Raises more questions than it answers. 72.5+%

Rating: 7/10 (12 June 2012)

This movie will no doubt particularly interest fanboys of Ridley Scott's movie "Alien" who wondered who (or what) the space jockey was in that first sci-fi horror movie. The end of Prometheus visually matches what the crew of the spaceship Nostromo in "Alien" discovered on their 'rescue' mission to that alien planet...except - it seems to me - the space jockey is not where he should be! I.e. he is not in the same place we first saw him in "Alien"!
Scott's new movie acts as a prequel of sorts, to "Alien" and I can imagine it having a sequel which coincides in timeframe to the journey of the Nostromo to the alien planet...but with different characters to that in "Alien". In any case, this prequel addresses mankind's big questions (like "Where did we come from?") and posits up some answers. Fortunately - or unfortunately, depending on your perspective - Scott allows for some mystery to what he reveals, leaving it up to the viewer to critique the coherence of the narrative, or to pose further questions about story.
The opening of the movie is just one of those moments where the viewer must ponder what it all means. In any case - as the movie's commercials reveal - mankind has discovered that Earth seems to have been visited by advanced aliens millennia ago...and mankind thinks returning the favour would be a good idea. Uh oh!
Some of the tropes from the first movie are recycled in this movie...character types, visual imagery, etc. (in fact, some of the visual tropes even echo material in a TV series like "The X-Files"...however, this new introduction to the lore of this franchise is either confused or confusing). I can't say that I found this movie scary as such, although some of the horror is visceral, it is not beyond the pale, so those seeking a gore-fest should look elsewhere. One thing which detracts from genuine chills in the movie is just the sheer stupidity of the crew of the spaceship Prometheus. Did they get their "Occupational Health & Safety" credentials out of box of cornflakes? They're as stupid as horny teenagers in a slasher movie! Personally, I would have found it much scarier if the monsters in this movie had enough rat cunning to find their way to our crew despite their best defences...or just the use of brute force/sheer numbers to outsmart our best and brightest. But, like I say, our 'best and brighest' are stupid enough to drive the narrative to its conclusion. With all the "big" ideas in this movie, some subtlety to the horror and danger would have been appreciated.
Random aside...I was wondering where a certain Australian actor was...and reading the end credits, I can now see why the old man in this movie looked to be the result of prosthetic makeup.
Also, look out for the final line of the end credits...it's a bit of a joke which is intended to 'explain' perhaps, why we can see this movie...sort of a 'found' footage narrative device, a la "The Blair witch project".
Not a bad movie. Interesting aspects to it. Just nothing special. A sequel might be interesting...at the risk of giving a detailed 'explanation' for where we came from...which might be risible...or obscurantist.