Director: Ridley Scott
Cast: Noomi Rapace, Michael Fassbender, Charlize Theron, Guy Pearce and Logan-Marshall Green
For 33 years gawky boys with big black frames and buck teeth have searched every nook and corner of cyberspace in a bid to figure out the history of Aliens. Why do the facehuggers leap at us and couple with our face? Why do the chestbursters mutilate out from our sternum and run away? And why do the adult Aliens have acid blood? The answers to many more gory myths and existential dilemmas lie in Ridley Scott’s reboot of Alien. It’s called Prometheus because, like the Greek God, the film tries to empower man by bringing him face to face with his maker.
What makes good sci-fi is a level of intelligent development that by the end leaves the viewer in a Jules Verne-like state of ecstasy. Scott’s Alien in 1979 did that to great effect as it mashed horror and sci-fi in a necromantic dream sequence. Prometheus though adopts a different style. The claustrophobic and grizzly horror gives way to a larger-than-life sense of wonder. Imagine meeting God one day, what would it feel like. Prometheus serves that dream through the journey of explorers heading for a distant solar system looking for advanced beings that allegedly kick started life on our planet. Let’s just say the writing is intelligent enough to make you believe you are in Maths class and it’s easy enough for you to sit through and grasp the goings on without much scratching of the head.
Depth in storytelling and visual detailing set the first two Alien films apart from the world. Prometheus scores big points as Scott’s team (including many Indian CGI experts) recreate a desolate Alien planet with finesse. The visuals especially in 3D will stretch your pupils to unprecedented levels. But what could have been ‘the’ film lurks in lower realms due to its limited vision. The original movies were elevated to sci-fi bible status thanks to the visionary writing of Dan O’Bannon, Ronald Shusett, David Giler and Walter Hill. Along with Scott, they fleshed out characters, dialogue and plot points to extraordinary dramatic levels. While Prometheus follows a similar narrative arc, Jon Spaihts’ and Damon Lindelof’s writing detail seldom gets better than their previous works (Cowboys & Aliens and The Darkest Hour). Just before the end, the proceedings go into autopilot and relentless thrills overshadow emotion especially from Noomi Rapace’s character.
What’s also missing here is the gritty heroism of Sigourney Weaver. Rapace makes up for Weaver’s absence in a fantastic performance. And then of course you have the show stealer, Michael Fassbender. If his rendering of an android bot meets HAL (2001: A space Odyssey) is anything to go by, the future of Hollywood acting is in safe hands.
Prometheus gives you all the answers you need to know and hints at all the clues you’d want to investigate. This is seriously good sci-fi and easily one of the most layered and fascinating films of the recent past or future.
Cast: Noomi Rapace, Michael Fassbender, Charlize Theron, Guy Pearce and Logan-Marshall Green
For 33 years gawky boys with big black frames and buck teeth have searched every nook and corner of cyberspace in a bid to figure out the history of Aliens. Why do the facehuggers leap at us and couple with our face? Why do the chestbursters mutilate out from our sternum and run away? And why do the adult Aliens have acid blood? The answers to many more gory myths and existential dilemmas lie in Ridley Scott’s reboot of Alien. It’s called Prometheus because, like the Greek God, the film tries to empower man by bringing him face to face with his maker.
What makes good sci-fi is a level of intelligent development that by the end leaves the viewer in a Jules Verne-like state of ecstasy. Scott’s Alien in 1979 did that to great effect as it mashed horror and sci-fi in a necromantic dream sequence. Prometheus though adopts a different style. The claustrophobic and grizzly horror gives way to a larger-than-life sense of wonder. Imagine meeting God one day, what would it feel like. Prometheus serves that dream through the journey of explorers heading for a distant solar system looking for advanced beings that allegedly kick started life on our planet. Let’s just say the writing is intelligent enough to make you believe you are in Maths class and it’s easy enough for you to sit through and grasp the goings on without much scratching of the head.
Depth in storytelling and visual detailing set the first two Alien films apart from the world. Prometheus scores big points as Scott’s team (including many Indian CGI experts) recreate a desolate Alien planet with finesse. The visuals especially in 3D will stretch your pupils to unprecedented levels. But what could have been ‘the’ film lurks in lower realms due to its limited vision. The original movies were elevated to sci-fi bible status thanks to the visionary writing of Dan O’Bannon, Ronald Shusett, David Giler and Walter Hill. Along with Scott, they fleshed out characters, dialogue and plot points to extraordinary dramatic levels. While Prometheus follows a similar narrative arc, Jon Spaihts’ and Damon Lindelof’s writing detail seldom gets better than their previous works (Cowboys & Aliens and The Darkest Hour). Just before the end, the proceedings go into autopilot and relentless thrills overshadow emotion especially from Noomi Rapace’s character.
What’s also missing here is the gritty heroism of Sigourney Weaver. Rapace makes up for Weaver’s absence in a fantastic performance. And then of course you have the show stealer, Michael Fassbender. If his rendering of an android bot meets HAL (2001: A space Odyssey) is anything to go by, the future of Hollywood acting is in safe hands.
Prometheus gives you all the answers you need to know and hints at all the clues you’d want to investigate. This is seriously good sci-fi and easily one of the most layered and fascinating films of the recent past or future.
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