Prometheus (in 3D): Just saw it. Review coming at length...

[Overmind One]

Im less than one hour away from the last scene of Prometheus in 3D. I just got back from the theater (above is a shot of the front) I did not hate the movie, but I did not love it either. The short and sweet version?

1. This movie in 3D was done very well. The 3D effects were enhancements and not gimmicky, and did add to the visual effects, which were awesome, if not stunning.
2. The sound effects were to my ears as was the 3D was to my eyes...crisp, effective without being overpowering.
3. The character development was shoddy. The story had many characters, all supposedly essential to this mission, yet when we meet them they seem unlikely and turn out to be just people there to kill off.
4. The backstory of the Engineers (the giant people) was hokey, and smacked of Aryan/Hitler-esque overtones throughout several parts of the movie. Their mythology has been intentionally left open for future movies.
5. The connection of the Engineers and their mission to Earth seemed forced and unnecessary, and reminded me of the ending storyline in Mission to Mars.
6. The introduction of religion into this universe seemed tacked on, and was revisited many times throughout the movie.

I will give this an HONEST review, and I am afraid it will not be glowing with sunshine. But I wont be setting it aflame either. If you go see it, then see it in 3D. I cant imagine the lessened impact of 2D.

I will be writing my review shortly.

 

[OMNI]

intresting... quick version describes EXACTLY what others have told me about it.

 

[Overmind One]

intresting... quick version describes EXACTLY what others have told me about it.

If you see it, it wont make you wish you had your money back. But it wont make you leave all giddy with the excitement of having seen it. By the time you make it to your car, you arent thinking about the mythology much. I dont know why anybody ever tried to say that this movie was not directly connected to Alien, because it is connected in a very big way and the timeline of this movie leads directly forward into Ripley's timeline. The connections are clear and obvious. Without the connection, the entire storyline would be meaningless....well, MORE meaningless.

I thought the new mythology for these "Engineers" was hokey and dumbed down. Just being honest. There were several moments where I let out a sigh of dismissal. There were also more than a few eyerolls. But still, I will most likely see the next one just to get more of the story. If they go where I think they are going with it, the next movie might be my last.

 

[OMNI]

so yeah underwealming and a general "MEH" but some neat FX?
if so i am dead on with my assesment and i havnt seen it yet.. tho i suspect i will have HUGE issues with noomi Rapace and her broken stupid annoying attemts at speaking english.. *shudders*

 

[Bluce Ree]

 

[OMNI]

oh come on bluce.. you cant be surprised?

 

[shavedape]

 

[Bluce Ree]

oh come on bluce.. you cant be surprised?

A little but I didn't have far to fall, though. The whole Alien link had already dropped the bar for me.

 

[shavedape]

A little but I didn't have far to fall, though. The whole Alien link had already dropped the bar for me.

Some of the spoiler details I inadvertently heard about this movie make me think it's a bit soapy in parts. I'm still on the fence about paying to see it at a theater. I was going to but now I'm not so sure. I might just wait to get it on Netflix or see it on cable.

And, again, I really hope they don't mess with the Alien story too much. (and no, that's not a negative comment, it's actually quite hopeful)

 

[Overmind One]

A little but I didn't have far to fall, though. The whole Alien link had already dropped the bar for me.

This movie has several sub-plots. One, is the Engineers who evidently crafted Humanity through advanced technology. Another is the presence of the alien creatures, and yet another is the purpose and intention of the Engineers towards Humanity and the backstory of the Engineers themselves.

Spoiler: Major spoiler

We see worms, then bigger worm-like creatures (which are an evolutionary step beyond the worms), then a type of worm that attacks and enters through the mouth, then the intentional infection and subsequent impregnation of Shaw by her love mate Charlie. The third creature looks more and more like a face grabber, and finally we get a HUGE face grabber which enters the live Engineer's body to give birth to the last creature which looks like it is about two evolutionary steps below the Alien in the original movies, but unmistakeably related. The Alien is a creature that picks up genetic material from its hosts in subsequent impregnations. It is easy to see how the later Aliens came to be, and even the one in the awful Alien: Resurrection that had a vagina and gave birth.

They can keep this going only if they maintain the connection to Alien, IMO. The Engineers are just not a strong enough element of the Alien universe to concentrate on them alone without any Alien presence. I have had time to sleep and reflect on the movie and I am not sorry I saw it, but I wouldnt buy it on video or pay to see it again. It was NOT awful. It just did not live up to expectations.

 

[Overmind One]

Some of the spoiler details I inadvertently heard about this movie make me think it's a bit soapy in parts. I'm still on the fence about paying to see it at a theater. I was going to but now I'm not so sure. I might just wait to get it on Netflix or see it on cable.

