Prometheus

[orestes]

Spoiler: It's because the initial set up of the movie with the cave paintings involves the engineers being the interactive (pre christian) gods of society. The Greek/Egyptian gods etc were physical and they interacted with the day to day social workings of people. When humans moved away from the engineers and created secular religion the engineers decided to destroy them.

It also changes the ending of the movie where it isn't actually just a shameless set up for the sequel; it's the folly of the main character failing to realise that it was her own faith that was the reason the engineers wanted to destroy them. It's very similar to the ending of Blade Runner finding the unicorn and then going into the elevator with the doors closing to an open end. Shaw is flying off in sheer arrogance of everything that has happened and her last monologue to David about finding out why the gods decided to destroy humans is also trying to point the audience back to the explanation which is contained within the movie.

Our very own Gilgamesh.

[Alexandros]

Our very own Gilgamesh.

Oooh, a sequel title perhaps?

[october_midnight]

What else is there that needs to be seen on the big screen this year anyway?

[Sutekh]

Spoiler: Another thing that's been puzzling me is what brought Shaw to believe the 'Engineers' created us in the first place... all we're presented with is that they visited us thousands of years ago. Coupled with your points, Rath (which puzzled me too), she seems to be psychic.

Good question, but...

Spoiler: for the engineers to be SO similar to us, despite their planet being god knows how far away & chemically composed of who knows etc, they turn out 2 hands, 2 eyes, even eyeballs with pupils etc - to a biologist, for something so similar to exist without god or panspermia involved is seriously improbable. The fact they have better tech and the evidence of previous visits to earth, along with the way the bio weapons seem tailored to attack humanoids, logically suggests they are our progenitors

This way, the original films make more sense - the facehuggers etc seemed so tailored to human anatomy that it beggared belief somewhat to suggest they would be found in some back o beyond that humans had never visited

[Amaro]

While my enormous anticipation has been REALLY dampend by now I still think this is a must-see in cinemas. What else is there that needs to be seen on the big screen this year anyway?

Rock of Ages.

[jmtd]

Been thinking of seeing this, but my local cinema is only showing it in 3D, and learning about cuts to the UK print makes me think I should save my money for the bluray instead.

Surely the Blu ray will cost more than a cinema ticket?

[Deadpool]

Saw this in IMAX 3D at midnight. Anyone else get the cool exclusive poster? It was printed on surprisingly nice card stock. The IMAX screen by the way really nailed those opening shots. I mouthed the word "wow" probably a good 3-4 times before a word was spoken. 3D was nice, but i was off to the side, so it was a bit skewed, and it would have been more satisfying had I been in the center.

Anyway, after seeing it once, I liked it. Not entirely what I expected, either - speaking generally, it wasn't quite as bleak as I anticipated. It was even hopeful at times. I appreciate this distinction from Alien. There was so much to digest in Prometheus that I can't fully judge it on just one viewing, so I'm looking forward to seeing it again soon (knowing to expect certain things). My 2 friends who I went with were buzzing like myself at the end, though my brother was clearly pretty disappointed, which I think comes from a certain resentment/baggage pertaining to LOST and being upset with that series (I stopped after season 2).

Personally, I can't stop thinking about Prometheus, and not in the usual "Oh, what a great moment that was" way - more in the broad sense of "What are the implications of this? And THIS?"

In relation to Alien, which I think I've watched 4 times in the past few days, Prometheus gives my brain a lot more to chew on. That's not meant as a disparaging remark. Alien, not unlike say Black Swan, is successful because it commits to a very singular idea and continues to ramp up the intensity of that idea as it moves forward - to the point of "overkill" (Ridley's words). Its transparency is a strength, though it also has the luxury of supreme execution. Point being, by the end of Alien, I'm fulfilled, but no longer very engaged by it. Prometheus leaves me with a lot to think about, and as of now, that ambiguity actually excites me and puts a smile on my face. In other words, it's like I still haven't left the theater. The way I look at it, LOST was less like a movie and more like an ongoing comic-book title: there was never much of a clear ending planned. At least with the shared universe of Prometheus and Alien, we know what the end-point is: the Derelict ship, the eggs & the Xenomorph, the Space Jockey skeleton with a hole in its chest, LV-426, and the Distress call (eventually answered by the Nostromo). Spoiler: We just don't know how that all comes to be. For me, it's comforting to know that we have to arrive there in some form if this story continues, and I sincerely hope it does.

