Why Does Prometheus Reuse Images from Alien?

[fonz]

Saw this film earlier this evening and I'm confused. There's a few things I can't get my head around, perhaps somebody could explain.

Also, don't read any further if you haven't seen the film.

Spoiler

What is that stuff the engineer drinks and why does he drink it? I get that it's to create life but it still doesn't make a lot of sense.

Where do all these different xenomorph's come from. The 'facehuggers' obviously come from the worms. That big tentacled thing comes from the offspring of humans and the alien comes from the engineer. In the original Alien the alien creature comes from a human, you see the confusion.

Also, what was it that attacked the engineers, where did it come from and where did it go?

 

[QuarkCharmer]

I thought this movie came out next week??

Man I need to get to the theater!

 

[gravenewworld]

Hollywood releases films abroad before the US.

 

[SHISHKABOB]

I am really looking forward to seeing this movie.

And am definitely not looking at those spoilers!

 

[ThomasT]

I am really looking forward to seeing this movie.

Me too!

And am definitely not looking at those spoilers!

I think you can view them without spoiling the movie for yourself. They're just questions about certain details, prior knowledge of which might actually contribute to your enjoyment of the movie.

If you've seen the trailers and read some of the commentary, then you're probably already aware of what will be revealed to you (in viewing it) as the movie's basic premise. Being aware of some details in advance sometimes enhances one's enjoyment of films like this (a large part of which, imo, is the cgi spectacle).

Apparently, the events in Prometheus are occurring long before the events in Alien. The planet that the human spacecraft Prometheus lands on is not the same planet that Nostromo landed on. The alien spacecraft in Prometheus isn't the same alien spacecraft in Alien. And the 'space jockey' in Prometheus (the apparent pilot of the alien spacecraft ) isn't the same 'space jockey' as in Alien.

But the 'space jockey' alien race, and their goal(s), is the key to the conflict in the plot of Prometheus.

 

[ME_student]

I am can't wait to see this movie! It's already out?

 

[alt]

It's been out in Australia for several days.

From the trailers, I was really looking forward to seeing it next weekend - that is, until I just saw it got 2 out of 5 stars from reviewers I consider reliable.

 

[dipole]

I've heard not good things about it.

 

[fonz]

Besides leaving a lot of questions unanswered it's actually a great film. Some of the dialogue is slightly weak but believe me it is definitely worth watching.

Actually I would consider it one of the better science fiction films I have seen in recent years.

 

[Insanity]

Rumor has it it is this film that potentially ruins 'At the Mountains of Madness' from coming to the screen, we shall see.

 

[ThomasT]

It's got an 8.1 at IMBD so far.

 

[ThomasT]

I watched a pirated Russian version. Fantastic visual spectacle. Lots of cool action. Can't wait to see it on the big screen. In English. It will be well worth 10 to 12 bucks imo. Bring your own snacks.

 

[Ryan_m_b]

I saw it last week, very good (even though most people can't act and the technobabble is a bit on the weird side). As to the questions:

Saw this film earlier this evening and I'm confused. There's a few things I can't get my head around, perhaps somebody could explain.

Also, don't read any further if you haven't seen the film.

What is that stuff the engineer drinks and why does he drink it? I get that it's to create life but it still doesn't make a lot of sense.

As far as I could make out it was something that was meant to break him up into a primordial soup. Why he had to commit suicide rather than just dump a bunch of chemicals and bacteria (or even just dump a dead body) is one of those plot devices meant to add drama and perhaps make these blue guys seem more badass.

What really confused me is exactly what he was trying to achieve vs what was actually achieved. It's implied that he is on a primordial Earth and that by dissolving himself into an ancient sea he created life on Earth. But then it doesn't make any sense that humans then just happened to evolve half a billion years later and that is what they wanted originally (this makes doubly less sense when they say that humans and these aliens have identical DNA when clearly they are very different and like the one biologist points out how the hell does that square with all the evidence, particularly genetic, for evolution on Earth?). It would have made far more sense and been a better plot piece IMO if they had taken the 2001: Space Odyssey approach and had one of these aliens approach a group of ancient primates and tinker with them.

Where do all these different xenomorph's come from. The 'facehuggers' obviously come from the worms. That big tentacled thing comes from the offspring of humans and the alien comes from the engineer. In the original Alien the alien creature comes from a human, you see the confusion.

Perhaps I missed something but I didn't hear anyone refer to them as "xenomorphs". As has been said above this isn't really a direct prequel to alien, we're not even sure if this is the same planet as found at the start of Alien (largely it wouldn't make sense that it was because in Alien and Aliens the various companies on Earth no nothing about it).

