Review: Prometheus

Set in 2093, after scientists Noomi Rapace and Logan Marshall-Green had discovered ancient cave paintings in Scotland a few years earlier depicting man reaching for the stars, literally. Now the duo are part of a crew aboard the spaceship Prometheus on a mission sanctioned by the Weyland Corporation (dum-dum Dum!) to search for the planet closest to the star system depicted in the cave paintings (which are also found in other locations on Earth). Two of the more important figures on board are the ice-cold Weyland Corp representative Charlize Theron, and an android (Michael Fassbender) who seems modelled after Peter O’Toole in “Lawrence of Arabia”. Both of these two seem to know a lot more about this mission than they are letting on (Theron, for instance, is rather unenthused about the scientific possibilities of the mission, and yet she was also in charge of most of the recruitment for the mission). They soon land on the planet, and after some exploration, they make some rather astounding discoveries linking humans with an alien species. However, they also discover some nasty alien creatures who run riot amongst the crew. Idris Elba plays the ship’s ‘no-nonsense, no questions’ Captain, Sean Harris is one of the crew, and Guy Pearce appears in old-age makeup as Peter Weyland, the mega-rich backer of the expedition.

I am not a fan of Ridley Scott’s “Alien” nor his “Blade Runner” for that matter (wait...don’t go!), and this 2012 sci-fi flick from the director seems to exist in a universe incorporating elements of both, especially the former. Comparisons to those films (especially “Alien”) will be unavoidable, but it’s more a companion piece than prequel to “Alien”, and is actually a more enjoyable film, in my opinion (I’ve always much preferred James Cameron’s “Aliens”). There are certainly problems, but the film is more entertaining and aesthetically pleasing (aside from some shite CGI) than the much-loved 1979 sci-fi film.

I always felt that aside from Sigourney Weaver, “Alien” wasted its terrific cast, so I was glad that Scott gives several of the actors here distinct and memorable characters to play, with Michael Fassbender and (surprisingly) Charlize Theron coming off especially well. Even the characters played by Rapace, Elba, and Logan Marshall-Green (who is surprisingly good) ‘pop out’ for more reasons than just the recognition of the actors playing them. I felt the whole Peter O’Toole thing was a bit bizarre and unnecessary, but Fassbender’s android is the film’s scene-stealer by far (and he does so immediately). The guy has come a long way since delivering a pretty underwhelming villain on TV’s otherwise fun “Hex”. Here he’s just ‘off’ enough to cause concern, especially if you’ve ever seen any of the androids in the “Alien” series. He has this thing about him where you’d almost swear he had a menacing, somewhat mocking intention to the things he says. And yet, he’s not human. It makes you constantly uneasy around him.

 

Charlize Theron and Noomi Rapace play two very different and (interestingly different) female characters here. Performance-wise, though, Theron is definitely the better of the two (Rapace is OK, she just needs another facial expression or two). Theron is actually quite menacing at times, not to mention uneasily android-like. The relationship between Theron and Fassbender is really, really interesting.

But look, everyone’s at the very least ‘decent’ here, though some actors aren’t in the film enough for my liking. I mean, Sean Harris, as the most deranged-looking geologist looked set to become the film’s Bill Paxton, but instead, he’s in the film even less than Kate Dickie and Benedict Wong, whose functions are basically to be the Scottish chick and the Asian dude. They don’t have characters beyond their nationalities. I guess you get what you deserve when you decide to mess with a space cobra. An unrecognisable Guy Pearce is quite fun, behind not especially convincing makeup, in a small but memorable role.

The film improves upon “Alien” by being a much more vibrant-looking film, not the anti-septic, rather dated “THX-1138” style at all. The CGI is terribly unconvincing, but in terms of set design, this is pretty stellar stuff.

If there’s one flaw with the entire film (aside from the connection between the aliens and humans being hard to swallow) it’s that Scott goes too far in referencing the “Alien” Quadrilogy for a film that is supposedly merely set in the same universe, not directly related to any “Alien” film. Using similar fonts to the “Alien” series is one thing, but the film’s ending not only gives us a definite connection to the series, but in regards to the Fassbender character, it pretty much references “Alien 3”, if you ask me, albeit only slightly. I understand the desire to please fanboys, but I found it all a bit unnecessary. The film was doing a decent job at telling its own space yarn (though no matter how good Noomi Rapace’s English is, at no point was she convincing me she was Patrick Wilson’s daughter), and the script by Damon Lindelof (one of the people behind TV’s “Lost”) and Jon Spaihts (“The Darkest Hour”) could’ve otherwise stood on its own. I did, however, like the use of the alien pods. That was one genuinely effective way to bring tension because we all know those pods can open at any second, and out comes a face-hugger. The best FX scene by far is an amusing reference to the chest-burster from “Alien”, without actually really referencing it. WETA apparently did some of the FX and the Australian company Fuel VFX worked on the film, too. I hope we did the latter scene, then.

Overall, I liked this film, and surprisingly so. It improves upon “Alien” in terms of set design, pacing, and character development. It’s nothing earth-shattering, though, and if you go in expecting greatness, you won’t find it.  

 

Rating: B-