enjoyed the film.
To list out the number of offenses Prometheus commits is to go through a laundry list of bad story telling. Let's begin with the plot and, as importantly, the plot holes. The plot is convoluted despite being so simple. Conflicts are presented that are never resolved or fully explained.
Such is the nature of the beast. Whilst you're correct that a number of plot elements are left unexplained; this is a purposeful decision on the part of Ridley Scott (as he has stated in interviews). However, many of the "plot holes" have an answer and everything depicted within the film has meaning and a purpose. This was evident in earlier drafts of the script - Ridley wanted the film to be more ambiguous and so took out the moments of exposition, that explained the various mysteries.
The point is that a lot of the answers are there; within the film. Trust me when I say that it's a film which grows upon you, with every viewing. There are so many small, subtle touches; the key is to paying close attention to the finer details.
'Prometheus' is a film which absolutely demands multiple viewings. In that respect, it's not dissimilar to 'Blade Runner'. If that's sounds a little bit too much like hyperbole, then allow me to compare it to another film; 'Alien 3'.
Much like Fincher's underrated flick, 'Prometheus' is a film that's sadly been compromised my studio enforced cuts (see my forthcoming review for details), though an extended cut is probable upon the Blu-Ray release of the film. Another trait that 'Prometheus' shares with the third in the 'Alien' series is that there's a number of people who strongly dislike the film at this moment. I personally believe that (like 'Alien 3')'Prometheus' will be a film which will be appreciated much more as time passes and repeat viewings take place.
Personally, I love films which leave certain events to the imagination. Such films (hopefully) leave the viewer thinking about the film, for many days following it's release; coming up with your own theories as to what occurred. In reality, life provides no answers; why should film?
It may be my own tastes but I relish a story which leaves me to connect the dots, it makes for a more immersive experience.
If there's a point that I'm attempting to make here, then I guess it's this; please watch 'Prometheus' at least twice. This time you'll be watching the flick without any expectation or preconceived notions. Trust me, this film is a grower. There are so many moments that you pick up upon a second or third viewing that you miss the first time around.
Too many characters say too many things, and not enough focus is placed on any of them.
Those moments are (sadly) on the cutting room floor. Ridley Scott has already hinted at an extended cut, during his recent radio interview with Mark Kermode and Simon Mayo. Like I said, it's 'Alien 3' all over again!
But it wasn't a horror movie, that's the problem. It never invokes a sense of dread or fear.
Ah, that's the trick you see, Potter (sorry - couldn't resist)! It's not intended as a pure horror film. Hence the reason as to why Ridley Scott distanced this project from being a straight up prequel to 'Alien'. 'Prometheus' is it's own thing; a weighty film, riffing on the subject of what it means to be human and faith vs science. I'll concede that the horror elements are somewhat shoehorned in but they're certainly not the focus of the story. They're merely a speck upon the entire canvas.
'Prometheus' simply takes place within the same universe as 'Alien', it's not intended as a direct continuation of the themes and genre of those films. Think of 'Prometheus' in terms of being it's own thing and you just may come to love it.
I still don't get how the space jockey got from that module back to his pilot's seat. Was this a different planet than the one the Nostromo encounters?
Ah, that's the trick you see, Potter (sorry - couldn't resist)! It's not intended as a pure horror film. Hence the reason as to why Ridley Scott distanced this project from being a straight up prequel to 'Alien'. 'Prometheus' is it's own thing; a weighty film, riffing on the subject of what it means to be human and faith vs science. I'll concede that the horror elements are somewhat shoehorned in but they're certainly not the focus of the story. They're merely a speck upon the entire canvas.
'Prometheus' simply takes place within the same universe as 'Alien', it's not intended as a direct continuation of the themes and genre of those films. Think of 'Prometheus' in terms of being it's own thing and you just may come to love it.
To me it felt too much like a collection of set pieces, like a committee of writers sat around a board room suggesting things that would be cool, and they just put all of the ideas into the movie. The way that things "come together" in the ending makes it clear that wasn't entirely the case, but it didn't dispel that feeling.
Also the last action sequence with the
rolling ship
was just absurdly contrived. I feel like the movie would have been better if they basically ended it just before that, so
the ships collide and everybody dies, the end
, because everything after that just felt annoying.
I'm going to be watching 'Prometheus' for the fourth time tonight. I just can't get enough! It really does seem to get better overall, with each viewing.
Also, I've finally completed the script for my 'Prometheus' YouTube review. I'll be recording and posting it within the next couple of days.
Seriously though how did those two guys get lost in the pyramid that they had holographic maps of, and why are they just idly wandering around after the captain of the ship frantically calls everyone else back aboard? If it was "safe" enough inside the pyramid that they were completely unaffected by the storm, why did they bother rushing anybody back to the ship? They could have all stayed in the pyramid and not risked having to outrace the storm. It's seriously like those two walked into some time warp that caused them to completely cease to exist for the duration of the "we have to get to the ship before the storm hits" sequence.
The plothole writer is an idiot. Yes, there were some, but some of those are easily explainable and others just don't matter.
You're spot on. Let's take a little look at these so called "plot-holes"...
Dear Mr. Unobservant,
1. Why is David riding a bicycle and shooting hoops? Is he trying to impress someone? I understand why he’s developing language skills, as he’s researching things as yet undiscovered, but what’s with the sports? He’s a robot!
Yes, he's a robot. Well done for actually comprehending something in the film! David is alone on board the ship for over 2 years; of course he's going to pass the time. Why is he riding a bike whilst shooting hoops? Because:
A - It shows the audience that he is a robot, whilst showing how he is, in some ways, superior to humans. His balance and co-ordination are flawless.
B - One of the films main themes is 'what does it mean to be an artificial person'. Weyland claims that David lacks a soul and yet the android clearly enjoys watching 'Lawrence of Arabia', he is overjoyed when he initiates the Engineer's hologram and he smiles when he hears the Engineer's heartbeat.
That's the point of the character; what does it mean to be human and can an artificial life-form have desires? There's another Ridley Scott film which deals with these issues; it's called 'Blade Runner' (maybe you've heard of it)! I guess that you were puzzled by that film too. You probably felt confused as to why Roy Batty wants to look into the eye of his creator and ask for more life, instead of just being a good little machine.
2. When Holloway sees the lines on the planet that prove the alien presence, why does no-one suggest scoping the area out for a while? Even just a little fly around would have been nice.
Whilst we don't see it on screen, it's perfectly possible that a scan of the planet is performed prior to landing. Ultimately though, they go straight to the pyramid in order to move the plot forward. If this is a plot-hole to you, then I can't imagine that you enjoy many movies at all!
3. What exactly are the holograms for? David starts one in the caves and another on the Space Jockey deck, but who are they for? They’re useful for him and us, but who made them? They could be some kind of ship’s log, but if so couldn’t someone have said that in one line of dialogue?
