Ridley Scott has thrilled and frightened audiences for more than 30 years through a mixture of rich storytelling, diametrically opposed characters, and complex environmentally driven plots that clash in varying degrees of discovery, conflict, destruction and resolve.
Prometheus is another fine example of this type of film making, and without going too far into this review, it’s critical to point out that this is a sci-fi adventure. While the genre of science fiction often crosses over and borrows from other genres for content, it remains firmly grounded in science fiction.
With that said, I’m puzzled over a series of cookie cutter negative reviews that all paint this film as a flop. On the contrary, this may be one of Scott’s finest sci-fi films yet. In the tradition of all Scott films, his art direction never takes the back seat as he seeks to achieve a total suspension of disbelief through the creation of fantastic realms in which his characters can interact. The results are truly award-worthy. The cinematography and artistic direction are nearly flawless, too.
The digital innovations here are very new and breathtakingly cool. Scott pushes past any need for visual continuity to the previous films, opting instead to wow us with all new digital effects that are again, setting the new standard for visual presentation. Specifically, the dream sequence and an alien ship’s log sequences serve up a captivating feast for the eyes. Too many films are shooting in 3-D without giving the audience anything that is worthy of the effect, but not this time.
The story development taps into previous Alien storylines, but with the help of Lindelof (Lost), Scott is able to craft a highly imaginative prequel to the series. The casting for the most part is very well done, especially with the core cast. Yes, there are plenty of sub characters that serve primarily as victims and plot advancements, which is par for an Alien film.
If I had to take issue with something particular about the film, it would be the script, specifically the superficial and clichéd dialogue. Scott’s work has verged on brilliance before, but I will admit to laughing out loud at this film’s dialogue and that of others in the Alien series. As much as I liked Aliens, the overt military language and dumbed down “game over, dude” dialogue serve as near comic relief. Then again, it’s a summertime sci-fi thriller — you can tell a compelling story with a minimum of dialogue. Even Blade Runner had plenty of cheesy dialogue. If you want Academy winning dialogue, I’d suggest The Artist. Otherwise, really, just shaddup.
No, it’s the acting that carries this story through. The ensemble performances oddly remind me of 2001: A Space Odyssey, in which the characters interact through sparse dialogue but seldom connect emotionally. In Prometheus, the characters have that same distant coolness. They are islands to themselves, which draws a hard relief to the mission’s android that seems to be able to bridge that emotional gap, even if we’re not sure it’s genuine.
As with many of his Scott’s films, his mirror on society is played out on screen, providing explorations into the human condition and serving up all manner of monsters to expose man’s actual worst enemy: himself and his all-to-predictable weaknesses.
Prometheus’s opening sequence picks up the original Alien story arc at the very beginning where we see an extraterrestrial who is part of a race of beings labeled the “Engineers.” This engineer is on a developing world, possibly earth, where he sacrifices himself so that his genetic material will take root in the new one. Terra forming isn’t a new concept but this telling of it is new, fresh and interesting, and immediately shifts the story’s focus to the molecular level to illustrate a common bond of life throughout the universe and to demonstrate that genetic manipulation can have positive as well as negative consequences.
The film then moves quickly into a far distant future and place, as the commercial vessel Prometheus is moving towards a destination in deep space, it’s crew awakening from years of cryostatis. Archaeologists have discovered near identical star maps in ancient pictograms worldwide and are now, with the financial backing of Weyland Industries, on a mission to explore this star system. The final destination is a home world of the Engineers and the goal seems to be to make contact with them. From here, the characters take over in telling the story, featuring:
•An archaeologist (Noomi Rapace) is seeking the answers to the riddle of man’s origins, but carrying naïve beliefs on multiple fronts that the mission’s corporate sponsor cares for the good of mankind, and that life in the universe is inherently friendly.
•Then there’s the ghostly and oddly genius narcissist billionaire (Guy Pearce) who will risk his vast Weyland corporate empire in search of this planet and his own immortality.
•The ultra buttoned-up corporate first officer (Charlize Theron) who stolidly goes about her duty to fulfill the mission of her narcissist billionaire employer and father.
