Prometheus review – Michael Fassbender steals the show

Posted on 4 June 2012
By Andy Johnson
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Prometheus is an epic and enjoyable voyage with Ridley Scott delivering a thought provoking film, but it lacks the tension and character development which made his previous Sci-Fi films a success.

Fans had sent out a search party for Scott, who returns to Sci-Fi after a 30 year absence and with more special effects in his arsenal than were available when he made Bladerunner and Alien.

The delirious excitement on fan forums and other online caves, where geeks can dwell on possible plot lines and dissect trailers frame by frame suggested that Prometheus, which shares its universe with Alien, was destined to be a box office smash.

The year is 2094 and after discovering a mural on the Isle of Skye, which matches paintings from other ancient civilisations such as the Mayans and the Sumerians, Dr Elizabeth Shaw and the crew of Prometheus set off on a trillion dollar mission, bankrolled by Weyland Corp to the star cluster pointed out by tall humanoid ‘supreme beings’.

Dr Shaw, played by Noomi Repace, is a scientist with strong religious beliefs, who also follows an idea that these beings visited Earth and ‘engineered’ humanity and our evolution.

So they make the two year journey to the only planet capable of sustaining life on the map, in search of an answer to why we were created and who made us?

The crew travel in stasis pods, while the android David keeps everything ship-shape they are sleeping, watching their dreams and his favourite film, Lawrence of Arabia appearing to be trying to decide if he has a brain of his own.

When they eventually discover one of these ‘engineers’ and press him for answers to mankind’s eternal self searching questions, he doesn’t turn out to be much of a conversationalist and the scientists and crew soon realise that their journey has become an individual fight for survival and for mankind.

Charlize Theron and Idris Elba add star quality and gravity to their roles, drawing you into the story while you can play who will be the first to spot Guy Pierce, but the characters are sadly underdeveloped and there is no pathos when they meet their maker.

Michael Fassbender steals the show as the menacing android, with as much parasitic talent as the Aliens and his chilling analysis of the humans.

David models his behaviour on Peter O’Toole in Lawrence of Arabia. the story of a control freak moving between two cultures and also provides the only comic relief in the movie.

The film has evolved Scott’s vision in Alien, but what it adds in philosophy and a sense of wonder and expectation it lacks in tension and fear, which was ever present amongst Ripley and the crew in their claustrophobic death trap.

Prometheus’ set design at Pinewood Studios is magnificent, with Scott preferring to use real life designs for his aliens and their chamber over the now dominant CGI wherever possible.

The tech advances are also a delight to behold, including the geographical ‘pups,’ metal balls which fly around the alien cave transmitting an infra red map of their discovery back to the ship.

And the medical pod for conducting complicated surgery provides a special moment, which pregnant viewers might want to give a miss.

Prometheus is showing now – for Liverpool One Odeon cinema times…http://www.odeon.co.uk/fanatic/film_times/s171/Liverpool_ONE/