Ridley Scott’s return to the genre he himself set incredibly high standards for, was a highly anticipated move that fans of ‘Blade Runner’ (1982) and not least ‘Alien’ (1979) were anxiously anticipating to see.

Therefore, it is frustrating to know that among the glorious panoramas, eerie catacombs and frantic breathing lies a misguided plot that neither satisfies ‘Alien’/Ridley Scott fans, nor establishes itself as an independent statement or vision.

Scott has previously stated that the script did start off as a prequel to the mysterious ‘Space Jockey’, known as the giant fossilized creature in the chair. But unlike creating an actual, original alternate universe, the writers filled in the blanks by grabbing ideas out of thin air. Very thin. Misplaced subplots, poorly written – and poorly delivered – dialogue and scenes which were logically unsound; these are the reasons why the spaceship has come down on ‘Prometheus’.

Spoiler Alert!

The faults center around the script and plot. Who knows if Jon Spaihts and Damon Lindelof were so star struck over the opportunity that their main preparation was to watch the four movies over and over again, but the original elements in this film limit themselves to vague characterizations and an unfulfilled thesis on genesis.

Here are some of the points for criticism: Supposed expert scientists are suddenly incredibly stupid, throwing a (poorly delivered) fit after discovering a decapitated being only to get lost, despite having invented a high tech, flying homing beacon (and having contact with the mother ship at all times). Also, who sticks out their hand towards an unknown snake-like creature, when they’ve just been freaked out by a pile of dead aliens?

There are also several points for criticism on Noomi Rapace’s Elisabeth Shaw. Besides her poor dialogue (the one between her and Idris Elba, who plays Captain Janek, about whether to leave the planet or not, is especially cringe-worthy) and incomprehensible character development (wanting to stay on the planet despite just having washed off the blood from her own ‘freak-robot-alien-baby-cesarian’), Shaw is a woman, brought up by a man, living with a man and searching for a man — the dire opposite of the strong female character we are dubbed into thinking she should be. Most of the time, she seems to tumble around, surviving only by the hands of incompetent opposition.

In fact, the characters are uniformly dull and one-dimensional, with so little work done on character development that it was hard to remember the on-screen names of anyone — with the exception of David, the mischievous android.

Things that worked for ‘Prometheus’

Thankfully the script did not stop the visuals of ‘Prometheus’ from being truly other-worldly. Ridley Scott put a vision in place fraught with danger and architectural grandeur that will blow your mind. His uncanny talent for making sure the expressions of the plot elements emanate from the surroundings never fails him, which is why the eerie darkness, yet beauty of the superior alien residence is in stark contrast to the calculated, bright and aesthetically delicate human spaceship.

The imagined higher beings who become the focus of the film are also extraordinary in design, power and mercilessness. Though they feature very little as active characters, their presence means everything. They also seem more real as characters than Shaw and Charlize Theron’s corporate stooge Vickers manages – combined.

David the android is also worth the money as his curiosity and wonderfully fitting malicious intent saves nearly all the plot twists from lying dead in the water. Michael Fassbender cannot seem to do anything wrong these days.

The potential drowns in misguided ambition

It may just be the other-worldly elements you desperately hold on to if you go watch ‘Prometheus.’ However, it seems duly inappropriate that a movie about man’s obsession with their own humanity features such indifferent caricatures of human life that the only sympathy we could muster was toward a robot and a species that we’ve just met.

Many original Alien fans may also find the whole thing a bit of a violation upon the concepts that Scott’s new foray into a genre he hasn’t touched for 30 years, is based.

Saying that ‘Prometheus’ shares DNA with ‘Alien’ is an understatement at best. Rather, ‘Prometheus’ took an arm and a leg from ‘Alien’, muddled in a philosophical thesis and a couple of poorly conceived replications of Ripley’s struggles only to end up at a vague anti-conclusion.

There was potential for both plot directions: It could have been the incredible story of how scientists’ first encounter with their maker coincided with that of the bony, acid-bleeding, sly creatures we know and relish from the Alien quadrilogy. The twist? The last survivor sends out the transmission to warn Weyland-Yutani, the company, which the company wrongfully interprets as an opportunity thus igniting the Ripley saga when the Nostromo passes by.