Um, seeming as you already answered your own question (they're clearly a ship's log), why do you need what you already know stated to you through dialogue?! More to the point, why do you think that it's a bad thing that you should have to engage your brain and not be spoon-fed every little detail through horrendous over-exposition?!
4. When Shaw, Holloway, David and Ford flee the caves, outside there’s two go-karts and a minibus. Two get on each of the karts, and no-one gets into the bus, yet they all drive off (at the time we assume Fifield and Millburn are in there). Who is driving it? You could argue that there’s a nameless crew member that stayed behind as a driver, and headed off to avoid the storm slightly too early for the others to get in, but there’s no proof of this.
When they get outside of the pyramid, we see that it's only the two karts that remains parked. Milburn says "damn it, they've already gone", they hop on the karts and then you see a shot of them catching up with the large transport, which left moments prior to the team emerging back outside.
5. Once David has rescued Shaw and Holloway, Janek mentions they don’t know where Fifield and Millburn are, but there’s a map showing their position! He uses it in the next scene. Plus, Janek seems pretty lackadaisical about two members of the crew being stranded on an alien planet. He practically says LOL.
I'll admit that these events are pretty convenient to the plot. However, Janek states that the signal has been dropping in and out due to the storm. Convenient? Yes. Plot-Hole? No.
Also, how convenient is it that everyone has a surname beginning with a different letter?
Seriously? Why shouldn't their last names begin with a different letter? Isn't it more likely that their surnames would be different?! Besides, there were two characters in the caves who had shared the same first letter of their surname; Fifield and Ford.
I can't remember how the map differentiates the two but I would imagine that Fifield would be represented as 'F' and Ford would appear as 'Fo'.
6. Why does David cave in to Vickers’ threats? He’s a robot, there’s not a lot she could do to him.
Once David has refused to tell Vickers what Weyland said; she specifically tells him "so help me God, I will find the cord that makes you run and I will cut it" (i.e. tell me or I'll kill you), at which point David informs her. This just further proves that an artificial person is capable of desire and has a sense of self preservation (ala Bishop in 'Aliens' - "I may be synthetic, but I'm not stupid").
7. Millburn the biologist is supposedly cowardly, as he is easily convinced by Fifield to run away at the site of a decapitated body (understandable), and later when he hears there’s a lifeform somewhere nearby, he says he’s heading in the opposite direction. So why, when he and Fifield go to the vase chamber, does he suddenly want to make friends with the alien there? He can’t even see the entire creature, so for all he knows it’s some giant beasty with a strange proboscis. Why did they even decide to stay in the cave full of weird bubbling vases anyway? It’s the exact room, with the dead decapitated body outside of it, that they ran away from earlier.
This sequence is very contrived, I'll give you that but it was Fifield who got really freaked out and wanted to leave. It was only when he asked, that Milburn decided to join him in going back to the ship. Even then, he took a moment to consider it. He was nowhere near as much of a coward as Fifield (who puts on a big show of being a mean bastard, in order to conceal his fears).
In relation to the Hammerpede (the serpent creature); how are we first introduced to Milburn in the film? We see him go up to the meanest looking hardass of the group (Fifield) and introduce himself, in an attempt to become friends. How does this relate to his interaction with the Hammerpede? You figure it out, it's pretty fucking obvious!
Furthermore, don't forget that Milburn is a biologist, he's fascinated by animals and this is a new discovery. Was it reckless for Milburn to reach out to the Hammerpede? Undoubtedly but it's not completely out of character.
8. Millburn and Fifield die when no-one is watching the monitors, because Vickers and Janek are getting it on in her quarters, right? Firstly, how come Janek didn’t order someone else to watch the monitors, and secondly, even if no-one was there, don’t these guys have TiVo? Just rewind the feed and see what happened. We have it in 2012; I’m guessing it’s still around in 2094.
Why wasn't anybody ordered to watch the monitors? Because no-one was expecting anything to happen and people fuck up in their jobs all of the time. Particularly a horny man!
Why didn't they have a recording of the incident with the Hammerpede? Like Janek said, there was on and off interference with the video feed due to the storm. Also, even if they had the footage recorded; why would they check it? They probably tried to contact Milburn and Fifield in the morning, didn't get a response, figured that the signal was weak and so, headed out to the pyramid to pick them up, as per what they'd arranged the previous night.
9. Why did Janek, the captain and pilot of the ship, go to investigate the disappearance of Millburn and Fifield? Surely he’s pretty integral to the running of the ship.
I'll give you that one. I thought the same thing myself.
10. What exactly was David’s plan with the black goo? He gave some to Holloway in his drink; did he know he would have sex with Shaw and impregnate her with an alien? If so, why did he do that too? Was he curious, or trying to kill Holloway? Why?
He most likely spiked Holloway's drink with the black substance under order of Peter Weyland (via communication whilst he was in cyro-sleep). It's probable that Weyland didn't name a specific crew member to test the black substance on but David seems to have a fascination with Shaw and is jealous of her boyfriend, Holloway. He chose Holloway out of spite; partially because he's jealous and partly because of the way that Holloway treats him ("boy, you're coming with us", "oh, I almost forgot; you're not a real boy").
I don't think that Holloway getting Shaw pregnant was a part of the initial plan but when Vickers killed Holloway, David knew that it was possible that he could have passed the infection on to Shaw.
If the above is not a satisfactory explanation then you can always go down the route of what was stated in 'Aliens' by Bishop (in regards to earlier models of synthetics); "they always were a bit twitchy". David holds a certain amount of disdain and resentment towards humanity but he is fascinated by the Engineers and holds a great deal of respect towards them (much like Ash did towards the Xenomorph in 'Alien').
11. Why did the infected Fifield come back to the ship to try and kill everyone?
You may as well ask 'why does the Xenomorph kill people in the 'Alien' films?'! As is evidenced by the 'Art of Prometheus' book, Fifield was being transformed into a Xeno type of creature.
Fifield had his face melted with acid.
Actually, to be more exact; Fifield had his helmet melted by acid and his face was only partially melted by acid. It was dropping face first into the black substance that "killed" him. The black substance essentially absorbs the DNA of a host and reconfigures to create a Xeno type of creature (hence the worms become the Hammerpedes).
If Holloway hadn't been torched by Vickers, then he too would have essentially morphed into a Xeno, like Fifled was (Holloways transformation was occurring at a much slower pace because he only ingested a tiny drop of the black substance).
...why did they go out and investigate Fifield’s clearly dead body (the helmet is smashed with a deadly atmosphere, and his legs are bent over his shoulders) seeing as there’s no way he could have just turned up there on his own, being dead and all.
Firstly, the crew had didn't know for sure that Fifield was dead, only that they couldn't locate him in the pyramid. The ship had no outside surveillance to see Xeno-Fifield. Janek saw that Fifield's camera turned back on (looking at the ground) and that his position was right outside of the ship. Of course they opened the garage door seeming as they had no idea of the black substances ability to transform people into killing machines at this stage.
