IFDB Review: Prometheus – Special Edition:

I like the theatrical cut of Prometheus just fine, but I like this one a whole lot more. Agent 9 has made some fantastic choices on when/how to cut a bunch of these scenes to mitigate the glaring flaws in the film's muddled and occasionally illogical and even lazy script. Most of them work flawlessly. I did feel like Fifield and Millburn got cheated out of their characters a bit in this version, having most of their lines cut. Granted, much of their dialogue wasn't that great to begin with, but now I have no idea who these people are, really. At the very least, the scene where they break from the rest of the exploratory party seemed needlessly truncated, with Fifield saying "I'm out of here" and taking Millburn along without a word from either him or the rest of the team. Many of the other characters benefit from added depth and more clearly-defined motivations though, thanks to some wisely reincorporated deleted footage. There is some stunning editing on display here, major things like rearranging scenes for better flow, as well as really subtle stuff like touching up unfinished SFX and adding sound cues to enhance atmosphere and cover edits. The color correction, likewise, is gorgeous. Mostly, I was on board with the extra music, although the selection does lean pretty hard on the original Alien theme and the volume is overwhelming in several spots. I watched the 3D blu-ray, and the picture was generally terrific, barring the few deleted scenes that required post-converting. The drop in quality is noticeable to the point of distraction, but I appreciate the effort to clean these scenes up and convert them to 3D in the first place. The film is better for having them included. Also, the entire disc is in side-by-side stereoscopic format, so it can be played on that 3D setting without having to burn to a disc, provided you have a way to mount the ISO. In conclusion, if you hated Prometheus, this probably won't change your mind. However, if, like me, you find it to be an enjoyable but deeply flawed film, give this edit a shot. It fixes many of the problems, and it carries a slightly stronger "Alien" vibe.

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