On the other hand, ‘Prometheus’ could have been a stunning re-visualization of the original thesis – what if WE found the aliens? The idea that humans with the right capabilities would explore the galaxy, looking for their maker, is not unimaginable and definitely interesting.

It seems wrong to blame Ridley Scott for the excruciating feeling of disappointment with which I left the theater. After all, ‘Prometheus’ is a visual treat by all accounts. Neither does it seem right to blame Noomi Rapace, Idris Elba, Logan Marchall-Green and Charlize Theron for failing to infuse any realistic personality into their characters. We can blame all of them for their poor judgement but the real culprits in this major let-down are Jon Spaihts and Damon Lindelof. Their script has to rank among the worst for such a grand, anticipated production.

We haven’t even mentioned why Guy Pearce is on the cast list because that story is just another sad plot boil on an already disastrous script.

Verdict: 2/5 – Wasting potential like this is an abomination. Was it not for the incredible Fassbender and the aesthetics of the visuals, we would have to unlike Ridley Scott on Facebook.

The article ‘Prometheus’ – Ambition Dead in the Water: A Review appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

Strong female leads are a Ridley Scott hallmark: Sigourney Weaver as Ripley in Alien, Geena Davis and Susan Sarandon in Thelma and Louise, Demi Moore in GI Jane… the list goes on. ‘Prometheus’ features not one, but two formidable distaff protagonists who further Scott’s impressive tradition.

Noomi Rapace’s Elizabeth Shaw is a scientist filled with faith and hope, but who transforms into a warrior when faced with the danger she encounters at her destination; Charlize Theron’s Vickers is a “suit” representing the interests of the mega-corporation funding the journey to a distant, foreboding world.

Rapace’s powerful and unsettling performance in the original ‘The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo’, the first in the trilogy of films based on Stieg Larsson’s Millennium Trilogy, had captured worldwide attention – including Scott’s. “Noomi combines a rare intelligence and physicality,” says the filmmaker. “She owned that part in ‘The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo’. It was so powerful that when Noomi and I met, I expected a tough, hardened individual; instead, Noomi was lovely, kind and smart. It was a terrific mix that would serve her well playing Shaw.”

A call from Ridley Scott is a career defining moment for any actor, including Rapace. “After the meeting with Ridley, I thought even if I don’t end up working with him on Prometheus, I’m happy because I’ve had this hour with him.” It turned out that Rapace would be spending much more time than that with Scott, who cast her after a screen test he shot with director of photography Dariusz Wolski, ASC.

“We used a Panavision storage room which production designer Arthur Max had dressed to give it an industrial, creepy vibe, and Noomi just killed it,” says executive producer Michael Ellenberg. “We were all blown away by her ferocity, power, and screen presence.”

A very different kind of power is demonstrated by Meredith Vickers, a Weyland Industries executive who is onboard the Prometheus to represent the corporation’s mysterious interests. When Charlize Theron accepted the role, Vickers took on intriguing new dimensions. Says executive producer Damon Lindelof: “Charlize and I worked together to create a more layered character.

Vickers is someone the audience will love to hate, but there are moments when we see her vulnerability and begin to understand how and why she became so mercenary and hardened. This makes her a much more interesting counterpoint to Shaw.”

Theron was drawn to the opportunity to explore the film’s epic themes from a perspective at odds with the rest of the crew’s. “For Vickers, this epic, two-year journey to another world has been boiled down to economics. She has a bottom-line kind of thinking,” says the actress.

But as with so much else about the mission, there are deeper layers and mysteries to Vickers’ ultimate goals. “She’s an enigma, and the mystery surrounding her was something I really liked,” says Theron. “Vickers is pragmatic, and desperately wants to control the situation. She fights everything that everyone else is there to do, and it becomes evident that she has either an alternative agenda or that she is hiding something.”