I'm loving the spoiler-y discussion, too. Nice thoughts, everyone.

[ManBurning]

What else is there that needs to be seen on the big screen this year anyway?

Nahh, Skip Batman, go to Spider-man!

[Fixer808]

Nahh, Skip Batman, go to Spider-man!

[Vertigo]

Good question, but...

Spoiler: for the engineers to be SO similar to us, despite their planet being god knows how far away & chemically composed of who knows etc, they turn out 2 hands, 2 eyes, even eyeballs with pupils etc - to a biologist, for something so similar to exist without god or panspermia involved is seriously improbable. The fact they have better tech and the evidence of previous visits to earth, along with the way the bio weapons seem tailored to attack humanoids, logically suggests they are our progenitors

This way, the original films make more sense - the facehuggers etc seemed so tailored to human anatomy that it beggared belief somewhat to suggest they would be found in some back o beyond that humans had never visited

Spoiler: Well, convergent evolution does suggest that another sapient, constructive species may indeed have two eyes, two hands, opposable thumbs and other striking similarities. Point taken though, that's sufficient grounds for the theory.

[Vertigo]

Personally, I can't stop thinking about Prometheus, and not in the usual "Oh, what a great moment that was" way - more in the broad sense of "What are the implications of this? And THIS?"

Agreed... I was highly disappointed with the film, but I have to admit, I can't stop thinking about it. Despite more than its fair share of flaws, it's a real thought provoker (though for me a lot of those thoughts are how the film could have been improved!). Aftertaste's definitely much tastier than the initial bite.

[dlb]

Haha! You're right. Although I think Batman is just as enjoyable on a TV screen. Too bad there's no IMAX in Munich anymore...

[NIN64]

Just saw Prometheus for the second time tonight. I liked it after the first viewing, and like it more after the second!

[Lutz]

To put this in perspective for people who decided they aren't going to see it.

The negative reviews are like people saying Blade Runner is bad. Harrison Ford turns in his most wooden performance to date, the story about killing replicants poses some nice set pieces but which are emotionally unsatisfying, then we are saddled with a contradictory ending where the main character goes off with a replicant leading the way for an obvious sequel.

Those reviews would be missing the point of the story but you couldn't really blame them because at first the movie does point you in that direction.

[Corvus T. Cosmonaut]

The pro-Prometheus crowd sure are getting a lot of mileage out of two recurring comments:

1. "...but this isn't Alien, and these people giving it negative reviews are expecting it to be Alien!"
2. "...but Blade Runner also got poor reviews upon its release, and now look at where it is today."

Both of which are just lazy (they're a weak dodge re: the substance of criticism) and arguable (time allows a feature's buzz cloud to consist largely of those attracted to it, for example, which is necessary for it to take on its current airs as a cinema icon) and also problematic—because of course, let's not forget that for the first decade of its life Blade Runner was basically like this:


Think that one's not so bad?

[Lutz]

I wasn't talking about Prometheus becoming a classic because I'm still not sure if my rereading of the movie makes it any more enjoyable but I think it does certainly make it more intelligent than I initially gave it credit for.

I gave the Blade Runner example because if you look at it simply and only as a movie about a guy hunting replicants it is a disjointed mess. If you look at it as a movie where each scene is specifically set up to ask you "what is human?" then the entire movie makes sense. Blade Runner on an initial view where the audience is only picking up on a guy hunting replicants is going to have a bad reaction. But when you think back over the course of the film it makes better thematic sense and it changes the way that you read the scenes (And there are so many details buried in Blade Runner that lots of people probably still haven't noticed e.g. the third and fourth unicorn).

I think the twist in Prometheus discussed above changes the way you read the second half of the movie and it makes it a self contained movie. The characters shouting all their questions at the screen in frustration are trying to alert you to the fact that the answers are already in the movie and the movie is making quite a specific point of the characters failure to understand them.

[GoodSoldier333]

What a pile of shit! Honestly.

[darktemplar007]

I fucking loved this.
That is all.

[Deadpool]

Anyone else catch this? More young Peter Weyland goodness. A teaser for another viral video I hope.

