Prometheus: "Lost" in Space

There are also more echoes of Indiana Jones 4 than I'd like.

First, a few disclaimers: My familiarity with the Alien universe extends to one viewing of Aliens (which I loved), and my feelings about the Ridley Scott universe are fair to middling at best. So I didn't share the anticipatory fervor of most of my fellow geeks about Prometheus. And I also must admit that any fervor I was able to work up just out of peer pressure was a bit quashed by the news that Damon Lindelof was one of the screenwriters. My relationship with Lost can best be likened to Tina Turner's relationship with Ike. I kept believing it would be as good as it was at the beginning, and kept getting rather violently disappointed.

Having said that, Prometheus seems to combine both the best and worst of shows like Lost. First: the worst. The theology is ill-defined, the mythology is muddy and scattershot (don't expect a big payoff from the title, for example), the philosophizing is eye-rollingly overblown, the daddy issues are rampant, and the conclusion is, to me, deeply unsatisfying and surprisingly glib for a film that takes itself so seriously. But.

But, Prometheus, as did Lost during its finer moments, reminds us that the best science-fiction is intimately concerned with what it means to be human, and the ambition with which the film tackles that question is fairly breathtaking, both visually and textually. Though (again like Lost) the iconography of gender and race is disappointingly naturalizing and dyadic in the film, it does dare to ask some pretty serious questions about the ontological anxieties that surround any serious engagement with otherness. The fear that our bodies are not as safe from, or as separate from, that which terrifies and revolts us as we assume is nicely explored here. And by "nicely," I mean "disgustingly." Everything in this film, including the landscape, is pervasively and uncannily alive and embodied. The scene that is sure to become iconic--let me just say self-surgery with a tool that looks like the claw machine from Wal-Mart--is a distillation of this trope.

I haven't said much about the plot because I'm spoiler-phobic and I assume everyone who is interested in seeing this movie knows pretty much the basics (exploratory scientific vessel goes into deep space to "find answers"). Charlize Theron turns in her second tour de force performance of the summer as an ice queen with a killer (pun intended) survival instinct. I think what could make Prometheus special and worth watching for those not obsessed with the Alien franchise is Michael Fassbender's character--a robot named David. Usually I find robots boring unless they're numbered and hiding amongst us, but this iteration has some promise. David models himself on Lawrence of Arabia, which would be interesting enough considering the erotics of assimilation that guided T.E. Lawrence's interactions with Arabian desert tribes, but more crucially, he borrows the identity of Peter O'Toole's performance of Lawrence. What that has to say about how selfhood intersects with performativity and pop culture is pretty promising and clever, especially considering the way Prometheus is almost unavoidably going to be read through Alien.

All in all, I was at times impressed, at other times annoyed, but never bored. And I would love to talk this over with someone more familiar with the Aliens than I, particularly because I didn't see any intimations of Ripley in any of the women, which was the one thing I was looking for.

The Geekery Confessional

Bless me Father Norton, for I have sinned against my geeky bretheren

I’m about to admit something that is sure to diminish my geek cred.  Heck, this is going to affect my standing as a cinephile too.  I tested this confession on my friend Jenna the other night before Charlie Ross did his One Man Star Wars.  Even my attendance at that event couldn’t fix my current secret shame.  Jenna was shocked.  You might be too.

{deep breath}  I can do this.

I’ve never seen Ridley Scott's Alien or James Cameron's Aliens.  I know!  I’m hanging my head in shame right now.  And, not that it matters as much, I’ve never seen Alien 3 (Fincher!) or Alien 4 (we’re resurrecting this franchise) either.  Want me to make things worse for myself?  I actually have seen AVP: Alien vs. Predator.  And at that time I hadn’t seen the original Predator either.  I know!  I’m a bad geek. 

Still with me? 

I do know what the Alien franchise is about.  I know all about Ripley and the impact her character had on women in movies and television (thanks for the link, Jenna!).  If it weren’t for Ellen Ripley I bet we wouldn’t have a Buffy.  I’ll need Joss to confirm that for me though.  And I know all about the chestbursting aliens.  That scene has been parodied many times and I got a kick out of it even though I hadn’t seen the source material.

I will be seeing Prometheus this weekend.  I won’t be walking into the theater with absolutely no prior knowledge but I will have a cleaner slate than most.  It looks pretty great and is getting mostly good reviews so I’m excited.  Who knows?  Maybe I’ll even be motivated to see Alien and Aliens sooner rather than later.

Men in Black 3 - Better than Expected!

Men in Black 3

Director: Barry Sonnenfeld

Stars: Will Smith, Tommy Lee Jones, and Josh Brolin

I had slightly low expectations for Men in Black 3 and ended up being pretty pleased with the movie.  There were plenty of laughs.  The story was fine.  The aliens and tech were cool.  Overall I’d say it was a winner.  I had a few smallish issues but nothing worthy of note. 

