Small beginnings

"Well I think that sucked!" This was the first thing I heard coming out of the theater. Not that I am of the opinion of that particular let down moviegoer. Quite the opposite in fact. Prometheus was a film that was far from "sucking". At least quality wise anyway. It did most of its (face) sucking and oral rape in a classy manner.

I hoped that Ridley Scott had at least some juice left in him after over a decade of lackluster movies. After all, there should be at least some compensation for such a shift in quality ever since Blade Runner. Which, by the end of this film in which I am reviewing, the conclusion has come to this- Scott is to sci-fi in the same way Fincher is to the crime genre. Efficient and economical. But what put me over the edge with foamy anticipation was not Scott but screenwriter Damon Lindelof.  We all know that there is no quicker way to empty this type of heady sci-fi film of its peculiar magic than to explain it. Lindelof understands this. So after going back to the mystery box once more, he managed to serve up something that gives us curious glimpses behind the curtain and a small puzzle piece Scott tossed us back in '79 with Alien.

This brings to light a shift in tone from previous installments. One reviewer noted this was a "thinking man's Alien." The philosophical jargon and lingo is up front to decipher into the plot. A quote from Weyland Yutani should have all existentialists collectively cream their pants. Even the first words spoken are "Good morning, David". A wink to 2001 if I ever heard  one. Yet, it still doesn't forget its roots nor its primary objective. It's a sci-fi horror film. The soon to be famous C-section scene left me scuttling around in my mind, desperately trying to collect my thoughts. & it was nice seeing Stringer Bell in charge of the ship.

what gives the film major points is by not giving us memories of Xenomorphs with razor sharped teeth, but adding whole new elements to the mythology. Prometheus delivers on the promise of a prequel should be.

A-