Prometheus

[xmangambit]

Anyone got the John Spates script he's talking about in that interview?

 

[Solidus]

Anyone got the John Spates script he's talking about in that interview?

No, and that was my point. There was a script called Alien Harvest, that some one put Jon's name on it, but Jon nor Fox nor anyone else said it was their script, people just assumed.

The point is NO ONE saw it. The script that Jon wrote was under tight security with Damon last year, when the Alien Harvest script leaked way earlier. So no the script he is talking about is under lock and key. The fake Alien Harvest script is some where floating around and is terrible. But some one had too much time on their hands and made an attempt to get attention.

 

[Rowsdower!]

I doubt it. The Alien brand is tarnished and Ridley's very sexual and Lovecraftian, fever dream of a monster has been diminished by each sequel. I like James Cameron's sequel, but they became "bugs" and action movie fodder. Another sequel and they became a franchise long-in-the-tooh. The installments after that turned it into a joke.

We don't know how prevalent the Giger monster will be in this film (I hope sparing). I hope it has a bigger scope and larger ideas than just setting up the start of Scott's classic. By not telling audiences what it is, it allows the film to swim in the murky mystery of dread that the first film was all about and not be bound by audience expectations for something big and stupid. The more ambiguous it is about being a prequel, the better off the movie will be in terms of quality and financial success, in my opinion.

Good points, and I agree with you on Cameron's Aliens. It's a good movie, but it never captures the essence of the original, which had this undercurrent of dread throughout. Hopefully they'll be able to recapture that.

Though I must admit it would be funny if people went into it, completely unaware of the Alien connection (or that Scott directed both that film and this one) and when the creatures show up, their reaction is: "What the hell? This is just a ripoff of Alien!" lol

 

[Solidus]

Good points, and I agree with you on Cameron's Aliens. It's a good movie, but it never captures the essence of the original, which had this undercurrent of dread throughout. Hopefully they'll be able to recapture that.

I'm sure they will.

But Aliens was never trying to recapture that. Alien was a more of a horror movie and Aliens was suppose to be an action horror film. And to me that is why Aliens worked. Sometimes if they make a sequel too like the previous it just does not feel as entertaining, but if they do some of different while keeping other aspects the same it works. It's a fine line with sequels of doing enough different, but keeping some of it the same.

I agree you never feel the dread, that you do in Alien, or the unsettling nature of it. But you feel the anxiety and adrenaline in Aliens. I think they are both unique/good enough to stand on their own and bring two unique contributions to the series.

That said I am interested because Damon clearly said there is the dark mood, but it is very different. So that will be interesting to see.

 

[Valaquen]

When you make sequels, you have to make change. Otherwise you're retreading old ground. Cameron shook things up with Aliens and most loved it, including the makers of Alien, but some dyed-in-the-wool types are to this day angry about Alien Queens. If Ridley has any sense, he'll rock the boat just as Cameron did. Some will be pissed off, but feck 'em. Film-makers need to be brave and not rehash what's come before, ala every Alien movie post-1986.

Expo report: http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/ridley-scott-michael-fassbender-noomi-206321

 

[chamber-music]

Alien Vs Predator did the most damage. Those two movies tarnished the franchise more than any of the sequels which is what it sounded like from Damon Lindelof.

The Aliens were no longer scary by the time AVP was done with them. Only so many times you can do a story about a woman fighting aliens while a corporation trys to turn them into weapons which always ends up going wrong before it gets old.

Prometheus is bringing us something different while still having a few familar elements from the Alien franchise.

I liked Aliens it was Alien 3 and Alien Ressurection in which the franchise ran out of steam, new ideas and started to become stale. By AVP it was just another bland movie monster.

 

[Rowsdower!]

I'm sure they will.

But Aliens was never trying to recapture that. Alien was a more of a horror movie and Aliens was suppose to be an action horror film. And to me that is why Aliens worked. Sometimes if they make a sequel too like the previous it just does not feel as entertaining, but if they do some of different while keeping other aspects the same it works. It's a fine line with sequels of doing enough different, but keeping some of it the same.

I agree you never feel the dread, that you do in Alien, or the unsettling nature of it. But you feel the anxiety and adrenaline in Aliens. I think they are both unique/good enough to stand on their own and bring two unique contributions to the series.

That said I am interested because Damon clearly said there is the dark mood, but it is very different. So that will be interesting to see.

Very true. The last thing anyone wants to see in a sequel is a flat-out retread (Hangover 2 comes to mind). So it is really cool that Cameron took it in a different direction and it still worked.

 

[marvelrobbins]

The last Great Alien film was Aliens.Hell I never even watched the second Alien VS
Predator.They should have only done one and after that use the box office success of
that to renew Intrest In Seperate franchises.