As to what the aliens are and how they link to others one of the characters guesses that the planet is a military research centre for developing biological weapons. From that perspective there could be other planets where the more conventional aliens can be found or they could be on other parts of this planet.

Also, what was it that attacked the engineers, where did it come from and where did it go?

I thought it was a given that some of these experiments got out of hand and turned on the engineers. A stranger plot point is why the aliens in the ship went into stasis rather than leaving.

 

[arildno]

Is Sir Ridley Scott going senile?

Mod note: Threads merged. Ryan_m_b[/color]

How COULD he lend his name to the dreadful Prometheus movie??

I saw it tonight, and we were NOT amused.

 

[ThomasT]

How COULD he lend his name to the dreadful Prometheus movie??

I saw it tonight, and we were NOT amused.

Really? I thought it was great ... and I've only seen it dubbed in Russian, which I'm not fluent in.

 

[arildno]

Really? I thought it was great ... and I've only seen it dubbed in Russian, which I'm not fluent in.

Hmm..let's see, for STARTERS:
1. What was the relevance of the opening scene and the portentious drinking from a cup? No eplanation was given.

2. What was the relevance of Daddy Shaw dying from the Ebola virus?? OR Dr. Shaw's childhood memories in general?

3. Why did the android infect Dr. Holloway with some blood drop?

4. How, and on what basis, did the captain suddenly realize that everything was a military installation and factory for producing biological weapons?

5. How did a tiny tentacle creep, securely locked in a room without access to food suddenly grow into gargantuan proportions??

6. Why did a military installation "hide" a spaceship beneath a big mound shaped like a head?? Why not just as some unobstrusive boulder?

7. How did the geologist become imbued with superman powers after infection, while the biologist just died?? Why didn't Holloway develop superman powers?

8. Didn't Prometheus even have metal detectors to find out that the whole ground was a huge launching pad, or something??

 

[KiwiKid]

Hellooo? Spoiler alert!

 

[arildno]

Hellooo? Spoiler alert!

Indeed! Thus, you need not see this multiply used diaper of a movie.

 

[KiwiKid]

Indeed! Thus, you need not see this multiply used diaper of a movie.

I actually stopped reading after 'for starters' when my brain realized you were going to provide a list of details. Luckily, I can still watch the movie and (likely) enjoy it.

 

[arildno]

And,
9. How the heck can a self-medicated sedative used during vivesection&operation suddenly turn into an energizer of Dr. Shaw's body??

There she was, running happily about, only minutes after having sawed out a tentacle thing from her abdomen...

 

[DaveC426913]

Hellooo? Spoiler alert!

Uh. Yuh. Plus 1.

 

[gravenewworld]

That bad huh? I knew this was going to be a film obsessed w special fx and cgi w a thin plot. Just goes to show that no matter how much you spend, if your script stinks your movie will too.

 

[arildno]

Uh. Yuh. Plus 1.

And one more:

10. Why was the design so un-Alien??
In the four previous movies, with generally deteriorating quality, the directors at least kept the spooky elegance intact throughout in how structures looked like.

Not so in this film, where the sets was broken apart, each with its own mini-design, and no overall feel to them.

the only thing faintly reminiscent of the old Alien environment was the control room in the old spaceship.

 

[zoobyshoe]

Is this another Alien sequal?

 

[arildno]

Is this another Alien sequal?

It is an Alien prequel, or tries to be. It seek to prove darwinism wrong (we were spliced together by an alien master race, who later on decided to kill us off by creating monsters. The monsters turned on the masers).
A cross seems to be important, too

 

[zoobyshoe]

It is an Alien prequel, or tries to be. It seek to prove darwinism wrong (we were spliced together by an alien master race, who later on decided to kill us off by creating monsters. The monsters turned on the masers).
A cross seems to be important, too

Yeah, that sounds nice and pointless.

 

[arildno]

Furthermore, the movie was etremely boring. It had a very low gore content, but that could have been a great advantage if the portrayals of the interpersonal relationships had been absorbing.
they were not. The dialogue was stiff and bad, motivations and intrigues without any depths, sudden friendships sprung up for no reason, seemingly age old friendships were suddenly assumed, but had never been developed and then all of a sudden, without any developing sense of necessity, the remaining crew decided to sacrifice themselves for the greater good.

The movie is a stinky old diaper.

