ALIEN / PROMETHEUS / COVENANT / ROMULUS - SPOILERS INBOUND!!

[Alcofribas]

da suppa zole!

[gaarg]

Spermetheus

[Blir]

Interesting correlation in storytelling techniques between Prometheus and Lost, obviously a symptom of Lindelof's writing.

 

Where did the smoke monster come from? Oh, just some light in a cave.

Where did the alien come from? Oh, just some goo in a cave.

 

But don't worry! It's intentionally vague! Because that's an artistic flair.

 

This is the problem with a writer who sets out to be intentionally vague and wants things "left open to interpretation" so people will ponder over his piece of art for centuries to come. Rather than somebody who writes a story they want to tell and sometimes leaves loose ends, not intentionally, but actually because they just forgot to follow them up or they just weren't important to the actual story.

 

It's like a focus grouped story, one that's engineered to illicit certain reactions from the audience. It's insulting and insincere.

 

Maybe that's the tricky thing about writing a prequel though... Having to fit inside an existing universe is restrictive.

 

So the solution? Treat it as a separate franchise. They sounded like they were going to do this originally by saying it wasn't related to Alien, but it's clearly related to Alien. Too much. Prometheus should have done to Alien what AvP did; offer a different take on that universe. Then take all the creative liberties you want.

 

Or maybe it is doing that. I dunno.

[Guest Jimmy McMessageboard]

GUYS TO GET THE SHIP TO FLY YOU MUST PLAY A LITTLE FLUTE. ANY QUESTIONS?

[beerwolf]

Yes this movie suffers from DL writing the script.

 

Trust me I was the biggest Lost fan in the universe, so badly was I hooked on it. If I remember correctly Season 3 was astonishing, then the whole thing started to slip, cracks started to show. Which I didn't realise at the time of course. Once I'd watched the final episode I'd realised I'd been taken the piss out of. I'd been mugged off almost.

 

So this twerp rises again and makes a hatchet job of what on paper should be mindblowing. But because this tool is writing the script it once again becomes a piss-take and a bit of a joke. DL is a goofball, circus act and a prize clown and he should fuck off over the horizon somewhere. Ideally with his pen and paper. Shoved up his ass.

Edited June 18, 2012 by beerwolf

[Blir]

GUYS TO GET THE SHIP TO FLY YOU MUST PLAY A LITTLE FLUTE. ANY QUESTIONS?

 

Lindelof: So, basically in this scene he has to play a little alien flute to make the ship fly.

Scott: BRILLIANT.

[Guest Jimmy McMessageboard]

remember the awful scene in hugo which i'm sure looked great in 3D with the papers flying around but looked terrible in 2D...the universe map stuff after the flute playing avoided that issue and looked good in 2D but i bet it looked magnificent in 3D.

 

flute lol brilliant!

 

GUYS TO GET THE SHIP TO FLY YOU MUST PLAY A LITTLE FLUTE. ANY QUESTIONS?

 

Lindelof: So, basically in this scene he has to play a little alien flute to make the ship fly.

Scott: BRILLIANT.

 

First Grip: But how will he know to play the flute?

Lindelof (distracted): smoke monster..no...light in the cave tells him...no...erm hologram playback of past events or something

Scott: BRILLIANT.

Best boy: ...?

Edited June 18, 2012 by Jimmy McMessageboard

[Blir]

Lindelof: So Fifield will get a faceful of goo and eventually will find his way back to the Prometheus as a ZOMBIE and then he will attack the crew to kill off the extras I didn't bother fleshing out.

Scott: BRILLIANT.

[gaarg]

lol

[Guest Jimmy McMessageboard]

Lindelof: The engineers have roidrage!

Scott: BRILLIANT.

Edited June 18, 2012 by Jimmy McMessageboard

[Guest Shit Attack]

read a funny comment somewhere about how when stanley kubrick wanted to make an "intelligent" science fiction story he roped in arthur c. clarke

 

but when ridley scott wanted to create one .........

 

.....he decided to rope in one of the cunts who wrote " Lost " !

 

 

p.s didnt watch lost but am sure it was shit

[Guest Jimmy McMessageboard]

lost was great.

 

as was prometheus.

 

but then they ended and you thought about it and your brain farted

[Guest Gary C]

[Silent Member]

lol

[Guest zaphod]

Lindelof: I was watching legends of the hidden temple and playing ocarina of time when I should have been writing, but I think we can work both into our aesthetic.

Scott: BRILLIANT!

[Squee]

This page is BRILLIANT.

[Blir]

Lindelof: So they'll discover that the engineer DNA precisely matches the DNA of humans... even though Engineers are all 8 foot tall and albino.

Scott: BRILLIANT.

[auxien]

Interesting correlation in storytelling techniques between Prometheus and Lost, obviously a symptom of Lindelof's writing.

 

Where did the smoke monster come from? Oh, just some light in a cave.

Where did the alien come from? Oh, just some goo in a cave.

 

But don't worry! It's intentionally vague! Because that's an artistic flair.

 

This is the problem with a writer who sets out to be intentionally vague and wants things "left open to interpretation" so people will ponder over his piece of art for centuries to come. Rather than somebody who writes a story they want to tell and sometimes leaves loose ends, not intentionally, but actually because they just forgot to follow them up or they just weren't important to the actual story.

 

It's like a focus grouped story, one that's engineered to illicit certain reactions from the audience. It's insulting and insincere.

 

Maybe that's the tricky thing about writing a prequel though... Having to fit inside an existing universe is restrictive.

