By Ridley Scott began his career by creating two science fiction classics that permanently altered the genre for years. ” Blade Runner” asked deep questions about the nature of humanity. “Alien” was responsible for creating Ellen Ripley one of the most famous female sci-fi heroes, played by Sigourney Weaver.
Scott finally returned to the sci-fi horror genre this year with “Prometheus,” a film which attempts to both establish a strong female lead while also asking deep questions. Unfortunately, it doesn’t quite succeed at either of those things.
The plot involves two scientists, Elizabeth Shaw (Noomi Rapace “The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo”) and Charlie Holloway (Logan Marshall-Green) who discover a pictogram in a cave which proves that aliens visited the earth thousands of years ago, and points out a planet in a faraway galaxy. They believe that the aliens may be responsible for the creation of life on earth. This information piques the interest of Peter Weyland (Guy Pearce “Memento”) a very-old and very-rich man who spends a trillion dollars on an expedition to the mysterious planet.
Led by captain Meredith Vickers (Charleze Theron), the team travels to the planet and finds piles of strange dead bodies and hundreds of vials of mysterious black ooze. As they explore, they find that these “creators” may not be as benevolent as they thought.
“Prometheus” began as a planned prequel to “Alien” but then evolved into something else when screenwriters Damon Lindelof and Jon Spaihts came on board. Lindelof is known for being one of the showrunners for the popular television series “Lost” which ended in 2010 with a controversial finale which was criticized for not answering some of the big questions that the series had brought up over the course of six seasons.
Lindelof causes similar problems in Prometheus by asking fascinating questions about the nature of God and humanity early in the film, but failing to follow through with the answers in a satisfying way. This kind of ambiguity works better in a film than it does in a six season television series, but it still leaves the audience feeling frustrated and confused when they leave the theater.
Luckily, the film is so beautifully directed by Ridley Scott that the audience most likely won’t notice all of the plot holes while watching it. From the first shot of the opening credits to the final reveal in the end, Scott sells the story with mind-blowing visuals and amazing special effects.
Another one of the strong points of the film is the android David played by Michael Fassbender. Fassbender steals almost every scene he’s involved in, somehow being creepy while also sympathetic. His monotone British accent and matter-of-fact discussions about life are some of the most enthralling parts of the film, but the script does not explain some of the character’s motivations, which is another disappointment.
In the end it is hard not to feel disappointed by “Prometheus” after the years of hype. Elizabeth Shaw never really reaches the level of Ripley as a strong female lead, and the questions that the film asks about God and the creation of life are left unanswered. Unfortunately these unanswered questions make up enough of the plot to make the film convoluted and ultimately unsatisfying.
Despite the plot holes and weak script, the film is still worth seeing for the visual spectacle alone. Every shot is beautiful and the scenes on the alien planet are effectively thrilling and scary. What makes “Prometheus” a disappointment is not that it’s a bad film, it’s that it was so close to being a masterpiece.