 

[Ryan_m_b]

1. What was the relevance of the opening scene and the portentious drinking from a cup? No eplanation was given.

Agreed, though I stated my ideas above.

2. What was the relevance of Daddy Shaw dying from the Ebola virus?? OR Dr. Shaw's childhood memories in general?

As far as I could see it was an attempt to lay down some background for the character. You might want to also add to the list the fact that she couldn't get pregnant which is brought up once and never again.

3. Why did the android infect Dr. Holloway with some blood drop?

To see what would happen. David's behaviour in general seems to be towards studying the aliens and bringing them home (probably for profit).

4. How, and on what basis, did the captain suddenly realize that everything was a military installation and factory for producing biological weapons?

Well it was more of a hunch than anything and to be fair I thought that at one point before he said it.

5. How did a tiny tentacle creep, securely locked in a room without access to food suddenly grow into gargantuan proportions??

This annoyed me too. I consolled mysdself by assuming it ate the chair.

6. Why did a military installation "hide" a spaceship beneath a big mound shaped like a head?? Why not just as some unobstrusive boulder?

It wasn't hidden was it? I thought it was parked.

7. How did the geologist become imbued with superman powers after infection, while the biologist just died?? Why didn't Holloway develop superman powers?

Didn't the biologist got killed by the snake whereas the other two were infected by the black stuff? Holloway was burnt before he could fully change as well.

8. Didn't Prometheus even have metal detectors to find out that the whole ground was a huge launching pad, or something??

I was less impressed by their flying probes. Other than scanning the wall proportions they didn't seem to do anything. They didn't even have cameras.

9. How the heck can a self-medicated sedative used during vivesection&operation suddenly turn into an energizer of Dr. Shaw's body??

I didn't notice this.

There she was, running happily about, only minutes after having sawed out a tentacle thing from her abdomen...

The medical cabinet thing could have been done better (also I don't understand why it was just programmed for men if the person who owned it is a woman), it's meant to be used by one (presumably sick) person so you'd hope the machine could medicate by itself. It was sort of implied that the surgery was using quite advanced technology by sealing her tissue before stapling it but that's not really gone over.

As for her running about, I did wonder if people would find that less believable than the stereotypical male protagonist of most action films who regularly gets battered, bruised and shot but still manages to fight and survive will little more than a limp.

10. Why was the design so un-Alien??
In the four previous movies, with generally deteriorating quality, the directors at least kept the spooky elegance intact throughout in how structures looked like.

Not so in this film, where the sets was broken apart, each with its own mini-design, and no overall feel to them.

the only thing faintly reminiscent of the old Alien environment was the control room in the old spaceship.

I've read in multiple interviews that it wasn't meant to be alien, It's meant to be it's own thing loosely linked.

 

[ThomasT]

The movie starts tomorrow in Fort Lauderdale at the IMAX theater downtown. It's in 3D. We'll probably wait until this weekend or next week to see it ... to avoid the early crowds.

 

[Greg Bernhardt]

I've read in multiple interviews that it wasn't meant to be alien, It's meant to be it's own thing loosely linked.

That was their downfall. There is so much content in the Alien universe. I've read many of the spin off books and they would make fantastic movies. Alien was one of the best sci fi creatures of all time, why invent something else? Dang I was really looking forward to this. Hollywood is so trash.

 

[ThomasT]

We have tickets for Tuesday afternoon at the local IMAX. I'll post my impression(s), any lingering (for me) questions/confusions, and any answers/resolutions (imo) following my viewing and discussion of the film with my fellow viewers.

 

[QuarkCharmer]

I saw it this afternoon. Then I came home and watched Alien Resurrection (arguably the worst of the films, excluding that wretched Aliens v. Predators thing). My impression? Meh

The visual effects of the Prometheus craft were great, but basically everything taking place off the ship was boring. The plot has too many holes, especially when compared to the lore of the original films, but, even overlooking that, the plot by itself makes little sense.

Summary:

Spoiler

People follow star-map from cave paintings to meet god-race, only to find out they were planning on sending a virus/alien back to Earth for some reason.

I just don't get it. It didn't feel like anyone in the film would have had the motivation to do any of the things they did. They just acted randomly through the whole film.

There also wasn't nearly enough of that spaceship ambient "engines idling" sound that I love so much.

 

[ThomasT]

I saw it this afternoon. Then I came home and watched Alien Resurrection (arguably the worst of the films, excluding that wretched Aliens v. Predators thing). My impression? Meh

I thought Alien Resurrection was cool (I liked it better than Aliens and Alien III), though imo Dan Hedaya was miscast and Freeman's and Dourif's characterizations a bit ... overdone. I thought AvP was more realistic/believable, and thoroughly enjoyed it. Of course the best were the original Alien and Predator films, because of their originality.

