Ridley returns to sci-fi
Alien and Blade Runner are considered classic sci-fi films. Both were helmed by director Ridley Scott. So it may come as a surprise that Scott has entirely abandoned the genre ever since - that's a three-decade hiatus for the man many consider the master of sci-fi.
'The reason I haven't made another sci-fi film in so many years, apart from the fact I've been busy making other films and exploring different genres, is because frankly I haven't come across anything worthwhile for me to do with enough truth, originality and strength,' he says. 'Prometheus has all three.'
Prometheus is the 74-year-old filmmaker's return to the sci-fi franchise he started. The idea for the prequel arose from a figure, glimpsed only briefly in the original Alien, and which has since been largely ignored thus far in the series. Known as Space Jockey, the 'giant fossilised creature with a burst-open chest', as described in the Prometheus production notes, was a major source of mystery for Scott.
He adds: 'Who was he? Where was he from? What was his mission? What kind of technology would his kind possess? I thought those questions could provide a springboard for even larger ideas.'
From these questions Scott developed an entirely new universe and mythology as a backdrop for the story. Because Prometheus is set pre-Alien, the filmmakers were dealing with a somewhat clean slate, which allowed them an almost limitless degree of creative freedom.
In Greek mythology, Prometheus was the titan who stole fire from Zeus to save mortals, for which he was severely punished. So the theme of disobeying a higher order echoes throughout the film. In it, scientists aboard the spaceship Prometheus - a trillion-dollar project funded by a corporation represented by Vickers (Charlize Theron) and android crewmember David (Michael Fassbender) - attempt to search for 'our creator'. Led by brilliant young scientists Shaw (Noomi Rapace) and Holloway (Logan Marshall-Green), the team discover unimaginable terrors. They thought they would find answers to life's greatest mysteries. Instead they encounter a never-before-seen race of superbeings with ill intent.
'The crew of the Prometheus thinks they're headed to paradise to discover answers to the ultimate questions,' says co-writer Jon Spaihts. 'But what they find is a dark and twisted and frightening world ... more like hell than heaven.'
The film stays within the realm of reality so that a level of believability is maintained. And, according to Scott, that's what 'makes a good drama,' adding, 'Feasibility always creates the finest and most dangerous drama and the opportunity for me to scare the hell out of everyone.'
Contains frightening scenes
Prometheus opens on Thursday