What would you have them do?!...
JANEK: Fifield's camera's popped back on. According to his location, he's right outside of the ship.
CREW: Fuck it! Even though he must be alive and quite probably injured and in need of medical attention, let's just leave him there.
... Seriously?! You think that would have made for a better script?!
12. Why does David tell Shaw she is pregnant? If he wanted an alien specimen, surely telling her will just make her try and abort it, and if he wanted to kill her, then not telling her will result in the alien bursting through her stomach and killing her that way. Being pregnant with a baby alien was probably the last thing she was expecting, especially seeing as she was barren and had only had sex 10 hours ago and not before for 28 months.
It didn't really matter if David told Shaw that she was pregnant. The plan was to knock her out and put her into cyro-sleep, so that her "baby" could be extracted for research upon returning to Earth. All of this went according to plan, up until Shaw knocked out the two bio-suited crew members and ran away to perform a cesarean.
David later says to Shaw "I didn't think you had it in you. Sorry poor choice of words. Extraordinary survival instincts, Elizabeth." David was surprised by Shaw's actions and obviously didn't think that telling her that she was pregnant would jeopardise Weyland's plan for the creature inside of her.
Besides, seeming as the squid was growing at an exponential rate inside of her, it wouldn't have taken Shaw long to realise that something was seriously wrong.
13. After she wakes up from being sedated by David, Shaw finds it pretty easy to escape from the medics and run to Vickers’ quarters with no-one chasing her. No-one comes for the entire time she is in there.
Yes. This is something of a plot-hole.
14. After the impromptu caesarean I could have done with a scene of Shaw breaking down from the intensity of what she’d just gone through. In the past few hours she’d lost her husband, found out she was pregnant when she thought she was barren, discovered the ‘child’ was in fact a killer alien, had a caesarean whilst fully awake and watching it, had the cut literally stapled shut and then fought the creature that had just gestated inside her. I’d say that warrants a little exasperation.
That scene does occur! After Shaw makes her way from the MedPod, comes across Weyland and they have their chat; there's a moment where she breaks down in tears, in front of the mirror in her quarters. She then finds Holloway's ring left by the sink, which gives her the strength to continue.
15. Did I miss a scene where everyone on board found out about, and was cool with, Peter Weyland being on board the ship? After Shaw’s surgery the rest of the crew seems OK with him being there. It was pretty damn obvious he was going to be onboard too, seeing Guy Pearce was highly billed in the opening credits. Stop doing that kind of thing. And making Vickers his daughter is pointless, unsurprising and ridiculous.
What does Guy Pearce's name being on the credits have to do with anything?! It's not like the crew of the ship saw those credits! Stop nit-picking at stupid things. Anyway...
Peter Weyland was declared dead prior to the launch of the mission. The people in the room with him are people who were already aware of his presence on board the ship (his specially hired mercenaries and David). As for the remainder of the crew, one can assume that they are surprised at Weyland being there but we simply don't see the scene where they find out.
As for Vickers being Weyland's daughter, what's the problem with that?! Re-watching the film with this knowledge really adds depth to the earlier scenes with Vickers (e.g. her reaction to Weyland's holographic speech near the start of the film). It's called having 'interesting character interaction', for fucks sake!
16. Ripping David the android’s head off is a nice nod to Ash’s fate in Alien, but is it possible for a robot to survive one of these films? Please?
David did survive! Pay attention, moron. Also, did you not notice that Shaw takes not only David's head with her, but also his body. Obviously David is going to instruct her on how to reattach his head, so that he can fly the Juggernaut at the end of the film.
17. When Vickers and Shaw are running from the crashing spaceship, why in the name of LV426 do they not run sideways? I hate when films do this. There’s something rolling behind you in a relatively straight line, so instead of getting out of the way you decide to race it. Insane. Shaw only survives because she trips and rolls out the way. I did like that the last two alive were the two main women, just like in Alien, and similarly the blonde dies and the brunette survives.
Again, this scene is contrived. However, it's easily explainable by one thing; panic. Shaw and Vickers are running for their lives from a massive crashing ship (seriously, the Juggernaut is HUGE). It's movement is somewhat unpredictable (yes Shaw does roll out of the way - only to have the ship come crashing down the other way, on top of her) and Vickers is only glancing back to see where the ship is very briefly. She's just running for her life in panic.
I'd like to chuck a fucking great big Juggernaut at you and see how well you do at outrunning it. I bet that you'd panic and get crushed too, fool.
18. Shaw’s air supply is supposedly running out at the end of the film, yet she’s barely been away from the ship. Earlier, Fifield and Millburn were away for longer, and were expected to survive overnight when they got stranded. Yes, they were in the chambers with breathable atmosphere, but they had to keep their helmets up because it was going to get cold, so they must have had to survive on their own air supplies.
Shaw's oxygen supply was damaged when the Juggernaut fell on her (you can see the sparks fly from the suit's equipment), this is when she is informed that she only has 2 minutes of oxygen remaining. Learn to pay attention!
19. The alien that Shaw had aborted grows pretty fucking huge seeing as it’s had no organic matter to feed on other than a little blood Shaw left behind.
Oh, but the Xeno in 'Alien' growing so big in such a short time didn't bother you? Hypocrite.
However, if you want an explanation; here it is...
The squid is located in the medical room of Vicker's life-boat. There would be plenty of supplies for it to consume within that room (seeming as there's enough supplies to maintain life for 2 years).
Furthermore, we never see what happened to three or so members of the crew (e.g. Ford and the other person who were attempting to place Shaw into hyper-sleep) and yet when Shaw approaches the medical room and sees the tentacle, there's a bunch of blood on the inner walls (which she wasn't responsible for, following her operation). It's implied that a few crew members came across the growing squid and attempted to contain/kill it, only for the squid to kill and devour them!
20. At the end, Shaw is told that there are other ships. Does she check them all for surviving Engineers, or just leave in the first ship she finds?
One can assume that they checked the ship before departing for the Engineer's home-world. There's no reason for the film to show us this; it would just be 10 minutes of walking around, followed by "yep, all's clear!". The film already has enough pacing issues as it is!
I’d have much preferred that the final shot be of her silhouette, with an axe in one hand and David decapitated head in the other, heading off to take out the surviving aliens.
Good for you. However, you're not Ridley Scott and you can barely comprehend the events of a thought provoking film - so who gives a shit!
Aside from any potential spite-filled motives, David could probably tell the substance contained some sort of parasite(or not, that part doesn't really matter) and he all but asked his permission first too. He asked him how far he would go. Could they have done other tests instead? Yes, but seeing as this whole mission is based on an "invitation", and anything left there could have been meant for them, why not just go all out. It's not like David values human life above anything else(akin to Ash,a programming mistake later corrected in Bishop).