I just don't get it. It didn't feel like anyone in the film would have had the motivation to do any of the things they did. They just acted randomly through the whole film.

Ok. I'm curious to see what my impression/reaction will be.

There also wasn't nearly enough of that spaceship ambient "engines idling" sound that I love so much.

This seems like an extremely personal thing, the exploration of which is, imo, beyond the scope of the OP.

 

[Curious3141]

Just came back from an afternoon 3d-screening. Absolutely no one else in the theatre.

Impression: absolute crap.

My most cringe-worthy moment was when Holloway said: "One small step for mankind" without apparent irony. Oh god...

I had not read this thread or any others on the internet to keep myself "unspoilered". I'd gone on the strength of a 74% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Guess what - I'm not trusting *that* website anymore.

 

[bugatti79]

After watching that film, I cannot help but think in my wild imagination that Craig Venter will be the founding Father of the future 'Engineers' whom created new life and spread it across the Universe...so that in many light years time a 'Prometheus' will come back to Earth to look for their creators (Craig and his Engineers in California.)
Indeed we could be the first intelligent species in the Universe considering that the Universe is very young and considering the estimated lifespan of same :-)...lol

(Of course the issue of who created Craig/Engineers/us still remains but that issue wasn't resolved in the film either :-))

 

[BobG]

It is an Alien prequel, or tries to be. It seek to prove darwinism wrong (we were spliced together by an alien master race, who later on decided to kill us off by creating monsters. The monsters turned on the masers).
A cross seems to be important, too

For that matter, why would biologists open up their spacesuits and expose themselves to an alien biosphere just because the air was breathable. I would say the guy deserved to be burnt, but everyone followed his example.

Basically, the crew didn't exhibit enough intelligence to be on that type of expedition - or else the old man was attracted to the ideas of dysfunctional crackpots, which pretty much ensured the scientists he brought along would do dumb things.

The medical cabinet thing could have been done better (also I don't understand why it was just programmed for men if the person who owned it is a woman), it's meant to be used by one (presumably sick) person so you'd hope the machine could medicate by itself. It was sort of implied that the surgery was using quite advanced technology by sealing her tissue before stapling it but that's not really gone over.

The medical cabinet was for the old man. In fact, the whole expedition was designed for the old man, in spite of his daughter running the show.

 

[Ryan_m_b]

For that matter, why would biologists open up their spacesuits and expose themselves to an alien biosphere just because the air was breathable. I would say the guy deserved to be burnt, but everyone followed his example.

Basically, the crew didn't exhibit enough intelligence to be on that type of expedition - or else the old man was attracted to the ideas of dysfunctional crackpots, which pretty much ensured the scientists he brought along would do dumb things.

And as if a biologist would use the term "darwinism" rather than "evolution" and limit their protest to a mere token sentance.

 

[ThomasT]

We saw it yesterday afternoon (there were maybe 50 people in the 300 seat theater). The sensory experience of the IMAX 3D was cool. The movie, visually and auditorally (that is, the music and sound effects, not the dialogue), was cool -- and that was the level on which I enjoyed it. I'd give it about a 5 on a ten point scale.

One of the things that sticks in my mind is, as others have mentioned, everybody being so quick to take their helmets off.

Ironically it's often the contrivances that filmmakers use to gain a wide audience that ensure that their films won't have as wide an audience as they might have had they not used the contrivances.

They did a great job marketing this though. I wonder if they'll break even on their investment.

 

[Ryan_m_b]

One of the things that sticks in my mind is, as others have mentioned, everybody being so quick to take their helmets off.

This is a common thing in films, I guess because film makers (proably correctly) that an audience will relate less to characters hidden behind masks. Though having said that the helmets in prometheus were large glass bubbles so...

The worst example of mask removing in a film that springs to my mind is the first Resident Evil film. In it a group of special forces types bust into a mansion that hides a train station leading to a secret underground research facility. The facility, station and mansion have all been flooded with gas at some point killing most people. Within seconds of busting through the mansion windows one of them waves a sensor around and declares the air contains only residual gas, they remove their gas masks and keep them off never bothering to worry that the sealed underground facilities could still contain gas nor that the severe case of zombies possibly would warrent protecting oneself from airborne contaminants my willing suspension of disbelief quickly collapsed

 

[ThomasT]

From what I'm reading, Prometheus is going to lose lots of money. I think that's fitting. Scott could have made a great movie. Instead he made a mediocre movie (albeit with some great special effects). Oh well.