And, again, I really hope they don't mess with the Alien story too much. (and no, that's not a negative comment, it's actually quite hopeful)

No soap...there is almost NO soap in this thing, but there are worse elements: religion, eugenics, and Von Daniken-esque "connections" to ancient cultures on earth. I am starting to wonder if the Catholic Church gives money to producers to introduce it in movies. This movie was almost as bad as Starship Troopers 3 in that regard. I could easily take a character wearing a cross, or even seeing them quietly pray in a moment of stress or tragedy. But they actually created dialogue around it, and they had the lead SCIENTIST being a devout religious believer? In real life, it is just not like that. Very rare is the advanced scientist who believes in religion. Believing in God in a non-Catholic, non religious sense would have worked, much like they did in Enemy Mine. It just added unnecessary dialogue to the movie.

As far as messing with the Alien story, I dont think they did that to a horrible degree. This movie fleshes out how the Alien came to be, and how it evolved. But the movie attempts to build interest in the Engineers (the giant people) and to me it falls flat in that regard. If this movie was about those Engineers alone with no Alien or creatures other than them, I would be completely uninterested. They are just not compelling enough in my opinion.

 

[OMNI]

A little but I didn't have far to fall, though. The whole Alien link had already dropped the bar for me.

same here ive never been a fan of alien.. frankly i thing the spinnoff alien VS predator is WAY better... sacrilige i know but i lothe the alien movies.. they are old ye but they still suck..

 

[Overmind One]

same here ive never been a fan of alien.. frankly i thing the spinnoff alien VS predator is WAY better... sacrilige i know but i lothe the alien movies.. they are old ye but they still suck..

I freakin LOVED all of the Predator movies, including the Predator vs Alien movie.

 

[OMNI]

I freakin LOVED all of the Predator movies, including the Predator vs Alien movie.

same, Rewatch? pred 1-2 + AVP?? im game if you are just set a time you CAN make and ill try to be there

 

[OMNI]

btw OM1 did you catch the newest predator movie? i thought it was actually kinda good.. felt like predator one but with a 2000's sci fi spin on it..

 

[Overmind One]

btw OM1 did you catch the newest predator movie? i thought it was actually kinda good.. felt like predator one but with a 2000's sci fi spin on it..

I have not seen it yet. The Predators are an interesting race of aliens, and I would love to see them fleshed out in a series of movies. What is the name of the movie?

 

[shavedape]

same here ive never been a fan of alien.. frankly i thing the spinnoff alien VS predator is WAY better... sacrilige i know but i lothe the alien movies.. they are old ye but they still suck..

Meh, gotta disagree here. Alien and Aliens were fantastic movies. The first one is a classic and was both a simple scary movie and an intriguing drama. The second one, while not as great as the first (due to Cameron's goofy changes), was still quite good. I don't see Aliens as being pure canon though as the alien queen was sort of just thrown in there as a plot device to have a single antagonist for Ripley to fight against. In Alien it's established that these creatures don't need a queen to reproduce (directors cut).

At any rate, they don't really suck even though they are "old". (Okay, I admit Aliens sucks a little in spots, but that's because it was written and directed by James Cameron who wasn't a complete douche at that point but enough of one to let it affect the story he told.)

 

[shavedape]

I have not seen it yet. The Predators are an interesting race of aliens, and I would love to see them fleshed out in a series of movies. What is the name of the movie?

Are you guys talking about Predators with Adrian Brody? It was both good and bad in spots. I won't spoil it but have to say that it annoys me when they try to cram as much "psychological" crap as possible into what should be a simple action movie. It does look like they left it open for sequels but I don't know if they are producing any yet.

 

[Bluce Ree]

Meh, gotta disagree here. Alien and Aliens were fantastic movies. The first one is a classic and was both a simple scary movie and an intriguing drama. The second one, while not as great as the first (due to Cameron's goofy changes), was still quite good. I don't see Aliens as being pure canon though as the alien queen was sort of just thrown in there as a plot device to have a single antagonist for Ripley to fight against. In Alien it's established that these creatures don't need a queen to reproduce (directors cut).

At any rate, they don't really suck even though they are "old". (Okay, I admit Aliens sucks a little in spots, but that's because it was written and directed by James Cameron who wasn't a complete douche at that point but enough of one to let it affect the story he told.)

+1.

I also enjoyed Alien 4. Not in the same way as Alien and Aliens but I thought it was pretty fast-paced and had some good action. It was a fun movie on its own, kind of like Crank, stupid fun even though the premise was ridiculous.

 

[Bluce Ree]

Are you guys talking about Predators with Adrian Brody? It was both good and bad in spots. I won't spoil it but have to say that it annoys me when they try to cram as much "psychological" crap as possible into what should be a simple action movie. It does look like they left it open for sequels but I don't know if they are producing any yet.

I'll spoil it!

They all died at the end. Everyone. The entire universe somehow explodes.