Prometheus Review

Prometheus has landed... 

Writer/Director Ridley Scott brings us back into the world of his signature franchise Alien with new sci-fi Prometheus. Set before the first Alien movie, Prometheus sets out to make us ponder the bigger questions of the universe: are we alone? Why are we here?

Lets start at the beginning. The run up to the release of Prometheus is a master class in movie marketing. In 2011 there were hints that the project was going ahead, followed by a Comic-Con appearance by the cast.  There was silence until earlier this year when an explosive teaser trailer hit our screens, followed by a slow leak of viral videos allowing us to meet the characters. This culminated in an extended trailer shown on TV, calling Prometheus the 'movie event of the year' and tempting us further by explaining its connection to the superb Alien series.

Exciting, right? That's the power of marketing, folks.

Opening with a beautiful title sequence showing a mysterious figure sacrificing himself and his DNA to give life on Earth, the first moments of Prometheus are nothing short of spectacular. The camera swoops and soars over gorgeous landscapes and unspoiled terrain, giving us a gorgeous view of Earth before humans. Thousands of years later, archaeologists in Skye, Scotland, find cave paintings showing similar figures pointing to the stars. Deciding that this is an invitation from those who created Earth, Elizabeth Shaw (a brilliant Noomi Rapace) leads a team of (perfectly disposable) explorers as they set out for space with the belief that they are ready to literally meet their makers. 

Michael Fassbender's David is easily the most intriguing character

Unfortunately, it is after landing on this newfound planet that problems start to begin, both within the plot and the quality of the film. As the crew lands, sandstorms, sentient life and even betrayal within the ship itself threatens to destroy the mission. Michael Fassbender is superb as David, the ship's resident android who is designed to act as a butler and a maintenance man. His lines are delivered with such tonal ambiguity that it is impossible to gather the motives behind his words, particularly when David becomes aware of his superiority and begins his own horrific experimentation.

Despite the superb acting of the cast, Prometheus still falls flat and feels like a low budget play with only two sets. For a movie with such large ideas, the areas the characters actually explore are incredibly minimal. There is so much to and fro between the internal setting of the ship and the external setting of the planet's caves that I began to feel frustrated at the pacing and the lack of variety. I don’t want to give away any spoilers, but the plot starts to become as predictable as a straight-to-DVD horror movie; the side characters are picked off one by one in grotesque fashion, leaving the heroine and two or three survivors to pick up the pieces leading up to the film’s climax. If you're squeamish you'll be fine. Prometheus is not a horror with sci-fi like Alien: it is a sci-fi with horror elements.

The horror of the Alien franchise is missing

That said, Prometheus has to be praised simply for the magnitude of its theme.  There aren't many film-makers who would dare have a go at answering such huge philosophical questions (at least without tongue-in-cheek humour behind it), as well as making us consider our own. "Why do you think your people made me?" David asks. "Because we could," replies archaeologist Charlie with a smirk. "Can you imagine how disappointing it would feel for you to hear the same thing from your creator?" says David. It's truly thought provoking stuff. It’s ambitious to say the least, and lets face it, these questions aren’t going to be definitively answered in a sci-fi movie, nor should they ever be. 

Unfortunately, I feel that while Ridley Scott has proven himself in the past to be a fantastic director with new franchises (see Gladiator), his return to his original Alien universe leaves a lot to be desired. Prometheus has the weakest connection possible to the Alien franchise, with the classic sci-fi villain only making an appearance at the very end. Prometheus as a standalone film is good, however it will always inevitably be compared to Scott's previous endeavours into the series. Prometheus would have suffered less had it severed all ties with the Alien movies and simply stood on its own two feet. Here's hoping the inevitable sequel will be an improvement and will give the potentially groundbreaking story the film it deserves.

Summary

Prometheus is a thought provoking film, however slow pacing and a lack of direction take away from the epic themes. There are hundreds of inspired ideas waiting to burst forward, but unfortunately they are either poorly executed or simply underwritten and leave a lot to be desired. Hardcore fans of the 'In space, no one can hear you scream,' theme of the Alien movies may leave disappointed, as there is little suspense or fear in the air. On the plus side, generic sci-fi fans will most likely enjoy the two hours Prometheus gives itself, and the outstanding cast really are the shining light at the end of a rather threadbare tunnel.

Overall, I personally feel that had Ridley Scott decided not to rely on a very loose connection to the Alien movies to sway audiences, Prometheus could have been lightyears ahead of its box office competition this summer.

6/10