[BrewHa]

What's up with all the negativity? How often do you get to see a movie like this? This movie was almost everything I wanted it to be. So what if it didn't fullfill my deepest darkest fantasies, it was a wonderful and engaging sci-fi experience. Don't let the haters have their way with you. See it for yourself.

[dlb]

I got one question: is the soundtrack's tracklist in order with the movie?

EDIT: And was there a digital booklet?

[Corvus T. Cosmonaut]

What's up with all the negativity? How often do you get to see a movie like this? This movie was almost everything I wanted it to be. So what if it didn't fullfill my [adjectives] fantasies, it was a wonderful and engaging [genre] film experience. Don't let the haters have their way with you. See it for yourself.

But seriously, is anyone in this thread actually, specifically trying to discourage others from seeing the movie?

[Sutekh]

That's not what he said, theres obviously the possibility that people might read negative reviews and decide its not worth seeing

[GoodSoldier333]

That's their problem. If i want to complain about how bad this film was, and bad it was, i will do so.

[orestes]

Well, then, how about you be more engaging in your criticism other than a "this sucks" post?

[GoodSoldier333]

I was replying towards what Sutekh said about reading negative reviews and not seeing a film; you can perfectly well see that Orestes.

[Goldfoot]

I was replying towards what Sutekh said about reading negative reviews and not seeing a film; you can perfectly well see that Orestes.

1) There's a "quote" feature for a reason
2) Her point still stands. I could reply to your post saying that the movie is great, and it is, but then give no indication of what makes it great to me; then I will have achieved exactly what you did, which is next to nothing.

I will, however, elaborate on why I think it was great. I only recently watched Alien and Aliens in their entirety, and this one seems to have a very similar feel as Alien. The difference here is that the crew has an idea of what they are looking for, but they have no idea of the nature of what they are looking for. I really enjoyed everything about this movie, except a couple ways certain things played out in the plot itself. I figured Fassbender's robot character was going to be up to something, as was the case in Alien. Even though it was predictable in these sorts of aspects, it was what I was expecting, so I was pleased.

[ltrandazzo]

I was replying towards what Sutekh said about reading negative reviews and not seeing a film; you can perfectly well see that Orestes.

Posting -

What a pile of shit! Honestly.

- is similar to trolling a thread. Elaborate with a longer message explaining why or don't post at all. This isn't Twitter, Facebook or a chat room. You're posting on a message board.

[Ichiro]

I wasn't talking about Prometheus becoming a classic because I'm still not sure if my rereading of the movie makes it any more enjoyable but I think it does certainly make it more intelligent than I initially gave it credit for.

I gave the Blade Runner example because if you look at it simply and only as a movie about a guy hunting replicants it is a disjointed mess. If you look at it as a movie where each scene is specifically set up to ask you "what is human?" then the entire movie makes sense. Blade Runner on an initial view where the audience is only picking up on a guy hunting replicants is going to have a bad reaction. But when you think back over the course of the film it makes better thematic sense and it changes the way that you read the scenes (And there are so many details buried in Blade Runner that lots of people probably still haven't noticed e.g. the third and fourth unicorn).

I think the twist in Prometheus discussed above changes the way you read the second half of the movie and it makes it a self contained movie. The characters shouting all their questions at the screen in frustration are trying to alert you to the fact that the answers are already in the movie and the movie is making quite a specific point of the characters failure to understand them.

This is off topic, but what were the 3rd and 4th unicorns in BR? Just curious because I'm only familiar with the two obvious ones...
As for Prometheus, I thought it was a bit of a mess, but its been lingering in my head for the past couple days so it has that going for it.

[Lutz]

This is off topic, but what were the 3rd and 4th unicorns in BR? Just curious because I'm only familiar with the two obvious ones...
As for Prometheus, I thought it was a bit of a mess, but its been lingering in my head for the past couple days so it has that going for it.

The scene where Pris paints her eyes and JF Sebastian is asleep at his desk there is a model unicorn on the right hand side of his desk (considering that Deckard dreams of Unicorns and JF designs replicant minds and sleeps at his desk...) and directly following the boiling eggs shot in JF's apartment there is another model unicorn in the bottom LHS mirror while Batty is daydreaming.