Back in 1979 Ridley Scott directed a film called Alien. It
was bloody awesome. In 2012 he directed the prequel, called Prometheus. Is it
as good as the original? No. Is it still very good? Yes. Here’s why.
Firstly, the sense of pacing is good. You might fondly remember
how very little happens in Alien for half of the movie, in a good way.
Prometheus is pretty much the same, the enjoyment is in the wait. It’s a pretty
bold director who holds of action for so long, but it works and really builds
the tension.
That said, no amount of clever pacing could save the film if
the acting was rubbish. Luckily Fassbender has managed to avoid dropping into
his “Oirish” accent. No repeats of X-men: First Class here! (seriously, kinda
breaks the realism when Magneto starts sounding like an extra in Father Ted).
Other than that Idris Elba is reliably good, although he isn’t on Stringer Bell
form (The Wire, watch it) and that bloke from Pete vs Life is also, surprisingly,
good. Although, why do they give them all weird American accents? Do they think
that we won’t believe that Chas from Elephant and Castle can fly a space ship? Especially
when there are other Brits who get to keep their voices. Odd, very odd.
Anyway, the other thing that really sets the film apart is
the way that it looks. The style is very similar to the original Alien, and it
has that cool H R Giger vibe running through it as well. The action scenes are also very pretty in a
way that it is not immediately easy to put your finger on. It’s a tasty morsel
for the eyes, in addition to everything else.
That’s not to say the film is perfect. It’s burdened by some
huge expectations that it doesn’t quite live up too (how could it, given how
fricken cool Alien is), some of the plot points don’t make a huge amount of
sense, and there are lots of questions
that are left unanswered, which, to some, might seem like a pretty cynical set
up for a sequel. Overall though, this is a cracking movie and, as far as I‘m
concerned, well worth a watch.
Watch if you like: Alien
If you liked this watch: Moon
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