Hardly a 'Phantom Menace'

Rating: 7/10 (10 July 2012)

Is 'Prometheus' good? Yes, in this reviewer's opinion. I imagine this is enough for some readers to disregard the entire review as garbage. Ridley Scott's 'Alien' is a Sci-Fi masterpiece probably on level with the greatest of all Sci-Fi masterpieces, 'Star Wars'. However like every masterpiece that achieves iconic status 'Alien' is churned over in the heads of it's fans who eventually give it a sort of mythical status. 'Alien' at it's most base level is a movie about things that go bump, a glorified monster movie. I don't know what people expected walking into 'Prometheus' but the film seems to have rubbed a lot of people the wrong way and I don't really see why. Holding up 'Prometheus' to 'Alien' isn't fair, not only because 'Alien' is a masterpiece but also because thematically they are as different as could be. I admire that it threw out a lot of the 'Alien' mythology because as the lackluster sequels have shown there isn't much you can do with those creatures before they become stale and frankly boring. This reinvention and not remake or reboot is why I think 'Prometheus' succeeds on some level. Scott hasn't made another tired 'Alien sequel'. What he has done is make a Sci-Fi film that is far more reaching and vastly more imaginative than the boring and uninspired films that have plagued the genre in recent years. The fact is so many Sci-Fi films are rip-offs of Scott's Sci-Fi efforts that to see him come back is refreshing. Is 'Prometheus' a great film? No but it has a lot of charm and audacity. It may be pretentious but I admire the fact that Ridley Scott has taken a monster movie and evolved it to the point where it's characters have one question, What is the meaning of life and how did we get here?
That really is the most endearing aspect of 'Prometheus' to me. I like the fact there is a huge mainstream film that so violently attacks the God myth. I acknowledge that a great deal of the dialogue comes across amateurish but 'Prometheus' never feels silly because there is a strict adherence to the mythology Scott and co. create. The cast take risks, especially Michael Fassbender and Naomi Rapace. I like the fact that no questions are eventually answered. The journey and sacrifice ultimately bring the crew nothing. 'Prometheus' does ask questions about God and the audacity of an 'Alien' hybrid film doing so I imagine seems silly. These questions are old and tired and ultimately unanswerable. I think it's a comment on today's religious rhetoric that people still believe that finding God means a greater slate in humanity. Peter Weyland's fan is far fetched but it represents very real beliefs and fears. I left 'Prometheus' satisfied that it does not validate any God nor does it invalidate him. 'Prometheus' above all crushes the crew back to humanity and how lonely a concept that is. Does it do it in the most effective way possible? No, of course there are Sci-Fi clichés. Is the film ruined because of them? I don't think so but I am one person. The film is flawed but it's aims are really vast and exciting to see in such a huge scope. I think despite the clichés and scattered amateurish dialogue 'Prometheus' does new things and takes risks. It's not an 'Alien' film but the reinvention works and I welcome Ridley's return and view it as a success.