 

[Curious3141]

in many light years time

Seriously? I know this is GD, but this is still a Physics forum, you know?

 

[nucl34rgg]

The movie had an awesome setting and amazing visual effects, but it was ruined by a genuinely stupid script imo. (I don't mean thematically. I mean some of the decisions made by the characters were laughably stupid, and they ruined the movie for me.)

 

[ThomasT]

The movie had an awesome setting and amazing visual effects, but it was ruined by a genuinely stupid script imo. (I don't mean thematically. I mean some of the decisions made by the characters were laughably stupid, and they ruined the movie for me.)

I agree. In fact, the more I think about this movie (I saw it in IMAX 3D and loved the visual and sound effects) the more I want to give it a lower rating than I previously did. It's currently down to a 4 out of 10, imho.

Just way too many silly, imo, contrivances written into the screenplay. Quite disappointing on that level.

 

[cepheid]

SPOILERS
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5. How did a tiny tentacle creep, securely locked in a room without access to food suddenly grow into gargantuan proportions??

This annoyed me too. I consolled mysdself by assuming it ate the chair.

Umm...you guys have seen the original Alien, have you not? If so, then why wouldn't it bother you just as much that the chest burster grew into an adult xenomorph in a matter of hours with no apparent source of nutrients? And if you did see it, and it did bother you at the time, why sound so surprised about more of the same?

Hmm..let's see, for STARTERS:
3. Why did the android infect Dr. Holloway with some blood drop?

Here's a kind of joke explanation that went through my mind:

David: "Hmm, I wonder if this black ooze coming out of these canisters might be a serum that will give Weyland the immortality he seeks? I will find out what it it does by testing it on one of the humans.

Holloway: "Gaaaaaarrrrrgggggh!"

David: "I guess not."

4. How, and on what basis, did the captain suddenly realize that everything was a military installation and factory for producing biological weapons?

I assumed that he were merely speculating based on the information at hand, and the audience was not necessarily meant to assume that he was right, although the fact that they were heading to Earth with a cargo hold full of the stuff, ostensibly to erase their creation, sort of lends credence to his theory of biological weapons.

I think Ryan_m_b has addressed most of your other points. The plot of the movie was definitely its weakest part, but I thought the film had other merits.

I've read in multiple interviews that it wasn't meant to be alien, It's meant to be it's own thing loosely linked.

Yeah, regarding the aesthetic, I also read that they had to use brighter lighting to accommodate the 3D cameras, and then added the characteristic gloom and shadows in post production. The human's ship may not have been as dark and claustrophobic as in the original film, but I thought that the Engineers' facility certainly was very Giger-esque (makes sense considering that he worked on it and that they were trying to duplicate the same type of chambers where the original "space jockey" was seen).

You want to talk about plot flaws? If the Engineers' civilization is still around (as implied by Shaw going to seek them out at the end), then why didn't they get around to wiping out humanity as they apparently planned to? And if they forgot or just decided not to, then wouldn't it be a really BAD idea to remind them of their plan and draw their attention back to Earth and humanity again by going to seek them out on their homeworld? I read that one reviewer criticized the characters in this movie for not having common sense and not being pragmatic, and I agree 100%. What's more, what the hell is Shaw going to eat on her interstellar journey? It seems like, after beating the odds and expending so much effort to try and survive, her best move would have been to go back home so that her efforts weren't in vain.

 

[ThomasT]

Umm...you guys have seen the original Alien, have you not? If so, then why wouldn't it bother you just as much that the chest burster grew into an adult xenomorph in a matter of hours with no apparent source of nutrients?

Yeah, I saw it in a movie theatre in 1979. Made no sense. But just like Prometheus, a cool visual experience. My current opinion: Ridley Scott makes visually arresting yet idiotic scifi movies. He's definitely not the one who will make the definitive (wrt, realistic mise en scene, plot, dialogue, etc.) scifi movie.

Here's a kind of joke explanation that went through my mind:

David: "Hmm, I wonder if this black ooze coming out of these canisters might be a serum that will give Weyland the immortality he seeks? I will find out what it it does by testing it on one of the humans.

Holloway: "Gaaaaaarrrrrgggggh!"

David: "I guess not."

Actually, this action by David isn't nearly as silly as, eg., the guys in the alien structure making nice with the snakelike thing that emerged from the black ooze.

