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[ViewtifulJC]

The writing in Avatar is much better than in Prometheus. Let that blow over you, GAF.

As clunky as allll the dialog in that movie is, at least it has a couple small things I like such as, "thematic coherence" or "characterization"

Man, I'm bummed so many of you hated it. I absolutely loved it.

The key to loving it is to turn off your higher critical faculties and just enjoy it.

Any of you looking for high art from an Alien movie are clearly insane. None of them were. Popcorn flicks the whole lot of them.

I just can't accept that, that you can ignore all the flaws because it's a summer "action" movie and its suppose to be dumb, just look at the pretty colors and enjoy. Especially when it's a movie so desperately trying to look and smart intelligent and mysterious.

And I got no problems with popcorn movies. Not a single person outside perhaps Ripley herself seems like an actual person in Aliens, they're all movie characters. But they're mostly good characters! Burke, Vasquez, Capone, Hudson, Bishop, Hicks. They're all great, with actual character arcs and personalities and some of the most quotable dialog ever. I liked them, or in Burke's case I loved to hate them, and actually gave a damn when they died! I cared about the world and it's characters, which is something I can never say about Prometheus, where I can't connect with a single person.

And Aliens has one clever set-piece after another, it's really quite incredible. Even if you weren't thinking about it very hard, you can enjoy all the wonderfully-staged action and crowd-pleasing moments. It's the very epitome of what a popcorn movie can be.

Even looking at Prometheus at the most shallow level of popcorn entertainment, it fails. Outside of David, it has no memorable characters or anyone for the audience to care about. It's rarely funny, it's action short on thrills or suspense outside one or two short scenes that amount to mostly nothing. It's a movie that just kinda sits there, with a dozen different ideas and characters and nothing interesting or sometimes even coherent to say about them.

 

[Emwitus]

TWENTY ONE US DOLLARS

Plus 2$ convenience fee for getting it online.

Ugh. I rarely go to theaters so it's not that bad and the movie was enjoyable (3D was good too) but good grief.

This. Seriously. I'm going to be very careful about which movies i go to watch at the movies now. Man.

 

[Foreign Jackass]

Well I catched it yesterday night.

I'd say this movie's way better in theory than it is in practice. The overall themes explored are really interesting, it does a fine job (in theory) of using Alien as a mnemonic device to entice fear in the spectator, it has 2 or 3 great scenes, it has great special effects...

But what the fuck was that story? Who the hell were those characters? Who thought that was good dialogue? Did Lindelof and company actually see Alien? The feel of the interactions on that spaceship?

The only remotely interesting character is David, and they still manage to fuck him up by the end of it all.

Seriously, I went in there with bad expectations, the movie managed to get my curiosity (and attention) going even after that incredi-bad dialogue in the start, and then it went nowhere with it, and even managed to dilute Alien in the end with all that evolutionary nonsense. Scott should stop that right now.. can't believe Ebert fell for it.

And, well, apart from those two great scenes, the filmmaking was pretty mundane and boring. Nothing especially interesting in the directing choices, not a single memorable shot in the whole thing, just memorable set design (and that's the way it is in most Ridley Scott movies, too)... Really mostly boring to watch.

And for a big summer flick, and I mean REALLY big (people's expectations are through the roof with this), it has to have the most boring, innane score ever for a blockbuster. There's absolutely nothing good in there.

 

[Numpt3]

Wow, the hate is strong with this one. Count me in the minority that loved every minute of it, can't wait to see it again.

 

[Emwitus]

Wow, the hate is strong with this one. Count me in the minority that loved every minute of it, can't wait to see it again.

I think alot of people who watched the original alien movies seem to be more dissapointed than people new to the franchise. For me, this has been the best movie of the year so far.

 

[Angry Fork]

Wow, the hate is strong with this one. Count me in the minority that loved every minute of it, can't wait to see it again.

The worst thing about it for me was the characters. I didn't care about anyone and everyone was a hollow shell, which makes the movie much less interesting. David was the most interesting and he was an android.

Compare this to the comradare in the original Alien where most of them are strangers but they are still likeable and feel connected. They share dinner together and make jokes with each other, they all have their own personalities and it feels like you know them within minutes. None of that happened in Prometheus at all. Nobody cares about anyone and everyone seems to be in their own room the entire movie.