•A ship’s captain (Edris Elba) who serves as the story’s symbolic and constant protector of humanity; his duty is to his ship and her passengers.
•Finally, not including many of the 17-crew members that serve to advance the story, there is David 8, the creepy corporate android (Michael Fassbender) that Scott brilliantly conceives to be ambiguous on so many levels.
When we’re introduced to David 8, he has been charged with maintaining the crew in cryostasis through the long journey. During a span of five minutes we view David as he studies mankind through his own being, through books and films, and through historic digital records. David is in search of an understanding of the human condition with its complex emotions and choices. As with androids in other Scott films, he reveals his good and bad nature throughout the course of the story, but remains is particularly hard to read.
Indeed, Fassbender’s performance is the highlight of the film. He’s the android who absorbs what it means to be human even though he lacks the emotions to tap into mankind’s core essence. At the beginning of the film, we see David assimilating dozens of languages, playing basketball from a bike, and immersing himself in human culture in an attempt to mimic it and replicate it with his human crewmates. He even has a favourite film, Lawrence of Arabia, and is fascinated with Peter O’Toole, copying his dialogue, mannerisms and personal style.
But again, is David’s expression real or is he working towards other ends? At first, he’s literally the tool of the Weyland Corporation, and his actions reflect those of computer programmed for a specific end goal. And in typical fashion, his corporate programming and action show a complete disregard from human morality. Where Asimov’s first of the Three Laws of Robotics is to do no human harm, the corporate directive is to serve the mission first, and serve it David does.
It’s a treat to watch Fassbender as he fuels the undercurrent of ambiguity regarding David’s true nature. Unlike Ian Holm’s Ash character of the original Alien, who disguises the fact that he is a robot until it is clear he’s been programmed to serve the company, and unlike Lance Henriksen’s android character Bishop in Aliens, who is perceived to be a company droid but ultimately shows his devotion to man, Fassbender’s portrayal of David demonstrates a far greater range and potential for the character as the script was clearly developed for Fassbender to reprise his role.
What the viewer begins to suspect is that the corporation knows more about what they might find on this planet than even the archaeologists do, and David appears to be charged with not only keeping these secrets but in quickly using the crew for experimental purposes — and in ensuring that a certain alien life form is given birth at the expense of the crew. Is this simply a robot following its programming?
Late in the film when the corporation is no longer viable and his own existence is in question, however, his programming seems to take on a palpable psychological shift. David appears to achieve a higher level of thought, maybe even glancing at what it means to be human as he expresses concern now for human life. But the questions persist. Is he a survivalist — simply a cunning machine who will do whatever it takes to further the mission or is he now fundamentally a good character?
And as David is created by man, the reflection on man as fundamentally good or bad harkens back as a classic clash between Hobbesian and Lockean ideals, and, of course, this film wouldn’t be complete without its own Leviathan. Yes, there are xenomorphic aliens in the film, but they are arguably not the central focus until near the end of it. Like Prometheus, the Greek god who makes man from clay and steals fire for his creation, it is David, an android in its 8th iteration, who is the pure embodiment of Prometheus.
As for the Engineers, they may have created man from their own essence, but have now also engineered a weaponized form of population control for the galaxy they helped populate. Now we want to know why, and where we’re left with more questions than answers in Prometheus, certainly one answer is clear: Scott’s Alien franchise is alive and well. If we’re lucky, we’ll see Rapace and Fassbender reprise their roles in the next sequel. We know we’ll see more of the alien. If you stick around until the end of the credits, you get to see this thing up close in its first humanoid formation.
Hollywood and Pinewood have been working hard to attract fans like me, and my expectations have been rewarded more than a few times this year, and I’m not referring to the blockbusters in which quasi-superheroes in spandex leotards jump around for two hours. I really liked Prometheus and will see it again soon. For me, this is the essence of a good summer film. A plausible story with plenty of loose ends, writers who have left enough literary clues, a script that isn’t terrible, and meticulous art direction and visual presentation. Top it off with an ensemble cast who share and support Scott’s vision and you have one highly entertaining film.
Oh, yes, and you really must visit Weyland Industries online. www.weylandindustries.com
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=brEzYdLrPws
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9vnjQPcrcZI
