I just saw the movie, and I have to admit that it's nice to see Ridley Scott return some dignity to the series of hacks that came from his initial effort.
One of the messages that I thought the film conveyed quite well is that what we perhaps somewhat naively believe to be gods with good intentions may be just like us, but less benevolent.
Posted by Lyrhawn (Member # 7039) on :
Interesting premise with fantastic graphics that was marred with some pretty ridiculous plot holes.
All in all it came off as somewhat boring and formulaic.
The parts I found interesting could have been covered in about 20 minutes, after which I'd like to see where it goes next. But man, sitting through the rest was pretty lame.
Posted by Stone_Wolf_ (Member # 8299) on :
I used to love Ridley Scott...then I saw Robin Hood, now I have PTSD and every time I see his name on the screen I curl up in a ball and rock myself back and forth as I whimper piteously "The merry men were children who rode ponies, the merry men were children who rode ponies."
Posted by Foust (Member # 3043) on :
Prometheus, ugh, what a deeply aggravating movie.
Posted by Dr Strangelove (Member # 8331) on :
I thought it could have been a good alien flick, or it could have been a good introspective into human existence, but ultimately struggled to be both. It did look really pretty though, and I thought the actors did a fine job.
As a side note, I want to see a Ian Holm and Michael Fassbender robot face off (pun intended).
Posted by Aros (Member # 4873) on :
Redlettermedia had a good review of this on Half in the Bag. They struggled to determine if there WERE stupid plot holes, or if the movie was a lot deeper wherein the "plot holes" were actually requiring the viewer to infer and postulate.
My thought is that perhaps the black goo isn't a weapon . . . perhaps it's a substance used to cross pollinate DNA (for terraforming). This would answer a lot of the questions.
But, yeah, I know a lot of people felt that David's behavior (for instance) was nonsensical. There were some additional scenes (that were edited out) that would have clarified it, but they removed them. About 20 minutes will be added to the home video version, so maybe a few frustrated people might be somewhat appeased.
Fantastic movie. My opinion? It tried to be too smart and a little too challenging. Omitting plot details to engage a viewer can be effective . . . but omitting key points is generally a bad move.
Posted by Orincoro (Member # 8854) on :
RLM made a decent point in their review. They pointed out that in a world seriously lacking in ambitious science fiction, at least Prometheus could be said to be an ambitious film, if a flawed one. The sin of not making complete sense, they felt, was well balanced with the air of mystery the film was courting. They compared it to the writing in Lost, where there is a scale of diminishing returns on investment, the further into the plot one reaches.
Posted by Tovarich Volk (Member # 12847) on :
quote:Originally posted by Aros:
But, yeah, I know a lot of people felt that David's behavior (for instance) was nonsensical. There were some additional scenes (that were edited out) that would have clarified it, but they removed them. About 20 minutes will be added to the home video version, so maybe a few frustrated people might be somewhat appeased.
I think that part of the answer to David's behavior, is that David isn't human, but a machine. As a machine, he, or more correctly 'it' is only as 'good' as the code that went into producing it. -- I call your attention to Windows Vista as Exhibit 'A'. Posted by Samprimary (Member # 8561) on :
David has experienced an unexpected error at 0x00000001 to STOP Error 0x0000005F
Posted by Orincoro (Member # 8854) on :
Haha, I get jokes.
Posted by Lyrhawn (Member # 7039) on :
quote:Originally posted by Aros: Redlettermedia had a good review of this on Half in the Bag. They struggled to determine if there WERE stupid plot holes, or if the movie was a lot deeper wherein the "plot holes" were actually requiring the viewer to infer and postulate.
My thought is that perhaps the black goo isn't a weapon . . . perhaps it's a substance used to cross pollinate DNA (for terraforming). This would answer a lot of the questions.
But, yeah, I know a lot of people felt that David's behavior (for instance) was nonsensical. There were some additional scenes (that were edited out) that would have clarified it, but they removed them. About 20 minutes will be added to the home video version, so maybe a few frustrated people might be somewhat appeased.
Fantastic movie. My opinion? It tried to be too smart and a little too challenging. Omitting plot details to engage a viewer can be effective . . . but omitting key points is generally a bad move.