One thing that has grown on me, while examining scenes from the movie in my head, is that if I remember right, David speaks in the same tone of voice, and maintains more or less the same facial expression, basically throughout the whole movie. So while he seemed to come across as passive aggressive or even malicious in certain scenes, I feel like I might just have been attributing those emotions to him in the same way that one tends to imagine an ominous tone in HAL 9000's voice.
For example,
David definitely comes across as very, very evil during the pregnancy scan scene. But really, if there was a crew member who just happened to be pregnant, would he have acted any differently? I don't think he would. In retrospect, he's probably following a perfectly normal protocol for handling a pregnancy on a mission like that, and the idea that he set he planned for her to get pregnant, or that he's trying to take the creature to Earth for the corporation to study, is actually just a carryover from our memories of previous Alien films.
I found this kind of useful/amusing, but they missed out the worms.
The worms weren't directly linked to the creation of the Proto-Xeno (I think it's safe to say that the black substance gives all of it's "victims" acid for blood), hence why they're not included on that image.
Amen, brother. I believe that the majority of the haters will see just how wrong they were in time to come. 'Prometheus' just gets better and better with each viewing. I'll gladly be the first to say "told you fucking so", once they've seen the error of their ways.
The thing that really irks me about the people ragging on the film is that they often cite the "numerous plot holes" as their main complaint (Spoony, I'm looking at you), even though those "plot holes" have perfectly reasonable explanations. It's 'LOST' all over again! Learn to pay attention and get a fucking clue before you slag off a brilliant film, fools.
I'll be the first person to say the movie can sod off.
To sum it up, when my girlfriend and I got done watching the movie, both of us looked at each other and said the movie was terrible. I nearly shouted it. It's a piece of tripe, a barely B rated sci fi garbage flick with undercooked ideas. It's also one more step in Ridley Scott's decline. When I realized he'd directed Robin Hood, life suddenly made total sense to me. I realized Scott had been turning out more garbage than hits for years.
I just really think it was a well-written story that was very well-delivered. Lots of layers. The symbolism of the name Prometheus for one. The reflection of humans resenting David, a robot, who mimics humanity and the Space Jockeys resenting humanity for mimicking them. It's kind of an exploration in to the uncanny valley hypothesis, except with us on the receiving end instead of robots.
Everything I could possibly find fault with I eventually came up with an explanation for. It wasn't meant as a great epic, for sure. But it was just a cool movie with a great story. I wasn't expecting a horror movie. It was just great. There are more questions, but they don't necessarily need to be answered as some of them you can take a decent guess at. For instance, why did the Space Jockeys "change their minds". It's kind of obvious with what I mentioned above.
I enjoyed myself. If it's not your thing then fine, but it's not a terrible movie. It's great.
I'll be the first person to say the movie can sod off.
To sum it up, when my girlfriend and I got done watching the movie, both of us looked at each other and said the movie was terrible. I nearly shouted it. It's a piece of tripe, a barely B rated sci fi garbage flick with undercooked ideas. It's also one more step in Ridley Scott's decline. When I realized he'd directed Robin Hood, life suddenly made total sense to me. I realized Scott had been turning out more garbage than hits for years.
Considering you despise the film so much, can I be the first person to say the obvious; you can sod off from this thread.
I bet you haven't even seen the film more than once. Ergo; opinion invalid! Okay, okay; that's a daft thing to say but you haters are so clueless and I'm sick of it! You slag off Ridley Scott; a self confessed 'visual director' and yet the last time I checked, he's still making films which look visually magnificent.
'Prometheus' is hardly a flawless masterpiece but it is a wonderful return to form for the series. I dread to think what kind of films you're into... mainstream popcorn flicks that require zero imagination or thought process no doubt.
Check out the polls and reviews for 'Prometheus' and you'll see that you haters are in the minority and yet you're the most vocal!
Go create a 'Avatar' thread or something and leave this thread to the people with good taste! Speaking of 'Avatar', I don't go on a forum dedicated to that overrated shitstorm and slag it off to fans of the film! You don't like the film? Good for you. Don't hang around, leaving snarky comments about it on a dedicated thread then!
P.S. I'm aware that the above post is rude, arrogant and elitist but like I said; SICK. OF. IT.
I agree, he's being a little over the top. But he can post in this thread if he likes. It is his opinion on the movie and that's fine. Not everyone will like it. Calling it a terrible movie is a little much, in my opinion, but that doesn't deserve the same retaliation either. Let's just all be civil and discuss it. Even debate. Let's not move into pointless arguing. People like different things for different reasons and nobody's really wrong.
I feel I should say that when I said "screw the haters", it was in jest. But I will say that I don't understand the negative reactions. Maybe we just can't have sequels or prequels to older franchises simply because of nostalgia. In Daishi's case, he never did like Alien to begin with....which is why I'm wondering why he even cares about Prometheus. lol
I agree, he's being a little over the top. But he can post in this thread if he likes. It is his opinion on the movie and that's fine. Not everyone will like it. Calling it a terrible movie is a little much, in my opinion, but that doesn't deserve the same retaliation either. Let's just all be civil and discuss it. Even debate. Let's not move into pointless arguing. People like different things for different reasons and nobody's really wrong.
I agree but you're not telling me anything I don't already know (hence why I put the 'P.S.' into my post).
In Daishi's case, he never did like Alien to begin with....which is why I'm wondering why he even cares about Prometheus. lol
:rolleyes: I said it before and I'll say it again; opinion invalid! That's not to say that he can't have an opinion but why the frak is he watching a prequel to a film he doesn't like and furthermore continually posting in a thread revolving around a prequel he doesn't like, to a film he doesn't like?! If he's going to be that stupid then he's got to expect some backlash. I'm sorry but I don't suffer fools gladly.
This is not a fan thread or adoration thread. This is a discussion thread concerning the merits of a film. Further, I'm a huge science fiction fan. I'm a product of Heinlein, Dick, LeGuin, Herbert, Bradbury, Clarke and Asimov. I wanted to see a good movie that seemed to have strong sci fi elements, with the potential for horror.
Lastly, if a person needs to be a fan of previous movies to appreciate the current one, then the movie already has shaky merits. Furthermore I never said Alien was a bad movie. It's a good movie. Prometheus is a bad one.
I bet you haven't even seen the film more than once. Ergo; opinion invalid!
I just gotta say... if one didn't like a film the first time... why the hell would that person go see it a second time? Film is just one of those things were first impressions are everything.
1. Wondering if you missed something the first time around to add to the film's merits.
2. If you went in the first time with a bad impression or expecting something else.
3. If you're bullied into having to like it or be considered an idiot for the rest of your days, the way Dashing and Tope did with me on Citizen Kane over a year ago. (A Fawful never forgets)
4. If you think you understand the film differently now and might like it upon a second viewing (currently have this impression of 2001: A Space Odyssey, and happened six times in a row or so with Blade Runner)
5. For cheap entertainment. (The Room)
1. Wondering if you missed something the first time around to add to the film's merits.
2. If you went in the first time with a bad impression or expecting something else.
3. If you're bullied into having to like it or be considered an idiot for the rest of your days, the way Dashing and Tope did with me on Citizen Kane over a year ago. (A Fawful never forgets)
4. If you think you understand the film differently now and might like it upon a second viewing (currently have this impression of 2001: A Space Odyssey, and happened six times in a row or so with Blade Runner)
5. For cheap entertainment. (The Room)
My point was rather that if a movie takes two or more viewings to appreciate, it isn't doing its job as a movie. Most people won't watch a movie multiple times to see if there was some merit that they missed the first time around. I know I wouldn't. If I didn't like it the first time, I would not want to waste my time looking for enjoyment that might not be there.