The story is this:  An icky alien, Boris the Animal (“It’s just Boris!”) escapes Lunar Max, the prison built on Mars specifically for him.  He vows to go back in time in order to kill Agent K and save his own arm from being cut off.  Also, this gives him the opportunity to take over the earth in present day.  Time/space travel (and its issues) aside, the story worked and the movie’s plot got us from point A to point B without too many detours.

Honestly, and if you’re at all interested in this movie you’re probably already aware, the best thing about the movie is Josh Brolin (to me you will always be Brand from The Goonies!) as a young Tommy Lee Jones.  His impersonation of Jones was impeccable.  The voice, the mannerisms, all of it was perfect.  Plus he was able to get the essence of a young Agent K before whatever made him the cranky old dude we know and love.  Will Smith was his typical goofball self.  He and Jones both slipped back into their characters with ease.  As a huge Flight of the Conchords fan, I was thrilled to see Jermaine Clement as Boris the Animal (“It’s just Boris!”).  He camped it up just right and was an entertaining bad guy.

As mentioned, the aliens were fun and I noticed the cool switch that Rick Baker, famed special make-up effects guru, pulled.  The aliens in present day look like the aliens we now expect to see.  When they go back to 1969 Rick gives us the aliens you’d expect to see in sci-fi films of the 50s and 60s.  Clever!  The main bad guy, Boris, was totally gross and had parts of his body that opened and closed (mostly for his bug friend to get in and out).  Ewww.

So yeah, overall I enjoyed it.   It's not going to win a Pulitzer or anything but was a fun, summer flick.  Do I think we need a fourth one?  No.  Will we get a reboot with Jaden Smith stepping into his dad's role?  Sadly, I think that yes, that will happen.

Battleship

Battleship

Director: Peter Berg

Stars: Tim Riggins!, Liam Neeson, Alexander Skaaaarrrrssssgaaarrrdd, and Andy Roddick's wife

I find myself not having the energy to write about yet another movie.  I’m pretty sure we all knew that Battleship was going to be bad.  It was obvious from the trailer.  It was obvious when it was announced that someone (who had totally lost their marbles) decided to make a movie out of a board game like Battleship.  Well it wasn’t great.  It wasn’t awful either but there were some big issues. 

The story.  Oh, the story.  So there are these naval exercises that include the US, Japan and some other countries that quickly become irrelevant.  Oh and apparently it's worth noting that NASA sent out a signal to some planet that was discovered to have similar properties to earth.  The aliens from said planet decide to invade because they want to take part in the naval exercises.  Then it’s up to the good folks on Oahu to save the world. 

So that’s the story but how about the plot?  Please don’t make me discuss the plot.  There were holes in it big enough to steer a battleship through (sorry, had to do it).  There’s one in particular that I’d actually watch the movie one more time to see if I’m right about it.  If you saw the movie let me know because I need help with this one huge problem. 

HOWEVER, there was a lot of pretty great nods to the military both active and retired and that was fine with me.  It was nice to have such a big movie pay huge respect to the men and women fighting not only for our country but apparently the world.  Plus the big battle that put the USS Missouri to use was a cute part of the story and I’ll forgive it. 

Poor Taylor Kitsch.  They really keep trying to make him into a movie star and it’s just not clicking.  I think he needs to try his hand at some smaller indies before jumping into another leading role in a doomed, big-screen, bigger budget, movie.  I think there’s potential in him but I’m afraid it’s more of the FNL-sized potential and not huge, action movie potential.  He needs to have a talk with whoever (whomever?) is giving him career advice.  He wasn’t bad in this.  He wasn’t bad in John Carter either.  He just doesn’t have whatever that spark is that leading actors have. 

Skaaaarrrrsssgaaaarrrrdd!  I think he's doing Blue Steel, which is appropriate since he was in Zoolander

The rest of the cast was fine.  Rhianna, though on-screen for much of the movie, didn’t have a ton of actual lines.  Liam Neeson was criminally underused and actually forgotten about for a good chunk of the second half of the movie.  Then we come to my dear Alexander Skaaaarrrsssgaaaarrrd.  Mmmm.  He was cute and sweet in this but I could have done with a lot more screen time with him. I should probably also mention Brooklyn "The Body" Decker.  Sweet girl who could have been worse.    

What was good you ask?  Besides showing the love to the armed forces, it was a fun movie.  That is, if you can get past the plot problems.  There was lots of humor, cool effects, and slightly interesting aliens.  It wasn’t much worse than something like Armageddon.  So if you enjoy mindless, destruction movies then this one is for you.