I really don't like the game they are playing with Prometheus.Trying to call It both a
Alien Prequel and original sci fi tale.

There was a lot of Intrest seeing the Space Jockeys explored and discovering where the aliens came from.To poentully lose that takes awy part of appeal of film.

After Lost season 6 Damon Lindeloff should be less willing to attack others.

And the reason to do prequels Is to reveal things about characters when they were younger.The entire reason for doing Star wars prequels was to show Anakin Skywalker
becoming Darth vader,The emperor's rise to power,and the fall of the Jedi.If you do
prequel with nothing to Intrest fans then why bother?

 

[Valaquen]

There was a lot of Intrest seeing the Space Jockeys explored and discovering where the aliens came from.To poentully lose that takes awy part of appeal of film.

I just posted the report from the Cine Expo yesterday. In it, Scott confirmed the film was exploring the Space Jockey angle, though not necessarily setting up Alien [that is, it likely won't explain why the Jockey ship crashed, but will be a tale about the Jockeys and their machinations].

 

[marvelrobbins]

They don't have to deal with the direct lead In to Alien.Revealing stuff about the
Space Jockey and possibly exploring more about the Aliens would be of Intrest to fans.
They could even go down the road to say the aliens looked a bit different before they
were frequently using humans to come out of.

 

[Sawyer]

I’ve always felt that really good prequels should be original movies. And the sequels to those prequels should not be the movie which already exists because, with all due respect to anyone who makes a prequel, but why would you ruin the greatest twist in the history of cinema, “Luke, I am your father”, by showing me three movies which basically spoil that surprise. You can do movies which take place before Star Wars, but I don’t need to see the story of the Skywalker clan. Show me something else which I can’t guess the possible outcome of. There is no suspense in inevitability.

Can't argue with that.

 

[Sawyer]

After Lost season 6 Damon Lindeloff should be less willing to attack others.

Jesus Christ....

And he's really not "attacking" anyone.

 

[Valaquen]

They don't have to deal with the direct lead In to Alien.Revealing stuff about the
Space Jockey and possibly exploring more about the Aliens would be of Intrest to fans.
They could even go down the road to say the aliens looked a bit different before they
were frequently using humans to come out of.

Pretty sure that's what they've hinted they're doing.

 

[samsnee]

Could this be the real plot?

http://io9.com/5816884/if-this-is-a...or-ridley-scotts-prometheus-just-shoot-us-now

 

[CelticPredator]

Sounds awesome. I dont see what the problem is...

 

[chamber-music]

I think it sounds awesome as well. Reminds me of something Lovecraft might of done.

Don't know what i09 are complaining about perhaps they were expecting something different.

It may be made up but it sounds plausable

Here is what Ridley Scott said about Promethues at CineEurope

Scott acknowledged that Prometheus, while not a direct prequel to Alien, occupies the same general universe, saying the picture was inspired by a desire to explore the mystery of the “space jockey” the giant fossilized creature with the burst-open chest seen in the first Alien movie but never explained.”

Scott also goes on to confirm that the title, Prometheus, is the name of a spaceship that was sent from Earth by a powerful corporation, something familiar to fans of the Alien franchise.

 

[Valaquen]

Scott also goes on to confirm that the title, Prometheus, is the name of a spaceship that was sent from Earth by a powerful corporation, something familiar to fans of the Alien franchise.

Just exactly like [every detail] the Jon Spaight's script for Shadow 19, which became the Alien Prequel script, which in turn became ... Prometheus!

Shadow 19 excerpt:

As the view shifts, the ship’s immensity becomes apparent.
Construction ships swarm over it like ants.

DIRECTOR MARBECK: Prometheus!

VANCE (awed): Nothing’s that big.

The elderly Scientist Larson grins.

LARSON: Prometheus is. Half a kilometer across, with a mass of seventy
million tons. And history's biggest gravity drive running through its core. It’s a magnificent monster. Marbeck indulges Larson with a smile of real affection.

DIRECTOR MARBECK: And the greatest secret ever kept.

VANCE: How many people aboard?

DIRECTOR MARBECK: None. The Prometheus has no passenger compartments, no cockpit. It's a super-intelligent machine designed to transform Erix into a new Earth.

VANCE: A terraforming ship.

 

[FingersMcGhee]

I call "Fan Wank" with that script. The part with "Light Speed" travel is the biggest giveaway, considering Alien and Aliens plot heavly focused on interstellar travel and how it's done with cryogentic freezing.

 

[Valaquen]

I call "Fan Wank" with that script. The part with "Light Speed" travel is the biggest giveaway, considering Alien and Aliens plot heavly focused on interstellar travel and how it's done with cryogentic freezing.