 

So the solution? Treat it as a separate franchise. They sounded like they were going to do this originally by saying it wasn't related to Alien, but it's clearly related to Alien. Too much. Prometheus should have done to Alien what AvP did; offer a different take on that universe. Then take all the creative liberties you want.

 

Or maybe it is doing that. I dunno.

 

original Alien:

1. 'Pilot (space jockey) appears out of nowhere, seemingly alone, looked at for 5 minutes and is left alone. barely mentioned again.
   
2. alien eggs EVERYwhere. no explanation given.
   
3. unknown alien life is discovered, possibly two species of it....no one cares beyond if they get a bonus? what the hell, are people finding different aliens everywhere they go, to the point that it's so boring the only interest is money?
   
4. Hurt's character is brought back with the face hugger attached...they try and fail to remove it, it falls off for no good reason (after they know it was keeping Hurt alive for some period of time), they....just sit down for dinner? no extra quarantine? body scan? yeah maybe that was Ash in charge of it, but shit. silly and vague.
   
5. Xenomorph goes into some weird dormant state where he doesn't care that Ripley is a foot away from him within 10 minutes of getting in the escape pod? really? he was so out Ripley could've baked dinner on the console in front of him and then chopped his skull open with a butcher knife for brain/acid dessert. fucking ridiculous.
   

these are just SOME of the glaring plot holes and 'intentionally vague' points in the original Alien. obviously Lindelof had nothing to do with it, so your blaming it all on Lindelof seems silly. such stuff is just part of storytelling and is particularly key in Sci-Fi, and it seems a case could be made that Ridley Scott has a bad habit of it personally.

[Atop]

time heals all plot holes

[Blir]

None of those are plot holes.

 

The first two points are overshadowed by the fact that Kane gets attacked within a short while of them being there by an alien species.

 

Point 4 I can accept because they were relieved he was seemingly okay and up and about. So they went for a nice dinner because he was hungry.

Shit? Maybe, if you say so. But not a plot hole and nothing vague.

 

Even with point 5 I can accept the slightly silly factor of the Alien hanging out in the wall for a bit, if anything just out of tiredness or having a sleep. But not a plot hole, nor is it vague.

 

Point 3 there's no point responding to, but I'm going to anyway. Surely you realise that the whole interest in a bonus is the two main factors that drive those characters? It's character development. They're space truckers, more so than the rest of the cast, they want to collect their money and get home and have no interest in aliens. That's made pretty glaringly obvious.

 

I'm happy you really like Prometheus and want to defend it, that's great! But trying to find faults in an earlier movie does not absolve Prometheus of its shabby elements.

[Guest Jimmy McMessageboard]

yeah as much as i hate the ending of alien its not comparable with promethemess

[Guest Jimmy McMessageboard]

Casting Director: Instead of an old guy I'm thinking GUY PEARCE as Benjamin Button

Scott: BRILLIANT.

[Squee]

Lindelof: I want Charlize Theron's character to be connected to Weyland, but I haven't really figured out why or how?

Scott: BRILLIANT.

[Guest Jimmy McMessageboard]

Lindelof: But get this - WEYLAND ISN'T DEAD HE'S IN STASIS! BOOM!!

Scott: BRILLIANT.

[awepittance]

Interesting correlation in storytelling techniques between Prometheus and Lost, obviously a symptom of Lindelof's writing.

 

Where did the smoke monster come from? Oh, just some light in a cave.

Where did the alien come from? Oh, just some goo in a cave.

 

But don't worry! It's intentionally vague! Because that's an artistic flair.

 

This is the problem with a writer who sets out to be intentionally vague and wants things "left open to interpretation" so people will ponder over his piece of art for centuries to come. Rather than somebody who writes a story they want to tell and sometimes leaves loose ends, not intentionally, but actually because they just forgot to follow them up or they just weren't important to the actual story.

 

It's like a focus grouped story, one that's engineered to illicit certain reactions from the audience. It's insulting and insincere.

 

Maybe that's the tricky thing about writing a prequel though... Having to fit inside an existing universe is restrictive.

 

So the solution? Treat it as a separate franchise. They sounded like they were going to do this originally by saying it wasn't related to Alien, but it's clearly related to Alien. Too much. Prometheus should have done to Alien what AvP did; offer a different take on that universe. Then take all the creative liberties you want.

 

Or maybe it is doing that. I dunno.

 

original Alien:

1. 'Pilot (space jockey) appears out of nowhere, seemingly alone, looked at for 5 minutes and is left alone. barely mentioned again.
   
2. alien eggs EVERYwhere. no explanation given.
   
3. unknown alien life is discovered, possibly two species of it....no one cares beyond if they get a bonus? what the hell, are people finding different aliens everywhere they go, to the point that it's so boring the only interest is money?
   
4. Hurt's character is brought back with the face hugger attached...they try and fail to remove it, it falls off for no good reason (after they know it was keeping Hurt alive for some period of time), they....just sit down for dinner? no extra quarantine? body scan? yeah maybe that was Ash in charge of it, but shit. silly and vague.
   
5. Xenomorph goes into some weird dormant state where he doesn't care that Ripley is a foot away from him within 10 minutes of getting in the escape pod? really? he was so out Ripley could've baked dinner on the console in front of him and then chopped his skull open with a butcher knife for brain/acid dessert. fucking ridiculous.
   

these are just SOME of the glaring plot holes and 'intentionally vague' points in the original Alien. obviously Lindelof had nothing to do with it, so your blaming it all on Lindelof seems silly. such stuff is just part of storytelling and is particularly key in Sci-Fi, and it seems a case could be made that Ridley Scott has a bad habit of it personally.