If they fixed the characters, made them actual human beings that aren't complete idiots and made the crew more like an actual crew then it would've mattered more when characters start dying, but none of that happened.

 

[Foreign Jackass]

The worst thing about it for me was the characters. I didn't care about anyone and everyone was a hollow shell, which makes the movie much less interesting. David was the most interesting and he was an android.

Compare this to the comradare in the original Alien where most of them are strangers but they are still likeable and feel connected. They share dinner together and make jokes with each other, they all have their own personalities and it feels like you know them within minutes. None of that happened in Prometheus at all. Nobody cares about anyone and everyone seems to be in their own room the entire movie.

If they fixed the characters, made them actual human beings that aren't complete idiots and made the crew more like an actual crew then it would've mattered more when characters start dying, but none of that happened.

Exactly. I mean, I usually don't care that much about characterization (story and characters are generally overrated in movies), but we're talking about Alien here. The franchise has nothing going for it if not for mythology, characters and horror scenes. They managed to fuck 2 out of 3, and the horror wasn't all that either (although the best scenes have that going for them).

 

[SpeedingUptoStop]

The writing in Avatar is much better than in Prometheus. Let that blow over you, GAF.

Solo is truly lost. May God have mercy on us all.

 

[duckroll]

Solo is truly lost. May God have mercy on us all.

He is not wrong. Avatar is cliched, but it isn't a glorified Event Horizon either.

 

[Solo]

Solo is truly lost. May God have mercy on us all.

Avatar has a coherent, logical story that follows a typical three act film structure and has actual characterization (albeit shallow) and motivations, and hits all the right plot and emotional beats. Prometheus does not.

 

[jmdajr]

I highly enjoyed my time watching this. Not perfect but I was sucked in the whole time.

 

[Foreign Jackass]

Avatar has a coherent, logical story that follows a typical three act film structure and has actual characterization (albeit shallow) and motivations, and hits all the right plot and emotional beats. Prometheus does not.

I think I hated Avatar way more than Prometheus, because Avatar looks like green and blue turd, and Prometheus looks great (I even take back the 'no memorable shots' comment I did earlier, because there were some great ones, especially at the start of it).

But goddamn was this movie wasted. I didn't hate it, even, I mean, I was sucked in for most of the running time, but it kept throwing shit at me. Blah.

 

[NotTheGuyYouKill]

Prometheus today! Woooooooooooooo!

 

[Solo]

Maybe Cameron will get it right with Prometheii, coming Christmas 2027.

 

[Jarmel]

Get hyped for Star Trek 2! Might be the greatest scifi comedy of all time if we approach it with the right mindset!

Would be hard to top this. I've seen dedicated comedies that I didn't laugh so hard at. Hands UP!

I was literally laughing out loud in what was supposed to be a tense scene in a horror/action film.

Avatar has a coherent, logical story that follows a typical three act film structure and has actual characterization (albeit shallow) and motivations, and hits all the right plot and emotional beats. Prometheus does not.

I hesitantly agree with this as while Avatar is very unoriginal, it's executed fairly well. This was a fuckin mess on multiple levels.

Maybe Cameron will get it right with Prometheii, coming Christmas 2027.

Right after he saves the Terminator franchise.

 

[Solo]

I hesitantly agree with this as while Avatar is very unoriginal, it's executed fairly well. This was a fuckin mess on multiple levels.

Avatar is cliched and formulaic, but it's still incredibly well constructed and executed. Prometheus has the exact opposite problem. Fairly original and interesting premise, but horrendously constructed and executed.

 

[EliCash]

The writing in Avatar is much better than in Prometheus. Let that blow over you, GAF.

Oh come on.

As poor as some of the writing in Prometheus is

Spoiler

FATHER

it's at least entertaining and attempts to deal with big ideas. It's closer to what sci-fi should be, in terms of how it looks and what it wants to do. I've avoided Avatar hate on GAF because it's been done to death, but at least Prometheus was watchable and somewhat enthralling. Avatar still remains the worst film I've seen in years, can't think of any redeeming qualities. The same can't be said for Prometheus. Prometheus is frustrating, but it isn't terrible.