It's conceivable that he's been programmed to put Weyland's interests foremost. Holloway is just a biological experimental medium. Ie., you have an empirical question -- only one way to find the answer.

You want to talk about plot flaws? If the Engineers' civilization is still around (as implied by Shaw going to seek them out at the end), then why didn't they get around to wiping out humanity as they apparently planned to?

Good point. One might conjecture that the being that the humans encountered, and the being in the beginning of the movie, were actually artificial life forms, ie., bioengineered robots, like David, but on a much more sophisticated level.

And if they forgot or just decided not to, then wouldn't it be a really BAD idea to remind them of their plan and draw their attention back to Earth and humanity again by going to seek them out on their homeworld?

Shaw going to the alien planet with the help of David's head makes as little sense as dozens of other things in the movie. But it is a precursor to a sequel, which probably won't happen if this one loses as much money as I think it will.

I read that one reviewer criticized the characters in this movie for not having common sense and not being pragmatic, and I agree 100%.

It's not EVEN that their behavior isn't commonsensical. They behave absolutely stupidly at times. Despite the great visuals and sound, the screenplay made this movie a less than satisfactory experience ... wrt my expectations.

What's more, what the hell is Shaw going to eat on her interstellar journey? It seems like, after beating the odds and expending so much effort to try and survive, her best move would have been to go back home so that her efforts weren't in vain.

Yes. That would have made sense. But the movie doesn't make sense. It's not just that there are unanswered questions that remain for the audience to speculate about. The problem is that the people who made the movie, although quite skilled in the craft of movie making, apparently aren't especially smart or knowledgeable otherwise. They're going to lose a LOT of money on this one -- essentially, I think, because the prevailing wisdom in movieland regarding realistic scifi films and their prospective audiences is a bit off the mark.

 

[Ryan_m_b]

They're going to lose a LOT of money on this one -- essentially, I think, because the prevailing wisdom in movieland regarding realistic scifi films and their prospective audiences is a bit off the mark.

According to Wikipedia the film has already made $30 million profit. Considering the long build up and dedicated marketing it's not surprising.

 

[ThomasT]

According to Wikipedia the film has already made $30 million profit. Considering the long build up and dedicated marketing it's not surprising.

My understanding is that the break even point for a big budget film is generally about two times the reported production cost. If that's the case with Prometheus, then it's still about $100 million in the red.

 

[Antiphon]

It all fit together nicely for me and made sense.

The black stuff is not a weapon it's a "life bullion". That's why it's all over Earth's cave paintings. When the Engineers came here millions of years after seeding primordial Earth (opening scene) they were explaining to us where we come from, hence the cave paintings.

The large human head in the room with the vials of seed indicate that that room's juice was meant to (or had) produced that particular being.

The alien is not alien-like but worm-like because the goo leaked and hit some worms (shown in movie). Apparently the goo takes whatever DNA it hits and aggressively rearranges it using some unknown parameters.

When the worm-alien ate the Engineer, it continued the process of absorbing and modifying genetic data. Hence the conversion from wormlike to head-like. Presumably in future prequals it will encounter insects. If you watch the TV show "Monster Bug Wars" you'll see the bases for the alien we all know and love.

The rest all made sense too but I have to go eat breakfast now :)

 

[Antiphon]

Done with breakfast.

As for the why the revived Engineer was hostile; there could be many explanations taken from our own experience. An advanced race has to have advanced politics and advanced revolutions.

Here are just the obvious ones that come to mind:

1) He's part of a terrorist organization bent on destroying the works of his own civilization. This fits with the holographic accident showing how they failed in their mission; they broke into this place to steal the goo so they could wipe the Earth out. But they screwed up, it got loose, and their mission failed. Not much different than a plot for flying jets into skyscrapers.

2) They've decided we've gone ugly as a species and time to press the reset button. Not likely they'd feel that way but fits in with all the other low-grade "man is bad" morality plays eminating from Hollywood.

This movie has its weaknesses but I think it will be treated more kindly over time, much like Bladerunner- a movie almost universally panned by critics and drawing a lot of "huh?"s from moviegoers.

 

[cepheid]

The alien is not alien-like but worm-like because the goo leaked and hit some worms (shown in movie). Apparently the goo takes whatever DNA it hits and aggressively rearranges it using some unknown parameters.

I'm not sure about the rest of your theories, but I think that this was a good catch, as was your catch about the Engineers seeding the oceans with the primordial soup (although Ryan_m_b pointed this out first)