Damon Lindelof speaks candidly with the WSJ about Prometheus
In his usual brutally honest self, Prometheus co-scribe Damon Lindelof speaks with film reporter Rachel Dodes of the Wall Street Journal about the Prometheus viral campaign, mistakes in the film that were intentional, and dealing with some of the backlash particularly on Twitter. Here’s an excerpt from their lengthy and candid discussion:
WSJ: A lot of fans scrutinize every line in this film like it’s the Bible. And you tend to respond to their very detailed questions.
Lindelof: My feeling is: this is what I signed up for. I am driven and captivated and interested in these open-ended stories that have a high level of interpretation to them. There’s a certain level of frustration that comes with that package. So, when I was involved in the movie just looking at tiny little effects, naming planets and star systems, you have to be responsible. Charlize [Theron] has a line in the movie where she says, “I wouldn’t be half a billion miles away from every man on earth if I wanted to get laid.” And Neil deGrasse Tyson [the well-known astrophysicist] came out said “This would put her somewhere in the neighborhood of Jupiter, when they are much, much further out.” I chose not to say anything because the line was intentional. It had been dinged before we even shot it. But we stuck by it for reasons I don’t feel like discussing.
Reading the entire interview (link below), he seems to have some animosity regarding his involvement in Prometheus. So it’s no surprise that he won’t be a part of Prometheus 2. Anyhow, check out the entire interview at the source http://blogs.wsj.com/speakeasy/2012/08/03/prometheus-screenwriter-damon-lindelof-tweets-all.
Very interesting, indeed.
vory ontorosting ondoid haw haw haw
“I am driven and captivated and interested in these open-ended stories that have a high level of interpretation to them.”
Aren’t we all.
But he’s still an ass writer!
He’s not good enough to write those kinds of stories.
Lindelofs version of open to interpretation is something absolutely stupid along the lines of:
“Hey, what if aliens made apples, but apples were actually space crystals made out of thought energy!
2000 years ago!
Isn’t that mindblowing?!”
He’s just not very talented.
And if he is at all its only to the much lower bar of network television and 12 year old sci-fi tards who thought that sharktopus was a great idea.
But once again, Ridley is also to blame for allowing lindelof to happen by ignoring everything except the visuals.
Maybe Ridley should try oil paints and brushes instead.
True
False.
Aye.
robtom or whoever you are, i think you were a lazy audience-member [member being the operative term]. but even had you not been, the beauty of Prometheus would have been wasted on you.
the data was coming atcha, but the OS hung [hardware broken/inadequate]
“…But we stuck by it for reasons I don’t feel like discussing.”
Just wow!
What a schmuck!
Putting them in the Orbit of Jupiter is yet another nod to 2001, among other things. It’s not the writers job to spell out the subtext, because that tends to inhibit the critical discussion. Its awful when writers do try to do that.
Why should that make any sense? What has Prometheus to do with 2001? And the particular scene where the Astronaut meets the ancient space Monument in the Orbit of Jupiter in 2001?
Does that add anything to the story than confusion? It doesnt make a good film adding passages of Tolstoy into a film, as soon as it leads to a deeper connection with the film.
Prometheus is just a bag full of allegories, tricking the viewer into something that is intended to look deep an meaningfull. Whats the message of the film? What´s to learn from it?
it’s annoying that it should need to be spelled out. some of us enjoy putting the grey matter to use, believe it or not
‘things are not always what they seem’
‘look before you leap’
‘life is under no obligation to give us what we expect’
‘there are more things in heaven and earth, horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophy’
‘science gathers knowledge faster than society gathers wisdom’
‘where there’s life there’s hope’
use your noggin, sloth-like one. come up with something. and while you’re at it, try to work out why references to other works of art are fun for people to find. why might that be, forsooth????????
Telling that he didn’t get through this interview without providing unsatisfying, open-ended answers that don’t make any sense, but I digress…
There is no reason to bag on the guy personally, especially on an anonymous Internet. Let’s just stick with the facts.
His body of work clearly demonstrates that he is just not good with dramatic structure. (Particularly the resolution part – but everything else has to be crafted for that.)
