Prometheus: The Art of the Film (Book)
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Written by Mark Salisbury
Foreword by Ridley Scott
Published by Titan Books
Hopefully, most of you have seen the film Prometheus by now. If not, go do so. We’ll wait…
Now everyone should have seen the film. Not that I’m going to spoil anything; you should just really go see this movie. Go to a theater, buy the Blu-ray, do whatever you have to do, man. It’s a fantastic movie, and I guarantee you’ll find someone to debate with about it.
Also, if you don’t see the movie, you can’t read this book. I mean, you could, but you’ll have every single major plot point spoiled. That’s the beauty of this book: It’s not just an art book. Author Salisbury does more than just collect pretty pictures of the production of the film. Knowing that the end product was intentionally vague and left some questions unanswered, he wisely included quite a bit of behind-the-scenes text to clarify some points and give the reader even more value for the money.
Love the film or hate it, nobody denies that it’s a gorgeous production. Scott’s previous sci-fi films were trendsetters with the look and feel of their worlds, and Prometheus continues on that theme. Working closely with production designer Arthur Max, Scott puts every penny of the film’s budget on screen. This book details the creative process that went into the production but also provides excellent photographs showing sets and props you don’t see well on screen.
What shocked me most after reading this book is just how much Scott insisted on being done practically, as opposed to digitally with CGI. The answer is nearly everything. Sure, digital cleanup was done, backgrounds were added, but if something could be done practically, that’s how Scott did it. I guarantee after reading this, you’ll find at least one effect you are 100% was done digitally, only to find it was a model or makeup.
While the art is amazing and the views of the film in production are stunning, the biggest value in the book for those who have seem the film is that view into Scott’s mind and creative process. By showing the evolution of the production, as well as some unused footage, readers are given a great deal of clarification on events in the film. Knowing what was intended patches some gaps in understanding that come with an intentionally vague film such as this.
It’s a gorgeous volume, well constructed and written, featuring art and photos from one of the most beautiful and original science fiction/horror films in the last 20 years. What are you waiting for? Go buy this thing.
5 out of 5
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