Unless, of course, there's some external source telling me to do so.
Comments
Oh, yOu.
Having said that, it's not one iota similar to 'Alien'. Approach this beast with a fresh mind!
For the first 30 minutes, I thought that this was going to be 'The Phantom Menece Redux', but boy, was I proven wrong!
Indeed, Michael Fassbender steals the show but who gives a damn, when he's so darn riveting!
To list out the number of offenses Prometheus commits is to go through a laundry list of bad story telling. Let's begin with the plot and, as importantly, the plot holes. The plot is convoluted despite being so simple. Conflicts are presented that are never resolved or fully explained. The motivations and actions of the Engineers are so horribly convoluted that it makes you wonder why a race of advanced beings, capable of genetic engineering and interstellar flight, would ever need to go through the lengths these beings do in order to develop bioweapons.
Which is the essential plot of the movie. Bad alien beings developing bio weapons, and the process of doing so will destroy the Earth. Nevermind the silliness of how complicated it was to seed Earth with life in the first place, only to wreck it later. Further, the Engineers are not Aliens. With an Alien, you could expect the brutal, the unexplained. It was a creature of sheer instinct, your visceral fears manifested. The Engineers are posed as godlike beings, worshiped, leaving instructions on starmaps throughout the planet that would lead people to them. Except we learn that the Engineers left a map not to their homeworld, but to the interstellar equivalent of a weapons facility. And for what? To produce bioweapons by merging humans with their experiments? It would have taken hundreds of millions of years to bring their plan to fruition.
Perhaps I'm wrong on how I'm interpreting the plot, but that falls on the writer and director. There is lack of clarity, exposition that takes seconds and explains nothing, and then long talks that lead nowhere. Too many characters say too many things, and not enough focus is placed on any of them.
But the true offense is that the movie makes you feel nothing. The first half hour to an hour is perhaps the best, when the movie is inspiring wonder. David, the android, sets up the movie incredibly well because the audience is able to discern how David is attempting to mimic humanity. This would have been an interesting theme to follow, and it leads nowhere. It vanishes, punctuated by unexplained moments of behavior from David. Is he acting the way he is because he truly is becoming more human than human?
In fact, I'd venture to say David would have made a better villain than the Engineers. That sense of awe falls away as soon as we're introduced to the creatures. Again, as opposed to the Alien, the audience expects something of a race capable of interstellar travel and genetic engineering. What we get is a rampaging brute that shows just how strong he is but never provides fear. The sense of awe, of wonder, that permeates the question of what makes a human human, and why we search for our origins, falls away. It's replaced not by the stark horrors of space, but large, set piece action sequences and revelations that are neither shocking nor insightful. It's all quite boring.
I am not a big fan of Alien, but I appreciate it for what it was. I took the girlfriend. Neither of us found the movie interesting after the first forty five minutes. I actually began to drift off during the last half hour or so. One of the 'pivotal' deaths is so comical I couldn't help but grimace, and the last set of action sequences becomes, essentially, Die Hard in Space.
Edit: OH! And the ending is offensive. It seems to pander for a sequel.
Wow, that's harsh. I genuinely believe that there's every chance that you may change your tune in time to come. Allow me to elaborate...
'Prometheus' is a film that falls within the science-fiction, action-adventure and horror genres. You do it a great disservice by describing it as simply "an action movie", regardless of whether or not you enjoyed the film.
Such is the nature of the beast. Whilst you're correct that a number of plot elements are left unexplained; this is a purposeful decision on the part of Ridley Scott (as he has stated in interviews). However, many of the "plot holes" have an answer and everything depicted within the film has meaning and a purpose. This was evident in earlier drafts of the script - Ridley wanted the film to be more ambiguous and so took out the moments of exposition, that explained the various mysteries.
The point is that a lot of the answers are there; within the film. Trust me when I say that it's a film which grows upon you, with every viewing. There are so many small, subtle touches; the key is to paying close attention to the finer details.
'Prometheus' is a film which absolutely demands multiple viewings. In that respect, it's not dissimilar to 'Blade Runner'. If that's sounds a little bit too much like hyperbole, then allow me to compare it to another film; 'Alien 3'.
Much like Fincher's underrated flick, 'Prometheus' is a film that's sadly been compromised my studio enforced cuts (see my forthcoming review for details), though an extended cut is probable upon the Blu-Ray release of the film. Another trait that 'Prometheus' shares with the third in the 'Alien' series is that there's a number of people who strongly dislike the film at this moment. I personally believe that (like 'Alien 3')'Prometheus' will be a film which will be appreciated much more as time passes and repeat viewings take place.
Personally, I love films which leave certain events to the imagination. Such films (hopefully) leave the viewer thinking about the film, for many days following it's release; coming up with your own theories as to what occurred. In reality, life provides no answers; why should film?
It may be my own tastes but I relish a story which leaves me to connect the dots, it makes for a more immersive experience.
If there's a point that I'm attempting to make here, then I guess it's this; please watch 'Prometheus' at least twice. This time you'll be watching the flick without any expectation or preconceived notions. Trust me, this film is a grower. There are so many moments that you pick up upon a second or third viewing that you miss the first time around.
Those moments are (sadly) on the cutting room floor. Ridley Scott has already hinted at an extended cut, during his recent radio interview with Mark Kermode and Simon Mayo. Like I said, it's 'Alien 3' all over again!
Oh! I fear that I may have just wasted my time replying!
Ah, that's the trick you see, Potter (sorry - couldn't resist)! It's not intended as a pure horror film. Hence the reason as to why Ridley Scott distanced this project from being a straight up prequel to 'Alien'. 'Prometheus' is it's own thing; a weighty film, riffing on the subject of what it means to be human and faith vs science. I'll concede that the horror elements are somewhat shoehorned in but they're certainly not the focus of the story. They're merely a speck upon the entire canvas.
'Prometheus' simply takes place within the same universe as 'Alien', it's not intended as a direct continuation of the themes and genre of those films. Think of 'Prometheus' in terms of being it's own thing and you just may come to love it.
It is its own thing. A piece of junk.
To me it felt too much like a collection of set pieces, like a committee of writers sat around a board room suggesting things that would be cool, and they just put all of the ideas into the movie. The way that things "come together" in the ending makes it clear that wasn't entirely the case, but it didn't dispel that feeling.