The effects of the goo don't really seem to make a lot of sense. When David took one of the pods back to the lab and opened it up he found all the little tiny seeds. In the cavern, they independently turned into squid monsters like the one that killed the two scientists. In the ship, one of them was fed to a scientist, who turned into a superhuman zombie, and who via sexual contact transmitted a squid monster into his wife. There was also the tentacle that popped out of the zombie guy's eye.
But how do the goo and the seeds interact? And what's the point? The guy at the very, very beginning appeared to drink a cup of the goo and instead of turning into a zombie or a squid, he was broken apart from the inside, which suggests either inconsistency for the same material, or they're using two totally different materials.
It's just confusing. I can't take on faith so many inexplicable events that don't seem to go anywhere.
And why the hell did Charlize Theron try to outrun the space doughnut that was rolling her to death? You could watch the Three Stooges and figure out THAT wasn't going to work. Do you need a doctorate to figure out that you run perpendicular to escape that sort of situation? It was cartoonishly stupid.
Posted by umberhulk (Member # 11788) on :
She should have ran diagonal to have both escape routes covered.
Posted by Jeff C. (Member # 12496) on :
I really wanted David to have more of a moment at the end. He was really the best part of the movie and if they had focused more on his journey as a character, I think it would have resulted in a better story.
I was pretty frustrated after it was over, mostly because of the lack of character development (I mean, honestly, what was the point of Theron's character, other than to look hot and be confrontational?). Oh well. Maybe the inevitable sequel will give us more answers and develop the characters more. I really hope so.
Posted by umberhulk (Member # 11788) on :
Most of the characters are dead Jeff.
Posted by Lyrhawn (Member # 7039) on :
Only one and a half characters even survived the movie. The vast majority of character-related unanswered questions are irrelevant. All we can get is more information on the broader mythology, and frankly I don't care at this point.
It was a movie designed to pique your interest in prequels, it doesn't work as a standalone movie.
Posted by Orincoro (Member # 8854) on :
quote:Originally posted by Jeff C.:
(I mean, honestly, what was the point of Theron's character, other than to look hot and be confrontational?).
I don't understand your question...
Actully, the thing tht drove me crazy for the last 30 minutes of the film was the idea that somebody could have invasive surgery and then proceed to run around for several hours with few apparent problems like, you know, horrible pain, internal hemorrhage, blood loss, shock, and death. I mean, the surgery split her abnominal muscles apart- shouldn't be able to take a deep breath, let alone run. But the machine stapled her stomach... So it's cool.
Posted by BlackBlade (Member # 8376) on :
Oh that was so frustrating because I love the scene as a concept, I mean seriously surgery creeps me out, parasites creep me out, emergency surgery to deal with a parasite are a perfect couple. But you cut those muscles and maybe in a few hours she can sit up and in a day or two stand with help. Anything else and it is to laugh. I get they wanted that scene and for her to be mobile but you've got to deal with those competing objectives.
Posted by Lyrhawn (Member # 7039) on :
But otherwise how could you appreciate her will to live? Posted by Orincoro (Member # 8854) on :
I just thought it was a little lazy. A little applied phlebotinum, like some kind of micro-laser-suture would have sold me on it, somewhat. but some staples? Really? There were a few cases of lazy writing in the film that surprised me, because a few little changes could have made a number of scenes stronger.
For instance, I can't have been the only person who actually laughed out loud when Theron says: "father," as if it was a reveal, when the relationship could not have been more clear from the context.
Also, the horribly on-the-nose "David has no soul" line was like racking Chekov's Shotgun. Horribly unsubtle. There were numerous other lines tht felt.. Well, underwritten.
[ June 27, 2012, 09:28 PM: Message edited by: Orincoro ]
Posted by BlackBlade (Member # 8376) on :
Maybe the black goo gives you super regeneration. I mean it can't always be bad news right? Posted by Aros (Member # 4873) on :
Also, Fifeld wasn't the one who turned into a zombie, it was roasted Holloway. They left Fifeld and the other scientist back in the chamber with the vials.
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