However, he is EXCELLENT at providing open-ended questions. So if you’re a filmmaker, I would think if you brought him in to provide a few of these elements (that would be COMPLETELY tangential to the main narrative) it would be ideal.
Unfortunately for Lindelof, if he wanted to assuage the storm of criticism he’s fairly received for the bad elements of Prometheus, he would have to (a) apologize for the mistakes that he can own, and (b) fully explain the film and all the elements that make ZERO sense at all.
He might do (a), but (b) isn’t going to happen. Here’s why:
I think most people incorrectly assume that somewhere, there are answers to the film that make sense of it all, and provide some sort of reasonable resolution. My thinking is that this idea is wrong; These answers do not exist, and they never did.
Thats a well reasoned summation and I agree with it.
I wish I could be so analytical.
Indeed. I’ve often called Lindelof’s writing as “faux iceberg”, referring to the theory of omission.
The difference being that with Hemingway there indeed is a lot of substance beneath the surface, but with Lindelof there is none (if you discount shallow pop-culture/philosophy/religion references).
This didn’t prevent me enjoying Prometheus, however. It’s far from awe-inspiring visions Alien or serious idea-scifi (think 2001, Moon, Solaris), but a fun, exciting B-ish scifi-romp with intriguing view of the future.
Waiting for the sequel!
indeed, indeed… so you’re the kind of person who’s satisfied with being self-satisfied after using the term ‘faux iceberg’. well said, well said.
now write a screenplay entirely free of shallow pop-culture/philosophy/religion references. beware; your idiot audience will be the judge of what’s shallow, and if they don’t understand what you’re trying to do, they’ll smack you with that label faster than you can say B-ish, you condescending, transparently B-grade intellect.
‘romp’ my arse. god, you serve your stupidity on a silver platter
[think R2D2, rimmer].
disagree. they exist. don’t overlook editorial decisions in what’s given and what’s withheld
“There is no reason to bag on the guy personally, …”
I agree.
And I regret doing that.
But when he comes off so smug, doing an interview and then when addressed regarding an issue with his responsibility he just says “I dont feel like discussing it !”
I cant help the feeling that he is the one insulting anyone who questions him.
For a guy so fixated on questions!
I really would rather not hate that person!
It doesn’t make me feel good.
But I am an Alien Super-Fan!
And he has inserted himself into my world and disrespected me!
he wrote a script for a movie you didn’t like. stop acting like he ruined your life.
If that script and my life dont matter,
then why are you bitching at me?!
Get a hobby homo!
I’ve got one.
I never said your life didn’t matter.
Here, have a hug from me.
My apologies RobThom.
I fully agree with you about Lindelof coming off a bit smug in the interview with that one statement. I literally thought the same thing when I read it, and wanted to give you props for not missing that.
The bit about not bagging on him personally was kind of a general thing, not about your post. All the personal attacks on the guy – here and elsewhere – are really pointless on an anonymous Internet.
I feel a bit sorry for Damon, reading all that hate on Twitter every morning. It’s gotta take a toll somehow.
I hear you. Criticism is one thing. It will help him and refine him as a writer and a person. The hateful stuff, not really so great to the mind or to your fellow man.
I’ve thought of the parallels this draws to David Fincher’s Alien 3 experience. That man slaved on that film for 2 years, only to have to end up having to agree with everyone who said “I didn’t like that film”.
No doubt that sort of motivation to get past that (somewhat unfair) branding he got from that film forged him into the great filmmaker he is today. Fight Club is probably one of the best and most important films of that decade.
Accordingly, I’m optimistic about Lindelof’s future work. I bet it gets phenomenally good in the very near future. I wish him the best anyway.