Also the last action sequence with the
Still, I basically enjoyed the movie overall.
Also, I've finally completed the script for my 'Prometheus' YouTube review. I'll be recording and posting it within the next couple of days.
And here's a nice analysis of the major plot holes of Prometheus, outlining many of the interesting things that the film did wrong: http://lifevsfilm.blogspot.com/2012/05/prometheus-plot-holes.html
I momentarily thought you were referring to the person who wrote the screenplay. I momentarily agreed with you.
You're spot on. Let's take a little look at these so called "plot-holes"...
Dear Mr. Unobservant,
1. Why is David riding a bicycle and shooting hoops? Is he trying to impress someone? I understand why he’s developing language skills, as he’s researching things as yet undiscovered, but what’s with the sports? He’s a robot!
Yes, he's a robot. Well done for actually comprehending something in the film! David is alone on board the ship for over 2 years; of course he's going to pass the time. Why is he riding a bike whilst shooting hoops? Because:
A - It shows the audience that he is a robot, whilst showing how he is, in some ways, superior to humans. His balance and co-ordination are flawless.
B - One of the films main themes is 'what does it mean to be an artificial person'. Weyland claims that David lacks a soul and yet the android clearly enjoys watching 'Lawrence of Arabia', he is overjoyed when he initiates the Engineer's hologram and he smiles when he hears the Engineer's heartbeat.
That's the point of the character; what does it mean to be human and can an artificial life-form have desires? There's another Ridley Scott film which deals with these issues; it's called 'Blade Runner' (maybe you've heard of it)! I guess that you were puzzled by that film too. You probably felt confused as to why Roy Batty wants to look into the eye of his creator and ask for more life, instead of just being a good little machine.
2. When Holloway sees the lines on the planet that prove the alien presence, why does no-one suggest scoping the area out for a while? Even just a little fly around would have been nice.
Whilst we don't see it on screen, it's perfectly possible that a scan of the planet is performed prior to landing. Ultimately though, they go straight to the pyramid in order to move the plot forward. If this is a plot-hole to you, then I can't imagine that you enjoy many movies at all!
3. What exactly are the holograms for? David starts one in the caves and another on the Space Jockey deck, but who are they for? They’re useful for him and us, but who made them? They could be some kind of ship’s log, but if so couldn’t someone have said that in one line of dialogue?
Um, seeming as you already answered your own question (they're clearly a ship's log), why do you need what you already know stated to you through dialogue?! More to the point, why do you think that it's a bad thing that you should have to engage your brain and not be spoon-fed every little detail through horrendous over-exposition?!
4. When Shaw, Holloway, David and Ford flee the caves, outside there’s two go-karts and a minibus. Two get on each of the karts, and no-one gets into the bus, yet they all drive off (at the time we assume Fifield and Millburn are in there). Who is driving it? You could argue that there’s a nameless crew member that stayed behind as a driver, and headed off to avoid the storm slightly too early for the others to get in, but there’s no proof of this.
When they get outside of the pyramid, we see that it's only the two karts that remains parked. Milburn says "damn it, they've already gone", they hop on the karts and then you see a shot of them catching up with the large transport, which left moments prior to the team emerging back outside.
5. Once David has rescued Shaw and Holloway, Janek mentions they don’t know where Fifield and Millburn are, but there’s a map showing their position! He uses it in the next scene. Plus, Janek seems pretty lackadaisical about two members of the crew being stranded on an alien planet. He practically says LOL.
I'll admit that these events are pretty convenient to the plot. However, Janek states that the signal has been dropping in and out due to the storm. Convenient? Yes. Plot-Hole? No.
Also, how convenient is it that everyone has a surname beginning with a different letter?
Seriously? Why shouldn't their last names begin with a different letter? Isn't it more likely that their surnames would be different?! Besides, there were two characters in the caves who had shared the same first letter of their surname; Fifield and Ford.
I can't remember how the map differentiates the two but I would imagine that Fifield would be represented as 'F' and Ford would appear as 'Fo'.
6. Why does David cave in to Vickers’ threats? He’s a robot, there’s not a lot she could do to him.
Once David has refused to tell Vickers what Weyland said; she specifically tells him "so help me God, I will find the cord that makes you run and I will cut it" (i.e. tell me or I'll kill you), at which point David informs her. This just further proves that an artificial person is capable of desire and has a sense of self preservation (ala Bishop in 'Aliens' - "I may be synthetic, but I'm not stupid").
7. Millburn the biologist is supposedly cowardly, as he is easily convinced by Fifield to run away at the site of a decapitated body (understandable), and later when he hears there’s a lifeform somewhere nearby, he says he’s heading in the opposite direction. So why, when he and Fifield go to the vase chamber, does he suddenly want to make friends with the alien there? He can’t even see the entire creature, so for all he knows it’s some giant beasty with a strange proboscis. Why did they even decide to stay in the cave full of weird bubbling vases anyway? It’s the exact room, with the dead decapitated body outside of it, that they ran away from earlier.
This sequence is very contrived, I'll give you that but it was Fifield who got really freaked out and wanted to leave. It was only when he asked, that Milburn decided to join him in going back to the ship. Even then, he took a moment to consider it. He was nowhere near as much of a coward as Fifield (who puts on a big show of being a mean bastard, in order to conceal his fears).
In relation to the Hammerpede (the serpent creature); how are we first introduced to Milburn in the film? We see him go up to the meanest looking hardass of the group (Fifield) and introduce himself, in an attempt to become friends. How does this relate to his interaction with the Hammerpede? You figure it out, it's pretty fucking obvious!
Furthermore, don't forget that Milburn is a biologist, he's fascinated by animals and this is a new discovery. Was it reckless for Milburn to reach out to the Hammerpede? Undoubtedly but it's not completely out of character.
8. Millburn and Fifield die when no-one is watching the monitors, because Vickers and Janek are getting it on in her quarters, right? Firstly, how come Janek didn’t order someone else to watch the monitors, and secondly, even if no-one was there, don’t these guys have TiVo? Just rewind the feed and see what happened. We have it in 2012; I’m guessing it’s still around in 2094.
Why wasn't anybody ordered to watch the monitors? Because no-one was expecting anything to happen and people fuck up in their jobs all of the time. Particularly a horny man!
Why didn't they have a recording of the incident with the Hammerpede? Like Janek said, there was on and off interference with the video feed due to the storm. Also, even if they had the footage recorded; why would they check it? They probably tried to contact Milburn and Fifield in the morning, didn't get a response, figured that the signal was weak and so, headed out to the pyramid to pick them up, as per what they'd arranged the previous night.
9. Why did Janek, the captain and pilot of the ship, go to investigate the disappearance of Millburn and Fifield? Surely he’s pretty integral to the running of the ship.
I'll give you that one. I thought the same thing myself.
10. What exactly was David’s plan with the black goo? He gave some to Holloway in his drink; did he know he would have sex with Shaw and impregnate her with an alien? If so, why did he do that too? Was he curious, or trying to kill Holloway? Why?
