‘It must feel like your God abandoned you…’
The Alien franchise has always felt more troubled than some of its peers. Matrix, The Terminator and now even Blade Runner seem to have an easier time making money and churning out sequels. Every Alien film since Aliens always feels on the verge of falling apart and none of them have been universally loved or even acknowledged to be a success. The closest out of all the Alien sequels in this topsy turvy sequence has been Prometheus. While it certainly has both its flaws and its detractors, the general consensus about Prometheus is that Ridley Scott’s return to the franchise was at least worthwhile. I am prone to agree…
Thirty years before the events of Alien, an eclectic group of scientists fly deep into space in search of the origins of humanity. Instead they find death.
A mostly British cast and a philosophical script elevate Prometheusabove the confused genre hopping of Alien3 and Alien: Resurrection to produce something all too rare in big money franchises, a film that stands on its own two feet. One could have feasibly never seen an Alien film and still find a lot to enjoy in Prometheus’ perfect pacing and frighteningly beautiful visuals. Michael Fassbender’s David is the most convincing ‘droid in the whole franchise and established TV actors Sean Harris and Rafe Spall also leave their marks. Indeed, Prometheus is a classy picture across the board and Ridley Scott’s return to Alien is as long awaited as it is successful.
There are some missteps here though. The heavy prosthetics used to transform Guy Pearce into a 103 year old man just end up looking daft and Charlize Theron’s character Vickers is both criminally underused and ends up serving absolutely zero purpose. There is a nagging feeling that would could have been a minor masterpiece ends up being merely solid but Scott gets enough right to allow him the occasional lapse.
On the whole Prometheus stands as the best Alien films since Aliens. I have re-watched the entire franchise again in the last six months in preparation for watching 2017’s Alien Covenant. Stand by for review.
Last reviewer of the Prometheus. Signing off.