I disagree. Damon Lindelof turned this film into a complete circus which should have been an epic and Ridley Scott is just as responsible. David Fincher is a phenomenal director and the problems with Fincher’s Alien 3 don’t lie with him, it lies with the studio. If your a fan of this franchise, then surely you have seen the workprint/assembly cut of this film. It is a completely different film than the theatrical cut that Fox butchered to hell. Lindelof is a fucking joke of a screenwriter.
i blame ridley scott all the way. lindelof was too busy being star struck
ok so there are one or two directorial glitches in the areas of character interpretation and editing. this seems to have been somewhat more loosely directed or edited, or both, than some of his other films. that’s a separate issue.
all the anti-lindelof bitchery arises out of the fact that people have had their expectations frustrated in a few areas not related to the above. they have expected, but not been given;
1. clearly stated answers in both plot and values
2. answers that unambiguously support a dominant value system
3. answers that remind the viewer of his/her preferred self-image
4. answers in keeping with the dominant value system, belonging to which the viewer is pleasurably reminded of
5. answers presented in a familiar story format/template
6. the expected genre [wonder not a popular emotion for horror fans]
7. a straightforward hero for a leading protagonist rather than a multi-dimensional anti-heroine
8. closure [unlike the open-ended nature of reality].
9. above all, answers that obviate any necessity for self-reflection
we are asked to do some work, and in consideration of the importance of the themes, yours truly is totally thrilled with this and completely forgiving of any flaws the film may have. much in the film was extremely moving and wondrous. on top of which the ‘virals’ [so cheesy, calling htem that] are brilliant. watching that long transmission, the aerial landscape shots married to that incredible choral music, made every hair on my legs stand up. this is a timely film, with all that apocalyptic bollox that’s going round. it is being suggested that we think hard about who and what we are, how we might have come about, how much we’re going to cherish each other and our planet. bravo r scott, lindelof and all concerned.
your writing style comes straight out of women’s weekly. “he inserted himself”?
for a person so fixated on making a clever impression!
apologise to r scott for what you said, scutters-mouth
@brianc
he’s trying not to issue spoilers. that’s hard for you to perceive???
I loved his work for prometheus , from the writing of the virals to giving Scott exactly what he wanted , word for word .
Great movie
Great experience
Great its getting a sequel
Thats an opinion.
And I’m somewhat enthusiastic for you.
As long as he made you happy,
there is something to admire aboot it.
Unfortunately he has also infuriated me, but your happiness salves it just a little bit.
He infuriated you because you’re retarded and need to be spoonfed.
On the contrary,
its 12 year old dipshits who need to learn the difference between their own tiny peckers and dogshit.
Hey Rob go suck you’re on tiny pecker obviously you’re too simple to see how great this film was, so go eat yourself!!!
i’m sorry i was so mean to you
Lol I’m a bad person!! Lol that was funny Sepulcro 2
By not a great movie. I dont know your standards but, I know its a dead horse, for myself, its not even close.
And Lindelof still doesn’t get it. Most people that complained, did so because on a very basic narrative level, the movie blew. Nothing made sense. So the backlash had nothing to do with his crap ‘lost’ like writing idea but just that the entire script was shit, not just his ideas.
Not gonna chew through all the examples again but if you really liked Prometheus, your simply happy with mediocre film work. Period. Sounds dogmatic, I know but its true. Watch Alien, The Godfather, Blade Runner and call those great movies instead….
Strange. Alien, The Godfather & Blade Runner are on the very top of my favorite films of all time, I live by them, but I also happen to enjoy Prometheus quite a lot. Where does that put me in your scale of taste? Things aren’t so black and white my friend. Try changing your mindset, it might make you enjoy life a tad more.
Are you a girl?
i want to be a girl, maybe you can help me?
How very clever of you.
I suppose I’m mildly impressed.
nothing made any sense?
the movie makes alot od sense.
maybe from now on , look for the disclaimer at the begining of a movie that explains that some thinking IS required. in future i think this will help you decide beforehand if you should watch the movie or not……………..K? ok.
Put it this way prometheusfire08, stupid, uncultured, herd mentality individuals will say Prometheus didn’t make sense and talk nonsense about it….us smarter people, we can enjoy it for the masterpeice it is. And that my friend is a fact.
Word!
Nope!
It dont make a lot od sense…
you’re.
YOU’RE!!!!!!!!
buzz lightbrain, i love the way you deploy commas. and your syntax in general. it’s the perfect indicator for your level of capacity to ‘get’ Prometheus.
I really don’t understand all the hate this guy gets.
its not really hate , its love.
these people just dont understand their own urges .
One day you will learn the difference between right and wrong.
maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow…
I enjoy sodomizing rodents.
i prefer goats
Goats are good but I gotta say I got a thing for walruses…
i am the walrus!!!
