Neb on 2/8/2012 at 12:22
Quote Posted by Vivian
Um.... good? I dunno. Expecting a
sequel to make everything better is a bit, uh, optimistic?
Prometheus comes across as the prequel to a film that Scott has always wanted to make. Additionally, they may get someone on board who can write.
The Alchemist on 2/8/2012 at 16:06
I might have shot myself in the foot with that comment. It was not at all a nit pick, what I meant to say was that we tend to see things with rose-tinted glasses and therefore are overly critical of sequels, etc. However, in retrospect, I do agree that in general it seems movies focus less on "thematic contradictions, problematic tonal shifts and plot logic" and it is unfortunate. More over, it seems like Western films are less concerned about the cinematography itself. I've found Korean films have more stylistic framing/etc, however to the layman its probably moot.
froghawk on 2/8/2012 at 17:39
Quote Posted by Vivian
Dude, I don't care about the heisenberg compensator either. Script, characters, narrative logic. I mean, the frisson of plausibility in the tech is nice, but it's not essential if the story works well enough. District 9 was full of hand-wavium but it was also a logically-plotted, tightly paced and exciting film. Star Trek was also good on that front - character arcs, decent structure, etc. Prometheus was full of just weird pacing, pointless characters, nonsensical and badly explained actions, bad dialogue. I'm not saying I thought that all of the bad points were because the space-scanners weren't the right color. The technical design was the main saving grave of the film. Are you arguing with someone else? Well, you're not actually arguing, you're literally saying just shut up and accept it, but you know what I mean.
this. 100%
The Alchemist on 2/8/2012 at 19:14
Quote Posted by froghawk
this. 100%
. LOL.
I want to make the argument about how a movie can have an interesting concept and fun visuals/action without deep characters and still be entertaining, and how this is still a subjective criticism on your part, BUT, like Scotts I am a huge fan of character development. It's actually my favorite part of most narratives. So yeah for example, Breaking Bad is my favorite TV show. I dont pass everything I watch through this filter, however.
Also, unrelatability to a character does not equal lack of depth.
What everyone doesnt seem to get is that they are not the arbiter of quality for this movie. It's not a bad movie because you think so. I enjoyed it, I hope that doesn't upset you.
Edit: In retrospect that last sentence didn't come out quite as I had planned. It was more a reaction to "The concept that entertainment cannot bear any level of critical scrutiny irritates the fuck out of me." I am spending far too much time on this subject and it's getting all sorts of wanky and [whats that word], it's more about how it "irrates the fuck out of me" that people express their opinions as an absolute. IE: It's a terrible movie because I didn't like it. As far as I remember I haven't sat around saying that it's a great movie, and that you are wrong. Just that this opinion is in itself an example of the self entitlement I referred to earlier.
Also in reference to a comment about how it is factually a failure because of years of development and millions in investment: It failed to do what? Entertain
you? It has tripled its profit already, not exactly what I would call a tank. Also, "seek to have cultural significance", did Scott actually say "hey man I'm making a new Alien movie and I totally want this to have some sort of cultural influence." What the hell is cultural significance anyway? AvP has cultural significance, just not in a positive way. Ah fuck, I'll shut up now.
scumble on 2/8/2012 at 19:38
Quote Posted by The Alchemist
Scotts
Will everyone please stop doing this...
On some occasions I can see that entertainment does have an element of cultural significance, as
Scots put it, but it seems like Prometheus is a bit on the borderline. Maybe that's why it's annoying?
Perhaps the rule is more to expect very little and then the likelihood of disappointment is reduced.
The Alchemist on 2/8/2012 at 23:44
Quote Posted by scumble
Will everyone please stop doing this...
On some occasions I can see that entertainment does have an element of cultural significance, as
Scots put it, but it seems like Prometheus is a bit on the borderline. Maybe that's why it's annoying?
Perhaps the rule is more to expect very little and then the likelihood of disappointment is reduced.
Ah yeah, I do that every time. It's because the name is regularly spelled Scotts, even to mean Scottish, afaik.
Scots Taffer on 3/8/2012 at 02:20
scumble, just start banning people who can't get it right, k?
scumble on 3/8/2012 at 07:32
I could at least make an embarrassing edit to the post containing the error as a warning.
Quote Posted by The Alchemist
Ah yeah, I do that every time. It's because the name is regularly spelled Scotts, even to mean Scottish, afaik.
That's a pretty terrible excuse. Everyone keeps getting it wrong, that's the point...
Vivian on 3/8/2012 at 10:01
whatevs, Scotch
Scots Taffer on 3/8/2012 at 12:29
And no, you speak of the Scots as a people like that... Scots, not Scotts. :D
