Prometheus has landed - for some of us...

At long last, Ridley Scott’s Prometheus is out on blu-ray – I harbor few illusions that this release is going to convert any naysayers, but given the content of these discs, attention must be paid. Without a doubt, Prometheus was the most divisive film within the science fiction community in ages. Many fans dumped all over the picture, railing against supposed inconsistencies and unanswered questions. I had no problems with the film at all and consider it to be visionary and successful – a triumph. Many feel otherwise. To those who did take issue with the film, there are a lot of answers waiting for you. Not only is there a commentary from director Ridley Scott, but there’s also an additional writer’s commentary from Jon Spaihts and Damon Lindelof, in addition to some fascinating alternate takes and deleted scenes. It’s worth pointing out that Fox offered to let Ridley run wild with a Director’s Cut and release a different version of the film like he did with Kingdom of Heaven – Scott declined, firmly stating that the film he released was his preferred cut. If you spend any time listening to the commentaries and viewing these scenes, you’re likely to find a lot of clarification within.


If you’re a fan of the film and plan on purchasing it, here's the skinny and the important information you need to know: there are TWO blu-ray editions of the film - there's a 2-disc blu-ray that has some extras, but more importantly there is a 4-disc collector's edition that has an entire extra disc of bonus features - THAT IS ONLY AVAILABLE WITH THE BLU-RAY 3D PACKAGING OF THE FILM. THAT is definitely the edition you want.

That's right – you have to get the BD-3D version - so you're getting a superfluous disc, as it comes with these 4 discs total:

1. Blu-ray 3-D feature film

2. Blu-ray feature film

3. Blu-ray Bonus features - 7 hours of extras including a 3 &1/2 hour documentary, alternate beginning/ending, Weyland archive, etc.

4. DVD feature film

Don’t be confused - you are getting it in Blu-ray (disc 2), but you're also getting it in 3-D on a separate disc. They did something similar with The Avengers release, but nothing this pointed – presumably part of the marketing strategy to get more consumer adoption for BD-3D. I can't ever recall a release like this, so it may be a trend for the future – but for films like this, we may have to start reading the fine print very carefully.

The real jewel of this presentation is the nearly 4-hour production documentary, The Furious Gods. I haven’t seen a more fascinating behind-the-scenes documentary since – oh, Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings material on the Extended Editions – that intrigue you sufficiently? I’ve only seen about 1/3 of the massive disc 3 documentary so far, but it’s blown me away. To have this level of access throughout the production – including every aspect of the design and genesis of preproduction – is just amazing. I’m not exaggerating when I say that this is simply one of the most immersive and revealing production accounts I’ve ever seen. It’s fascinating to see that given the long hours involved, Ridley and production designer Arthur Max created an environment where it was not unusual to uncork a few bottles of wine to get everyone’s wheels spinning. From the initial screenwriting through an absolutely fascinating journey of every stage of the film’s design evolution, this documentary is just an amazing achievement and should be seen by any serious filmmaking fan, regardless of your thoughts on the film. The supplements were produced by acclaimed documentarian Charles de Lauzirika who worked on the massive Blade Runner blu-ray documentary Dangerous Days, and I think he’s outdone himself here.

After revisiting the film and sampling these bonus features, I’m more excited than ever at the prospect of Ridley Scott’s rumored return to make another film in the Blade Runner universe – a heady idea to contemplate! If you were scared away from Prometheus during its theatrical release, do yourself a favor and explore this absolutely fantastic blu-ray release.