Goo goo coo chu!
Hate? Love? If it affects the human being’s psyche, thats called terrorism. We terrorised him like any other human being who is capable of creating or being creative. Its just that the people who do it, aren’t necessarily the majority. just some random troll.
You’re in a desert Leon, and you see a tortoise…
Stop pretending to be me!!
Are you me?
You suck!
i love to suck… mmm yeah baby
I want to have sex with a trisexual goat!!!!!
I’m me not you!!!
lol u win.
Buzzfunk, stop criticizing people that liked the movie, you elitist jerk. You’re opinion on the film isn’t fact. Enough people liked the movie including critics, and you aren’t smarter than them. BTW, Alien is a b-movie with the same kind of “plot holes” (aka mysterious plot elements) with a-movie production values. Just because you have to wait for a movie to exist for 30 years doesn’t mean people aren’t allowed to enjoy new films because of elitist nonsense..
“…you elitist jerk.”
Uh huh…
Anyone who disagrees with you is an elitist!
Having any taste, standards or conflicting opinion is so savoir faire.
Rob your credibility is at ZERO, you talk to yourself like a psycho…
want a chocolate?
I’d preffer fecal matter over chocolate.
*vom* now that was tmi
robin, actually
I call it like I see it. Expecting everyone to have the same tastes as you is also what I would call idiocy.
Let’s all just hope for a better sequel and they get it right next time and make a good Alien film. I don’t know about you but I am thrilled Lindelof is out! Peace
Lindelof has only done one thing……proved that he is the biggest hack of a screenwriter in not just television but film as well.
If by hack, you mean BEST
Get out of here, punk kid.
I fuck your mamma…
….and your pet hamster
leave harry out of this :<
IMO, lindelof AND Ridley have failed!
A Prometheus sequel would be better off without either of them!
At least at the creative level.
Ridley, and I suppose lindelof would still collect producer and character residuals,
but lindelof is a no talent extension of the tyrannical hollywood regime,
and Ridley is a wobbling and confused old pooter.
I’m not sure how to save this one,
but it doesn’t involve ridley or lindelof at the creative level.
And I love speaking to myself and sodomizing rodents.
i like squirrels
did i tell u about my proclivity for goat sex?
Just for the record, I did not say I like squirrels. You homos keep your beastiality fetish to yourself. lol
i have a xeno fan fetish
Everyone come to my house and lets have an orgy with me and pet badger!!!!! I can borrow my friend’s orangutan as well!!!!!!!!
anal bear monster, do you have any cake? i really fancy a nice slice of carrot cake right now
Yes I do have carrot cake! I even put my special Beluga Whale semen icing on it!!!
I am glad I have fans. :O
“IMO, lindelof AND Ridley have failed!”
IMO, the fact that the comment is an opinion goes without saying, so “IMO” is redundant and only serves to draw attention to you, which IMO is the main point of your puerile vitriol. maybe you’re a failed film maker who once knew the writer or director socially briefly and got snubbed.
“Ridley, and I suppose lindelof would still collect producer and character residuals, but lindelof is a no talent extension of the tyrannical hollywood regime,”
the fact you give a sh1t what residuals are suggests you’re somewhere in the hollywood machine or in some way trying to be creative according to your limited capabilities, and not doing well by it.
“and Ridley is a wobbling and confused old pooter.”
that you’re a real person presumably rather than a troll able to assume characters with well-rounded psychopathies prompts me to ask- how the hell can you live with saying something so frigging offensive about a filmmaker with more creativity in his nasal hairs than you’ve ever had or will have in your entire hole-ridden luftsack of a self?
“I’m not sure how to save this one,”
i think it would be by eliminating those elements of the audience that are under-appreciative by screening “Clueless” at the same time.
I love this film! Why? Cause I find myself thinking about it on a daily basis since I have seen it in May! It’s inspiring. For me Prometheus has a quite subversive message: There is no bigger sense in creation! God had no masterplan for mankind! There might be no God! And we shouldn’t challenge those wo created us for they will defend the gift of creating! Cause we cannot create life, just death and destruction!
thats funny, because I have been trying to erase this film from my mind.
maybe u should try hypnosis??
maybe you should stop pretending to be someone your not.
stop pretending to be me!!
please stop, it’s getting tedious now.
everyone knows who the real Xeno Fan is…fuckin posers
YOU’RE, GODDAMMIT
“So it’s no surprise that he won’t be a part of Prometheus 2.”