He most likely spiked Holloway's drink with the black substance under order of Peter Weyland (via communication whilst he was in cyro-sleep). It's probable that Weyland didn't name a specific crew member to test the black substance on but David seems to have a fascination with Shaw and is jealous of her boyfriend, Holloway. He chose Holloway out of spite; partially because he's jealous and partly because of the way that Holloway treats him ("boy, you're coming with us", "oh, I almost forgot; you're not a real boy").
I don't think that Holloway getting Shaw pregnant was a part of the initial plan but when Vickers killed Holloway, David knew that it was possible that he could have passed the infection on to Shaw.
If the above is not a satisfactory explanation then you can always go down the route of what was stated in 'Aliens' by Bishop (in regards to earlier models of synthetics); "they always were a bit twitchy". David holds a certain amount of disdain and resentment towards humanity but he is fascinated by the Engineers and holds a great deal of respect towards them (much like Ash did towards the Xenomorph in 'Alien').
11. Why did the infected Fifield come back to the ship to try and kill everyone?
You may as well ask 'why does the Xenomorph kill people in the 'Alien' films?'! As is evidenced by the 'Art of Prometheus' book, Fifield was being transformed into a Xeno type of creature.
Fifield had his face melted with acid.
Actually, to be more exact; Fifield had his helmet melted by acid and his face was only partially melted by acid. It was dropping face first into the black substance that "killed" him. The black substance essentially absorbs the DNA of a host and reconfigures to create a Xeno type of creature (hence the worms become the Hammerpedes).
If Holloway hadn't been torched by Vickers, then he too would have essentially morphed into a Xeno, like Fifled was (Holloways transformation was occurring at a much slower pace because he only ingested a tiny drop of the black substance).
...why did they go out and investigate Fifield’s clearly dead body (the helmet is smashed with a deadly atmosphere, and his legs are bent over his shoulders) seeing as there’s no way he could have just turned up there on his own, being dead and all.
Firstly, the crew had didn't know for sure that Fifield was dead, only that they couldn't locate him in the pyramid. The ship had no outside surveillance to see Xeno-Fifield. Janek saw that Fifield's camera turned back on (looking at the ground) and that his position was right outside of the ship. Of course they opened the garage door seeming as they had no idea of the black substances ability to transform people into killing machines at this stage.
What would you have them do?!...
JANEK: Fifield's camera's popped back on. According to his location, he's right outside of the ship.
CREW: Fuck it! Even though he must be alive and quite probably injured and in need of medical attention, let's just leave him there.
... Seriously?! You think that would have made for a better script?!
12. Why does David tell Shaw she is pregnant? If he wanted an alien specimen, surely telling her will just make her try and abort it, and if he wanted to kill her, then not telling her will result in the alien bursting through her stomach and killing her that way. Being pregnant with a baby alien was probably the last thing she was expecting, especially seeing as she was barren and had only had sex 10 hours ago and not before for 28 months.
It didn't really matter if David told Shaw that she was pregnant. The plan was to knock her out and put her into cyro-sleep, so that her "baby" could be extracted for research upon returning to Earth. All of this went according to plan, up until Shaw knocked out the two bio-suited crew members and ran away to perform a cesarean.
David later says to Shaw "I didn't think you had it in you. Sorry poor choice of words. Extraordinary survival instincts, Elizabeth." David was surprised by Shaw's actions and obviously didn't think that telling her that she was pregnant would jeopardise Weyland's plan for the creature inside of her.
Besides, seeming as the squid was growing at an exponential rate inside of her, it wouldn't have taken Shaw long to realise that something was seriously wrong.
13. After she wakes up from being sedated by David, Shaw finds it pretty easy to escape from the medics and run to Vickers’ quarters with no-one chasing her. No-one comes for the entire time she is in there.
Yes. This is something of a plot-hole.
14. After the impromptu caesarean I could have done with a scene of Shaw breaking down from the intensity of what she’d just gone through. In the past few hours she’d lost her husband, found out she was pregnant when she thought she was barren, discovered the ‘child’ was in fact a killer alien, had a caesarean whilst fully awake and watching it, had the cut literally stapled shut and then fought the creature that had just gestated inside her. I’d say that warrants a little exasperation.
That scene does occur! After Shaw makes her way from the MedPod, comes across Weyland and they have their chat; there's a moment where she breaks down in tears, in front of the mirror in her quarters. She then finds Holloway's ring left by the sink, which gives her the strength to continue.
15. Did I miss a scene where everyone on board found out about, and was cool with, Peter Weyland being on board the ship? After Shaw’s surgery the rest of the crew seems OK with him being there. It was pretty damn obvious he was going to be onboard too, seeing Guy Pearce was highly billed in the opening credits. Stop doing that kind of thing. And making Vickers his daughter is pointless, unsurprising and ridiculous.
What does Guy Pearce's name being on the credits have to do with anything?! It's not like the crew of the ship saw those credits! Stop nit-picking at stupid things. Anyway...
Peter Weyland was declared dead prior to the launch of the mission. The people in the room with him are people who were already aware of his presence on board the ship (his specially hired mercenaries and David). As for the remainder of the crew, one can assume that they are surprised at Weyland being there but we simply don't see the scene where they find out.
As for Vickers being Weyland's daughter, what's the problem with that?! Re-watching the film with this knowledge really adds depth to the earlier scenes with Vickers (e.g. her reaction to Weyland's holographic speech near the start of the film). It's called having 'interesting character interaction', for fucks sake!
16. Ripping David the android’s head off is a nice nod to Ash’s fate in Alien, but is it possible for a robot to survive one of these films? Please?
David did survive! Pay attention, moron. Also, did you not notice that Shaw takes not only David's head with her, but also his body. Obviously David is going to instruct her on how to reattach his head, so that he can fly the Juggernaut at the end of the film.
17. When Vickers and Shaw are running from the crashing spaceship, why in the name of LV426 do they not run sideways? I hate when films do this. There’s something rolling behind you in a relatively straight line, so instead of getting out of the way you decide to race it. Insane. Shaw only survives because she trips and rolls out the way. I did like that the last two alive were the two main women, just like in Alien, and similarly the blonde dies and the brunette survives.
Again, this scene is contrived. However, it's easily explainable by one thing; panic. Shaw and Vickers are running for their lives from a massive crashing ship (seriously, the Juggernaut is HUGE). It's movement is somewhat unpredictable (yes Shaw does roll out of the way - only to have the ship come crashing down the other way, on top of her) and Vickers is only glancing back to see where the ship is very briefly. She's just running for her life in panic.
I'd like to chuck a fucking great big Juggernaut at you and see how well you do at outrunning it. I bet that you'd panic and get crushed too, fool.
