An impressive return to sci-fi for Mr. Scott

Rating: 5/10 (16 June 2012)

I went into 'Prometheus' having seen 'Alien' twice and half of 'Aliens'. I had seen many of Scott's other films, and was eager to see how his return to the genre he shook up 33 years ago. The opening sequence is truly marvelous and grandiose, in contrast to 'Alien'. It must be noted that while Prometheus is set in the 'Alien' universe, it is an entirely different beast. 'Alien' was all about claustrophobia, verging on horror, whereas 'Prometheus' is a bigger film, with characters (sometimes overly, to clunky effect) discussing the bigger picture. 'Alien' had a subtle, minimal score, whereas this film presents us with a full-blown orchestra. Yet, despite the contrasts, I thoroughly enjoyed it.
Much of that was down to the performances of Noomi Rapace and Michael Fassbender. My first time to see Rapace, (watching the Millennium Trilogy this weekend), I was highly impressed; Fassbender ,naturally, was brilliant as David. A subtle, near flawless performance, which deserves all the praise it's getting.
It is grisly and graphic, probably more than so than 'Alien', however in my opinion this manages to benefit the film, provoking a visceral reaction. Yes, there are questions left dangling, but isn't it better that a film leaves us pondering instead of spoon-feeding us the answers? One minor gripe I had with it was why Guy Pierce (in my opinion, a criminally underrated actor) played Peter Weyland, who had little screen-time. I imagine they could have got an actually elderly actor. But that can be ignored, as the film was great. I understand why many were disappointed, but thought it was excellent.
It is serious sci-fi, in my opinion, the best type of sci-fi. I would prefer 'Prometheus' or 'Alien' over 'Star Wars' any day. All in all, this is a very enjoyable film and a very assured return to form for Ridley Scott which just about lives up to the hype.