 

[Lord Error]

Avatar has a coherent, logical story that follows a typical three act film structure and has actual characterization (albeit shallow) and motivations, and hits all the right plot and emotional beats. Prometheus does not.

It's a boring, predictable, well executed slog vs. a slightly flawed masterpiece. Latter wins every time with me. Prometheus also was far better executed visually and technically. CG didn't look like CG and people looked like people. In Avatar CG looked like, well CG, and people looked almost like CG as well. I really found that annoying and off-putting among other things.

 

[ViewtifulJC]

You guys are gonna make Sculli angry.

You wouldn't like him when he's angry

 

[Jarmel]

Oh come on.

As poor as some of the writing in Prometheus is

Spoiler

FATHER

it's at least entertaining and attempts to deal with big ideas. It's closer to what sci-fi should be, in terms of how it looks and what it wants to do. I've avoided Avatar hate on GAF because it's been done to death, but at least Prometheus was watchable and somewhat enthralling. Avatar still remains the worst film I've seen in years, can't think of any redeeming qualities. The same can't be said for Prometheus. Prometheus is frustrating, but it isn't terrible.

The characters in Avatar shit all over Prometheus. The characters in Prometheus are probably the worst part of the movie. Fassbender is better than anything in Avatar but that is all you get.

 

[Foreign Jackass]

It's a boring, predictable, well executed slog vs. a slightly flawed masterpiece. Latter wins every time with me. Prometheus also was far better executed visually and technically. CG didn't look like CG and people looked like people. In Avatar CG looked like, well CG, and people looked almost like CG as well.

Masterpiece? hahaha GAF standards are getting lower and lower

 

[jmdajr]

Im just glad Ridley didnt just remake Alien.

 

[Solo]

It's a boring, predictable, well executed slog vs. a slightly flawed masterpiece. Latter wins every time with me.

The latter wins every time, but the latter isn't an accurate descriptor for Prometheus, which is neither "slightly" flawed nor anything approaching a masterpiece.

Alien is a slightly flawed masterpiece. Prometheus is a gaping hole of flaws wrapped into an average at best movie.

 

[Esiquio]

Haven't seen this movie yet but this thread is kinda bumming me out. I gotta ask: are the problems so big in this movie that it's not even remotely fixable with a better edit of the film, like adding in deleted scenes to fill in holes? Because that would be a major bummer.

 

[Lord Error]

Masterpiece? hahaha GAF standards are getting lower and lower

Well I sort of regretted saying that the moment I posted it, and it is too strong of a word, but I do think that for sci-fi movie standards, we don't often get something with these kinds of pretensions, even though it ended up flawed in places. The closest I could remember enjoying a recent sci-fi movie as much, was probably District 9 or Moon, but both felt decidedly low budget compared to this.

 

[jmdajr]

Haven't seen this movie yet but this thread is kinda bumming me out. I gotta ask: are the problems so big in this movie that it's not even remotely fixable with a better edit of the film, like adding in deleted scenes to fill in holes? Because that would be a major bummer.

Just go see it and form your own opinion. Gaf only deals with extremes.

 

[Jarmel]

Haven't seen this movie yet but this thread is kinda bumming me out. I gotta ask: are the problems so big in this movie that it's not even remotely fixable with a better edit of the film, like adding in deleted scenes to fill in holes? Because that would be a major bummer.

Some will disagree with me but yes. There would have to be a shitload of transition scenes especially in the second half but yes it is fixable.

 

[Cheebo]

If this is now ridley scott vs james cameron it is pretty easy to shut down this debate. Blade Runner >>>> every sci-fi movie Cameron has made. And I wouldn't be surprised if Cameron would agree with that.

 

[LowParry]

Haven't seen this movie yet but this thread is kinda bumming me out. I gotta ask: are the problems so big in this movie that it's not even remotely fixable with a better edit of the film, like adding in deleted scenes to fill in holes? Because that would be a major bummer.

That extra footage that would be used in say the last 30 minutes of the movie? Quite possibly. It's still a great movie to go and see. Because you'll either walk out either mind fucked or collective in thinking "Eh, that movie was alright".

 

[Solo]

Haven't seen this movie yet but this thread is kinda bumming me out. I gotta ask: are the problems so big in this movie that it's not even remotely fixable with a better edit of the film, like adding in deleted scenes to fill in holes? Because that would be a major bummer.

