Prometheus

In Ridley Scott's sequel to his 1979 blockbuster Alien, two archeologists (Noomi Rapace, Logan Marshall-Green) on Scotland's Isle of Skye discover prehistoric cave paintings depicting spherical objects in space, suggesting that extraterrestrials visited Earth. Two years later—in 2091—the pair are headed towards a distant planet aboard the massive exploratory spaceship Prometheus, helmed by Captain Janek (Idris Elba), funded by wealthy Peter Weyland (Guy Pearce), and imperiously run by businesswoman Meredith Vickers (Charlize Theron), who is aided by Weyland's enigmatic android, David (Michael Fassbender). Once the team arrives at their destination, close encounters of the slimy alien kind await them. Taking its title from the mythological Titan who stole fire from the gods, Prometheus mixes the metaphysical approach of Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey and Scott's own brand of survival horror, with Fassbender's preternaturally calm David a kind of flesh-and-blood version of Kubrick's HAL, and an extended suspenseful scene featuring a scantily-clad Rapace in the claustrophobic ship corridors reminding viewers of Sigourney Weaver's frantic escape at the end of Alien. Recommended. [Note: DVD/Blu-ray extras include deleted and alternate scenes with optional commentary (37 min.). Exclusive to the Blu-ray release are two audio commentaries (the first with director Ridley Scott; the second with writers Jon Spaihts and Damon Lindelof), four “The Peter Wayland Files” promos including the 2023 TED talk segment featuring costar Guy Pearce (19 min.), the BD-Live function, and bonus DVD, digital, and UltraViolet copies of the film. Bottom line: a solid extras package for this powerful Alien prequel.] (S. Granger)