Shadow 19 is a legitimate script. Alien Harvest was the fan wank. Your reasoning is confused - Shadow 19 started out as a non-Alien film, was retooled as the prequel after it came to Scott's attention, and was then retooled again by Damon Lindelof last year. We have no idea how closely Prometheus parallels Shadow 19 after how many revisions and writers, but it's a legit script and Prometheus IS derived from it. Google it. Alien fans have been discussing it for the past year.

 

[Doctor Jones]

I really like the sound of that.

 

[Doctor Jones]

I'm sure they will.

But Aliens was never trying to recapture that. Alien was a more of a horror movie and Aliens was suppose to be an action horror film. And to me that is why Aliens worked. Sometimes if they make a sequel too like the previous it just does not feel as entertaining, but if they do some of different while keeping other aspects the same it works. It's a fine line with sequels of doing enough different, but keeping some of it the same.

I agree you never feel the dread, that you do in Alien, or the unsettling nature of it. But you feel the anxiety and adrenaline in Aliens. I think they are both unique/good enough to stand on their own and bring two unique contributions to the series.

That said I am interested because Damon clearly said there is the dark mood, but it is very different. So that will be interesting to see.

This is what intrigues me as well. Lindelof could really mean what he's saying to his yes and no answer on it being a prequel to Alien. I'm very interested to see how it's in the same "isolated" vibe from the first film yet is its own thing.

I just have a good feeling about this movie. It could be a very polarizing movie too. It could divide audiences down the center.

 

[Aesop Rocks]

please please please please please please please let this be real.

 

[nocomics]

I liked Aliens just as much as I did Alien just for different reasons. I actually kindof enjoyed Alien3,and Ressurection;except the design of the hybrid alien.
I hope they can keep it fresh and unique to keep ppl interested and do enough to make the prequel and Alien series makes sence.

 

[Bat-Mite]

There are some things that make me question the validity of this. One of them is, like FingersMcGhee said, light speed travel when this takes place before Alien where they freeze themselves for space travel. Another is the year... 2058? I don't remember if Alien gave the year that it takes place or not, but I don't think this is far enough into the future to be saying we'll be having a good deal of space travel by then. I mean, Blade Runner takes place less than a decade from now, and we aren't going to have flying shuttle cars, replicants, weird blimps with huge TV screens on them, etc. all over the place in LA in 2019 (I think that was the year). So I think Ridley will want to push the year as far out there as he can get. Also, having a ship named Prometheus and having an allegory of the Prometheus myth within the film itself? I'm just not convinced. I don't know, maybe it would work within the context of the film itself, but it seems really cheesy to me.

Anyway, I got my Alien Anthology set in the mail today! $33 from Amazon UK, region free, and it only took a week to get here to the states with standard shipping. So I am a really happy Alien fanboy. The reason why I bring up getting this, though (and this may have already been something that's been discussed), is that in that little booklet that comes with it, Ridley Scott talks a bit about Prometheus and mentions the "return to this dark, mysterious universe filled with Aliens, Space Jockeys, and...something even more dangerous that you haven't seen yet." Has there been any speculation about what this might be?

 

[Valaquen]

There are some things that make me question the validity of this. One of them is, like FingersMcGhee said, light speed travel when this takes place before Alien where they freeze themselves for space travel. Another is the year... 2058? I don't remember if Alien gave the year that it takes place or not, but I don't think this is far enough into the future to be saying we'll be having a good deal of space travel by then. I mean, Blade Runner takes place less than a decade from now, and we aren't going to have flying shuttle cars, replicants, weird blimps with huge TV screens on them, etc. all over the place in LA in 2019 (I think that was the year). So I think Ridley will want to push the year as far out there as he can get. Also, having a ship named Prometheus and having an allegory of the Prometheus myth within the film itself? I'm just not convinced. I don't know, maybe it would work within the context of the film itself, but it seems really cheesy to me.

The script excerpt I posted is real, from Shadow 19, a legit Jon Spaight's script that was intended as a Keanu Reevs vehicle. That script was redressed as an Alien prequel, which in turn was redressed into this film Prometheus. Shadow 19 has been going around the web for the past year, and Scott's comments yesterday about the ship in Prometheus and all that conforms exactly to the Shadow 19 script. It's legit, all the Alien fans on Alien forums have known this.

The 2058 has nothing to do with the Shadow 19 script, I doubt it's real - Scott placed Alien in 2121/2, and said the prequel would be around 2085. It should be noted that Scott considered galaxy-crossing ships like the Nostromo to be very 'tongue-in-cheek' even for 2121.