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So, Prometheus.
13 years ago
I haven't actually recorded a journal in a while, knowing barely anybody reads them. But this is just me trying my hardest to vent. After Spoony's review, and many other nitpickings this film received, my brain nearly burst with frustration at the ignorance of surprisingly renowned critics. So, here's my list of why Prometheus DID NOT suck. (Spoilers, by the way.)
1. Characters
One of the main criticisms that keeps flowing through the ether is the film's lack of characterization, and how certain people are set up, just to be killed at a later stage. To a degree, it's hard to argue with this, as it really is true. However, does it matter? I don't think so. With Noomi Rapace's character being developed and crafted, along with Charlize Theron and Michael Fassbender's beautiful chemistry and delivery, by the half way mark, your focus hones in on these wonderful people. Their actions and traits are occasionally bizarre, but make sense for who they are intended to be. For instance, David's strange revenge. I agree, it's an odd action he took in his murder of Rapace's boyfriend, but his motives in general are odd, and unexplainable, considering he is an android. We can't understand what he's thinking or feeling, and why he wants to kill the man. He just does. That question is left for you to answer.
2. Noomi Rapace's character is stupid
No. No she isn't. What really gets me is when people dismiss her as a moron the moment she suggests not to bring a weapon on a foreign planet. Here's the thing, she discovered these cave paintings all pointing to one set of stars, which she and many others took to mean an invitation. She went there expecting open arms, because of the consistency in the cave drawings over thousands of years. If you're expecting to be an ambassador for a new race, would you bring a fucking flamethrower? No! Not only that, that particular flame thrower is used in sanitizing and sterilizing the dock. If you lose it, or drop it somewhere, you're screwed. Also, to take such a huge piece of machinery on a long scientific expedition is downright dumb, particularly in cave exploration, where you could be in there for hours at a time - you would be a hunch back by the end of it. If you're a scientific team, looking for new and interesting life, let's say at the bottom of the ocean, do you bring harpoons and grenades to kill the creatures you're studying? No. You don't. Noomi Rapace's character is maybe a touch naive, but that is based on her understanding of God's protection, a key feature of her character set up at the god damn beginning of the film!
3. DNA doesn't work that way!
The only thing keeping humans different from chimps accounts for about a 3% difference in our DNA structure. The rest has to do with genes turned on or off. So yes, DNA can work that way.
4. Why doesn't this film answer any of my questions?
Because that's the ENTIRE point of the fucking sci fi genre! In every single Star Trek film, what does it set out to accomplish? To get you to think about certain issues pertaining to the nature of the film itself. One is about the nobility and necessity of self sacrifice, another is about questioning the existence of God and his dependence on...star ships. The point is, they deliberately leave questions open for you to interpret for yourself. Don't you think it's far better that a film doesn't hold your hand through its themes, and actually treats you like a god-damn adult? Prometheus played on the myth it was named after, raising questions like what should be the price of discovery? If the cost is your own life, would you save the human race? Why do humans believe in God, even through the discovery of a race that created us, and the horrible shit that God would conceivably put us through? This is the mark of GREAT sci fi, and you're not looking past its tiny flaws.
5. It's just tentacle hentai!
Fuck you, and grow the fuck up.
I'm begging you, people, look at the film through literary analysis before you write it off as a shitfest. There's a good fucking film here, and you're not seeing it.
Also the acting is good.
1. Characters
One of the main criticisms that keeps flowing through the ether is the film's lack of characterization, and how certain people are set up, just to be killed at a later stage. To a degree, it's hard to argue with this, as it really is true. However, does it matter? I don't think so. With Noomi Rapace's character being developed and crafted, along with Charlize Theron and Michael Fassbender's beautiful chemistry and delivery, by the half way mark, your focus hones in on these wonderful people. Their actions and traits are occasionally bizarre, but make sense for who they are intended to be. For instance, David's strange revenge. I agree, it's an odd action he took in his murder of Rapace's boyfriend, but his motives in general are odd, and unexplainable, considering he is an android. We can't understand what he's thinking or feeling, and why he wants to kill the man. He just does. That question is left for you to answer.
2. Noomi Rapace's character is stupid
No. No she isn't. What really gets me is when people dismiss her as a moron the moment she suggests not to bring a weapon on a foreign planet. Here's the thing, she discovered these cave paintings all pointing to one set of stars, which she and many others took to mean an invitation. She went there expecting open arms, because of the consistency in the cave drawings over thousands of years. If you're expecting to be an ambassador for a new race, would you bring a fucking flamethrower? No! Not only that, that particular flame thrower is used in sanitizing and sterilizing the dock. If you lose it, or drop it somewhere, you're screwed. Also, to take such a huge piece of machinery on a long scientific expedition is downright dumb, particularly in cave exploration, where you could be in there for hours at a time - you would be a hunch back by the end of it. If you're a scientific team, looking for new and interesting life, let's say at the bottom of the ocean, do you bring harpoons and grenades to kill the creatures you're studying? No. You don't. Noomi Rapace's character is maybe a touch naive, but that is based on her understanding of God's protection, a key feature of her character set up at the god damn beginning of the film!
3. DNA doesn't work that way!
The only thing keeping humans different from chimps accounts for about a 3% difference in our DNA structure. The rest has to do with genes turned on or off. So yes, DNA can work that way.
4. Why doesn't this film answer any of my questions?
Because that's the ENTIRE point of the fucking sci fi genre! In every single Star Trek film, what does it set out to accomplish? To get you to think about certain issues pertaining to the nature of the film itself. One is about the nobility and necessity of self sacrifice, another is about questioning the existence of God and his dependence on...star ships. The point is, they deliberately leave questions open for you to interpret for yourself. Don't you think it's far better that a film doesn't hold your hand through its themes, and actually treats you like a god-damn adult? Prometheus played on the myth it was named after, raising questions like what should be the price of discovery? If the cost is your own life, would you save the human race? Why do humans believe in God, even through the discovery of a race that created us, and the horrible shit that God would conceivably put us through? This is the mark of GREAT sci fi, and you're not looking past its tiny flaws.
5. It's just tentacle hentai!
Fuck you, and grow the fuck up.
I'm begging you, people, look at the film through literary analysis before you write it off as a shitfest. There's a good fucking film here, and you're not seeing it.
Also the acting is good.
I have much to learn.