Like many others, I’ve been eagerly anticipating this month’s release of Prometheus. Ridley Scott used to be a great director (though more recent offerings such as Robin Hood pale somewhat in the comparison to films such as Blade Runner) and this seemed to be a return to his roots, back to the Alien universe that kick started his career.
Like many others, I love both Alien and Aliens, the films that changed the face of horror (and then action-horror). I’ll happily admit that they scare me shitless, the roots of which lie in the fact that I saw Alien when I was about six years old. In fact, one of my earliest memories is literally hiding behind a big pair of curtains, such was my terror. The first film in what became a franchise is a classic piece of filmmaking that will stand the test of time forever, and James Cameron made what is unarguably his best film in the sequel, Aliens. In fact, I’m of the opinion that Aliens is pretty much the perfect action film, combined with more than healthy doses of gore and horror and so many classic lines you’d need an extra pair of hands to count them on. Such is my love for it, it beat its predecessor into the list of my top 14 films.
And so Prometheus, not strictly a prequel but sort-of is, came to pass. And, like many others, I was left a little disappointed.
It has its moments, for sure, not least whenever Michael Fassbender appears on screen. About 15 months ago I wrote an editorial in my old magazine BigLens, in which I decided Fassbender was my favourite actor of his new(ish) generation, and that his success would only continue. What foresight! After turns in Shame, X-Men First Class, Jane Eyre, A Dangerous Method and now Prometheus, Fassbender has cemented himself as just about the most sought after actor in the business. His portrayal of David, an android (not a spoiler, don’t worry) is eerie yet wonderful, his bleached blonde hair and clipped English accent adding to his other-worldly feel.
Noomi Rapace is also excellent, essentially taking on the role of Sigourney Weaver and showing that she has every bit as much fight (and bad luck) as Ellen Ripley, but looks considerably better in her underwear. The rest of the characters (Charlize Theron’s frosty agent, Idris Elba’s accordion playing captain and, naturally, a belligerent Scotsman) tend to slip into caricatures which is a pity, though Fassbender and Rapace manage to provide enough meatiness to compensate.
The great problem with Prometheus is essentially one that it cannot help: that it will be compared to Alien (and to a slightly lesser extent Aliens). However, the film could have taken steps to distance itself somewhat from its illustrious brethren, but it ultimately ends up resting too heavily upon them. Yes, the aliens themselves are a bit different, but there are so many other similarities, both in terms of the crew and in plot points (which I’m not going to mention as I detest spoilers), that where the film should feel innovative it simply feels familiar.
This directly influences one of my main problems with the film: it isn’t scary enough. Alien was terrifying because it was something completely different. Neither the crew nor the audience knew what to expect and this fear of the unknown (combined with the nightmare maze of Freudian sexuality) ratcheted up the tension several notches. I went into the cinema with the masochistic desire to be as scared as I was when first watching the original, but I was left disappointed.
The holographic moments are quite nice (if suspiciously similar to sequences in Mass Effect 3) and there are a few more satisfying and subtle nods to some of the mysteries in Alien (namely the elephant-like humanoid skeleton encountered by John Hurt), but Prometheus ultimately creates as many puzzles as it attempts to solve.
Another of my gripes (and this extends to all films in general) is that the trailer revealed far too much of the film. Obviously this isn’t the fault of the filmmakers, but the fact remains that someone at the marketing department has significantly ruined the film for me. There are several versions of the trailer available, but one of the latter ones released online showed moments that were clearly from the film’s finale. Call me old fashioned but I quite like not knowing how the film is going to end (well, I like guessing it correctly halfway through) and by showing a certain moment (again, I won’t reveal it in case you haven’t seen it and want to see the film) it sucked all of the tension out one of the climactic moments. In fact, much more effective than the trailers were the viral shorts released beforehand, such as the brilliant example below featuring Fassbender. It’s footage that stands alone from the film and adds rather than detracts from your experience of the film proper. This is definitely the template studios should be moving towards:
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cWmbqH_z7jM]
I was equally annoyed at David Sexton’s review that featured on page 3 of the Evening Standard last week. I debated whether to read it, worrying it might contain spoilers, but I chose to give him the benefit of the doubt. He proceeded, of course, to give away certain plot points before having the cheek to end his piece by advising to try and avoid any information about the film for fear of spoilers. Well, gee, thanks David.
Nevertheless it’s not the fault of the film that it had bad reviewers and, as I said, there are some good moments that make it worth a watch if you’ve enough interest. But if you want to see the film at its best, I recommend you sit down tonight and watch Alien. And then Aliens. But you can definitely stop there.
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