Only if the DC is composed of a good 40 minutes of character development and reactions to a number of scenes.

If its just more of the same? Unfixable.

 

[Slurmer]

Haven't seen this movie yet but this thread is kinda bumming me out. I gotta ask: are the problems so big in this movie that it's not even remotely fixable with a better edit of the film, like adding in deleted scenes to fill in holes? Because that would be a major bummer.

Just go watch the movie if youve been looking forward to it. Dont let GAF sway you before forming your own opinion

 

[Cheebo]

Why are people so confident about a DC being made? In interviews Ridley Scott said he doesn't feel like he has any more scenes to add to it and said it isn't like the situation on KoH.

 

[Dresden]

Haven't seen this movie yet but this thread is kinda bumming me out. I gotta ask: are the problems so big in this movie that it's not even remotely fixable with a better edit of the film, like adding in deleted scenes to fill in holes? Because that would be a major bummer.

I think it could work if they cut out every piece of dialogue and gore and just have thirty minutes of dudes wandering around the

Spoiler

ship.

 

[Cheebo]

Haven't seen this movie yet but this thread is kinda bumming me out. I gotta ask: are the problems so big in this movie that it's not even remotely fixable with a better edit of the film, like adding in deleted scenes to fill in holes? Because that would be a major bummer.

People in this thread hate it, plenty other seem to outright love it. Go see it and make up your own mind.

 

[Solo]

Why are people so confident about a DC being made? In interviews Ridley Scott said he doesn't feel like he has any more scenes to add to it and said it isn't like the situation on KoH.

Because most of Scott's big movies need a DC to salvage them, and most of them seem to get them.

 

[Animator]

One of the worst movies I have ever seen. It was offensively stupid.

I am sad because it was the movie I was most looking forward to this year.

 

[ViewtifulJC]

Haven't seen this movie yet but this thread is kinda bumming me out. I gotta ask: are the problems so big in this movie that it's not even remotely fixable with a better edit of the film, like adding in deleted scenes to fill in holes? Because that would be a major bummer.

It would have to be some crazy DC. Like, 30 something minutes of scenes to develop the characters or build on all the crazy shit that happens in the movie.

But hey, the reactions to this movie are all across the board. Not just on GAF, either. A movie with this much hype, with that kind of caliber of talent, you need to see it for yourself and make up your own mind.

At the very least, see it in 3d. It looks amazing.

 

[Gregorn]

Why are people so confident about a DC being made? In interviews Ridley Scott said he doesn't feel like he has any more scenes to add to it and said it isn't like the situation on KoH.

He's said he might and he's said he might not. I think it's confirmed that there's about half an hour of cut scenes though, like Wayland when he was young, which sounds pretty important to the plot...

 

[Cheebo]

Because most of Scott's big movies need a DC to salvage them, and most of them seem to get them.

Oh I agree but it is just in interviews he seems pretty anti-DC about this one. I mean even before Robin Hood came out he was already talking about his extended cut.

He told joblo there won't be a DC and you'll be able to watch the deleted scenes in a menu on the home release.

 

[jmdajr]

Lol, so much for balanced opinions. Well I'm out.

 

[EliCash]

The characters in Avatar shit all over Prometheus. The characters in Prometheus are probably the worst part of the movie. Fassbender is better than anything in Avatar but that is all you get.

I can't really remember any characters from Avatar, the blue chick was probably the best thing about the film in terms of being a convincing member of that race (sorry I'm not being a dick but the names of everything in that film escape me). David was good in Prometheus but broke no new ground, but it was still a thrill seeing Fassbender play him. I thought Idris Elba as the old school sea captain was a decent secondary character, Noomi Rapace was great but Elizabeth Shaw was held back from being a great character due to her

Spoiler

bullshit faith stuff "it's what I choose to believe", I'm looking at you Lindelof for that, but she was good as the survivalist character. Vickers was ok as the cold and calculated cooperate woman that may or may not be an android, Weyland was semi interesting, more so as a hologram Hari Seldon style, but he could've been executed better. The rest were just there to die, but not in a good way like Alien as they weren't really convincing as real people. But still, at least there was some interesting ideas going on with most of the characters.