18. Shaw’s air supply is supposedly running out at the end of the film, yet she’s barely been away from the ship. Earlier, Fifield and Millburn were away for longer, and were expected to survive overnight when they got stranded. Yes, they were in the chambers with breathable atmosphere, but they had to keep their helmets up because it was going to get cold, so they must have had to survive on their own air supplies.
Shaw's oxygen supply was damaged when the Juggernaut fell on her (you can see the sparks fly from the suit's equipment), this is when she is informed that she only has 2 minutes of oxygen remaining. Learn to pay attention!
19. The alien that Shaw had aborted grows pretty fucking huge seeing as it’s had no organic matter to feed on other than a little blood Shaw left behind.
Oh, but the Xeno in 'Alien' growing so big in such a short time didn't bother you? Hypocrite.
However, if you want an explanation; here it is...
The squid is located in the medical room of Vicker's life-boat. There would be plenty of supplies for it to consume within that room (seeming as there's enough supplies to maintain life for 2 years).
Furthermore, we never see what happened to three or so members of the crew (e.g. Ford and the other person who were attempting to place Shaw into hyper-sleep) and yet when Shaw approaches the medical room and sees the tentacle, there's a bunch of blood on the inner walls (which she wasn't responsible for, following her operation). It's implied that a few crew members came across the growing squid and attempted to contain/kill it, only for the squid to kill and devour them!
20. At the end, Shaw is told that there are other ships. Does she check them all for surviving Engineers, or just leave in the first ship she finds?
One can assume that they checked the ship before departing for the Engineer's home-world. There's no reason for the film to show us this; it would just be 10 minutes of walking around, followed by "yep, all's clear!". The film already has enough pacing issues as it is!
I’d have much preferred that the final shot be of her silhouette, with an axe in one hand and David decapitated head in the other, heading off to take out the surviving aliens.
Good for you. However, you're not Ridley Scott and you can barely comprehend the events of a thought provoking film - so who gives a shit!
As per #10,
I like this review.
Finally, here it is; my review of Prometheus...
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
One thing that has grown on me, while examining scenes from the movie in my head, is that if I remember right, David speaks in the same tone of voice, and maintains more or less the same facial expression, basically throughout the whole movie. So while he seemed to come across as passive aggressive or even malicious in certain scenes, I feel like I might just have been attributing those emotions to him in the same way that one tends to imagine an ominous tone in HAL 9000's voice.
For example,
The worms weren't directly linked to the creation of the Proto-Xeno (I think it's safe to say that the black substance gives all of it's "victims" acid for blood), hence why they're not included on that image.
You open with the seeding of life...eus.
Then cut to an android named David...eus.
Not many things rhyme with 'Prometheus'.
But I still love you, Prometheus...eus!
Amen, brother. I believe that the majority of the haters will see just how wrong they were in time to come. 'Prometheus' just gets better and better with each viewing. I'll gladly be the first to say "told you fucking so", once they've seen the error of their ways.
The thing that really irks me about the people ragging on the film is that they often cite the "numerous plot holes" as their main complaint (Spoony, I'm looking at you), even though those "plot holes" have perfectly reasonable explanations. It's 'LOST' all over again! Learn to pay attention and get a fucking clue before you slag off a brilliant film, fools.
To sum it up, when my girlfriend and I got done watching the movie, both of us looked at each other and said the movie was terrible. I nearly shouted it. It's a piece of tripe, a barely B rated sci fi garbage flick with undercooked ideas. It's also one more step in Ridley Scott's decline. When I realized he'd directed Robin Hood, life suddenly made total sense to me. I realized Scott had been turning out more garbage than hits for years.
Everything I could possibly find fault with I eventually came up with an explanation for. It wasn't meant as a great epic, for sure. But it was just a cool movie with a great story. I wasn't expecting a horror movie. It was just great. There are more questions, but they don't necessarily need to be answered as some of them you can take a decent guess at. For instance, why did the Space Jockeys "change their minds". It's kind of obvious with what I mentioned above.
I enjoyed myself. If it's not your thing then fine, but it's not a terrible movie. It's great.
Considering you despise the film so much, can I be the first person to say the obvious; you can sod off from this thread.
I bet you haven't even seen the film more than once. Ergo; opinion invalid! Okay, okay; that's a daft thing to say but you haters are so clueless and I'm sick of it! You slag off Ridley Scott; a self confessed 'visual director' and yet the last time I checked, he's still making films which look visually magnificent.
'Prometheus' is hardly a flawless masterpiece but it is a wonderful return to form for the series. I dread to think what kind of films you're into... mainstream popcorn flicks that require zero imagination or thought process no doubt.
Check out the polls and reviews for 'Prometheus' and you'll see that you haters are in the minority and yet you're the most vocal!
Go create a 'Avatar' thread or something and leave this thread to the people with good taste! Speaking of 'Avatar', I don't go on a forum dedicated to that overrated shitstorm and slag it off to fans of the film! You don't like the film? Good for you. Don't hang around, leaving snarky comments about it on a dedicated thread then!
P.S. I'm aware that the above post is rude, arrogant and elitist but like I said; SICK. OF. IT.
I feel I should say that when I said "screw the haters", it was in jest. But I will say that I don't understand the negative reactions. Maybe we just can't have sequels or prequels to older franchises simply because of nostalgia. In Daishi's case, he never did like Alien to begin with....which is why I'm wondering why he even cares about Prometheus. lol
I agree but you're not telling me anything I don't already know (hence why I put the 'P.S.' into my post).
:rolleyes: I said it before and I'll say it again; opinion invalid! That's not to say that he can't have an opinion but why the frak is he watching a prequel to a film he doesn't like and furthermore continually posting in a thread revolving around a prequel he doesn't like, to a film he doesn't like?! If he's going to be that stupid then he's got to expect some backlash. I'm sorry but I don't suffer fools gladly.
Lastly, if a person needs to be a fan of previous movies to appreciate the current one, then the movie already has shaky merits. Furthermore I never said Alien was a bad movie. It's a good movie. Prometheus is a bad one.
I just gotta say... if one didn't like a film the first time... why the hell would that person go see it a second time? Film is just one of those things were first impressions are everything.
1. Wondering if you missed something the first time around to add to the film's merits.
2. If you went in the first time with a bad impression or expecting something else.
3. If you're bullied into having to like it or be considered an idiot for the rest of your days, the way Dashing and Tope did with me on Citizen Kane over a year ago. (A Fawful never forgets)
4. If you think you understand the film differently now and might like it upon a second viewing (currently have this impression of 2001: A Space Odyssey, and happened six times in a row or so with Blade Runner)
5. For cheap entertainment. (The Room)
First impressions of 'Alien'...
First impressions of 'Blade Runner'...
My point was rather that if a movie takes two or more viewings to appreciate, it isn't doing its job as a movie. Most people won't watch a movie multiple times to see if there was some merit that they missed the first time around. I know I wouldn't. If I didn't like it the first time, I would not want to waste my time looking for enjoyment that might not be there.
Unless, of course, there's some external source telling me to do so.