The article Strong Female Leads: Noomi Rapace and Charlize Theron appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

In Ridley Scott’s upcoming science fiction epic, Arthur Max’s equally magnificent sets that bring to life the alien planet include a Pyramid, which contains the Juggernaut, a ship similar to the crashed crescent shaped ship seen in ‘Alien’. Using a series of chambers, corridors and tunnels connecting the larger spaces to each other, and after post-production enhancement, the space is as enormous as the Empire State building. It was so cavernous that some crew lost their bearings.

Outside the British Pinewood Studios, on Pinewood’s backlot, Max and his team built the Prometheus Garage, one of three sets that sit beneath the main body of the ship. The enormous set houses the crew’s vehicles, which the production built from scratch. “We had to create vehicles that could actually be driven on a hostile surface, which is undulating and rocky,” says Max.

“We needed transportation that would be industrial enough to deal with these environments but at the same time give us a futuristic characteristic.” It took eleven weeks to create these robust vehicles, complete with state-of-the-art technology, LED lighting, and padded seats, all presented in a dazzling metallic finish.

After 15 weeks at Pinewood, cast and crew relocated to Iceland to shoot the climactic sequences as well as the prologue. In the town of Hekla, the production captured epic action and thrills – while one of Iceland’s most active volcanoes threatened to erupt.  Additional scenes were shot at a spectacular waterfall in Dettifoss.

Facing challenges every bit as demanding as those confronting Max was another of Scott’s frequent collaborators, Academy Award-winning costume designer Janty Yates. “Ridley was adamant about avoiding the puffy, NASA-style spacesuit audiences know so well,” says Yates.

“He loved the linear look so we went with a novel approach to spacesuit design that uses biomedical breakthroughs in skin replacement and materials to create a suit that could believably provide lightweight flexibility and comfort in any extraterrestrial environment. Each costume consisted of the outer spacesuit and a Neoprene under suit, a yoke to which a helmet was attached, and a backpack. Scott mandated a globe-shaped helmet with no blind spots.

Each helmet had nine working video screens, lighting, an oxygen supply run on two fans with battery packs within the backpack. The exterior of the helmet features a fully functioning torch and HD cameras with a transmitter and recorder.

David’s onboard costume conforms to the human apparel, but with fine lines to provide a more linear look. Theron wears a beautiful silk mohair suit in ice silver. “Vickers is the ice queen. It was always our vision to make her look as sculptural as possible,” explains Yates. Keeping the naval simile in mind for Janek, Janty gave Elba a canvas-greased jacket giving the appearance that he’s been at the helm of a ship for many years. Marshall-Green as Holloway exudes a casual comfortable timeless look, in his hoodies, Thai fisherman pants and flip-flops.

The film’s new creatures are the work of Creative Supervisor for Creature Effects and Special Make-Up Effects Neal Scanlan and Prosthetic Supervisor Conor O’Sullivan. “We present the evolution of these nasty bits and pieces of creature evolution in a logical and biological fashion,” says Scott.

Adds Scanlan: “Each stage of a creature’s life cycle has a distinctive purpose. For our xenobiology, we brought in new elements that are not necessarily backward from those in Alien, but are of a similar DNA. Many of Ridley’s references are derived from nature – plants, vegetables, sea creatures and other animals.  Nothing is invented.”

Exploring 3D

Prometheus marks Scott’s first film shot digitally and in 3D, a format whose technical challenges and aesthetic opportunities were embraced by the filmmaker. Scott and director of photography Dariusz Wolski used the technology to enhance the action and thrills in small confined spaces, as well within epic vistas.

In returning to the genre he helped define, Ridley Scott continues to push the boundaries of storytelling, both visually and thematically.  As he notes, he’s all about the “everything” – from story structure to casting, from sets and costumes to new ways of telling a story.

And while the renowned filmmaker is scaring the shit out of you, he never loses sight of the big picture.  “After you’ve seen ‘Prometheus’,” Scott concludes, “you will have experienced something completely unexpected.”

Image Courtesy of   Prometheus

The article High Expectations of Ridley Scott’s Universe in ‘Prometheus’ appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.