The main problem with Prometheus in comparison to Alien and Aliens is that in the original films space was dirty, and the characters were space truckers and not a bunch of pseudo-intellectuals. In Prometheus you had eye rolling dialogue about faith, and a coffee shop philosophy approach to those so called "big ideas".

Spoiler

And I don't believe for a second that that crew were fantastic scientists and archaeologists, they made such a mess of everything. Was this really the best crew that Weyland could get his hands on? I mean a Geologist getting lost in a circular structure?

Regardless, I still think what Prometheus offers in terms of characters is way beyond what Avatar gave us. That isn't to say that just about every character in Prometheus was flawed in their execution though.

One of the worst movies I have ever seen.

Then you are incredibly blessed.

 

[Foreign Jackass]

What's the deal with Ridley Scott and Director's Cuts? He's the only director I know who can't come up with a good director's cut the first time. That "producer" excuse has got to go, fuck. Put your director's cut clause in your stupid contract, Ridley.

 

[cackhyena]

One of the worst movies I have ever seen. It was offensively stupid.

I am sad because it was the movie I was most looking forward to this year.

Hyperbole like this can only be met with an lol. There is no more appropriate response.

 

[Dracos]

Alien and Aliens are two of my favorite movies of all time. This is the most excited I have been for a movie since the dark knight premier. This ended up being the single greatest disappointment of my natural born life. Horrible movie. I'd say this movie does more damage to the franchise than AvP, Resurrection or the rest of the stuff after Aliens. Somebody please take Blade Runner from this man. Nothing here even felt like a Ridley Scott movie. Prometheus was truly Scott Free.

 

[duckroll]

I don't see this "flawed masterpiece" thing at all with regards to Prometheus as a script. I'm not talking about the entire movie here or Scott's vision. Just the script as it was used to shoot the film and what the performances were based on in written form. There is nothing in it at all which has ambition, originality, or honestly anything worthy of much praise at all. The dialogue is no compelling, the characters are under developed, the sequences of events don't make a lot of logical sense, the actions of the characters range from forced to fucking stupid, and all the beats of suspense and tension throughout the movie are born out of stupidity or ridiculously incoherent actions. Character motivations are unclear, and they don't react realistically or naturally to events as human beings are expected to. Foreshadowing and plot hints are left dangling with no resolutions. Even the climax is one huge hohum moment. There's no masterpiece here, just a huge collection of flaws.

 

[DevelopmentArrested]

Prometheus is poorly written but it has NOTHING on the cat scene from Alien.


It's pretty hilarious how a robot is the most fleshed out character in the entire movie.

 

[DarkKyo]

Haven't seen this movie yet but this thread is kinda bumming me out. I gotta ask: are the problems so big in this movie that it's not even remotely fixable with a better edit of the film, like adding in deleted scenes to fill in holes? Because that would be a major bummer.

Do not get bummed out! Movie was awesome. Like anything it's going to be great fun to watch and think about and then shit on when you get home and argue on the message boards about it.

 

[DevelopmentArrested]

This ended up being the single greatest disappointment of my natural born life. Horrible movie. I'd say this movie does more damage to the franchise than AvP, Resurrection or the rest of the stuff after Aliens. Somebody please take Blade Runner from this man. Nothing here even felt like a Ridley Scott movie. Prometheus was truly Scott Free.

You must lead a pretty sheltered life. The hyperbole/vitriol towards this film is hilarious.

One of the worst movies I have ever seen. It was offensively stupid.

I am sad because it was the movie I was most looking forward to this year.

Lol do you see one movie a year?

 

[Blader]

What's the deal with Ridley Scott and Director's Cuts? He's the only director I know who can't come up with a good director's cut the first time. That "producer" excuse has got to go, fuck. Put your director's cut clause in your stupid contract, Ridley.

Because he's a businessman too and he wants his (theatrical) movies cut at around 2 hours so they can make more money.

 

[Demoncarnotaur]

Here's what I didn't like about the intro scene: it spoils stuff later in the film.

Spoiler

We know what the engineers look like, so the suspense when the helmet was being opened was shot since we knew what was in it. And it ruined the suspense about what would happen to that guy that had the goo dripped in his wine by David, since we saw what it does. Both scenes would play better without the prologue included; plus, I didn't feel it added anything to the film.

I had no issue with the prologue before, but after reading this I have to agree.