Good!
YES, I think the sequel is going to be top notch with Lindeldick gone.
To all the PROMETHEUS FANS…..Did IQ’s just drop while I was away!
“What you say Rip?, cant hear ya” and by the way that’s the perfect thing to say to people who disliked the film….
…for all the wrong reasons.
agreed.
I like to stroke one out on the Nostromo
no u don’t dude
Right…
Right…
Can someone explain this movie to me?
what is there to explain? it sux lol
How did you not get it? Obviously the other anonymous person above is a simple minded retard, but if you’re half way intelligent you should get it, It’s all there, trust me, use your brain!
i know, i just wanted to see how many people in the forum drink Lindelof’s bath water.
its pretty tasty actually. maybe u should try it
Your comment is awaiting moderation.
lol
Hey can you please buy me a Horse?…
No. Now stop impersonating me.
thats because your a fag.
I’m sick of these people impersonating me, Xeno it’s kinda your fault for stirring the pot…
Why are you insulting me??
cmon guys, its got out of hand now.
You are so full of shit.
I’d prefer fecal matter, over shit.
Thanks for finally writing about > Damon Lindelof speaks candidly with the WSJ about Prometheus
Yes, its good news….we will finally get a good Alien film.
Alien=Classic Prometheus=Shit
Eloquently put.
Perfectly put, if you’re a dumb ass like Rob. Put it this way
Alien = Classic, Prometheus = Modern Classic
Unless you asses prefer stuff like Transformers and Twilight. And remember Blade Runner was disliked when it came out by people such as yourself from another past generation..
Agreed with anonymous 2, Prometheus is like Blade Runner, most people didn’t get it when it was released….so glad I got Blade Runner back in ’82 and so happy I got Prometheus now in ’12, hahahaha
No comparison. So many different cuts of Blade Runner. Time will tell if Prometheus will suffer the same fate, but I highly doubt it.
I did not say this. Prometheus will never compare to classics such as Blade Runner and Alien. Never!
Pst, Prometheus is already a modern classic, Alien and Blade Runner are just older classics.
You people are fucking brainwashed. Enough said.
Or maybe you are blind, Mr. Xeno….think about it.
probably not
Prometheus was a masterpiece, easily the best film of 2012, far superior than the rest.
TDKR will crush your little Prometheus to dust
Dude TDKNR was good but it aint in the same league as Prometheus fuck no! TDKR is just another mainstream film, exactly the opposite of Prometheus which is directed toward an intelligent audience.
TDKNR/6.9/10, Prometheus/9.5/10
Prometheus beats the shit out of Dark Knight Rises….put it this way TDKR makes you wish it’s the end of the series, Prometheus makes excited for future sequels…that is a fact.
Yeah fuck batman!, Prometheus was much better
Ehhhhhhh I did not like TDKR…no where near as good as TDK….so Prometheus does win this time.
Yeah TDKR rises wasn’t bad, but I expected more, Prometheus did deliver unlike batman.
TDKR is the better than all other 2012 films, except Prometheus, it was indeed superior.
Some traumatized dude in tights over an origins story connected to the Alien universe featuring Giger’s Space Jockeys? No fucking contest.
Man of Steel will own TDKR and Prometheus combined.
Fuck superman, if we’re gonna talk about movies of other years Aliens will skull fuck man of steel….go to DC nerd forum Xeno!
yep
lmaoo….at GigerFan…your a joke…don’t even deserve to have that screenname.
Hey Xeno don’t pin that shit on me, for my opinion , plus others already called you out in another post for your name beng a disgrace, judging from your opinions, so dont start that shit, I respect you aren’t a fan of the film, but behave maturely toward others who love it.
I never insulted or disrespected, so behave the same.
Hey Xeno fan, learn fucking grammar, “your a joke”? It’s “YOU’RE” you ass! Lmao!!!!!!
Decker you fag….it wasn’t me that posted that.
Well real Xeno how the fuck I’m I supposed tom know lol
YOU’RE, you idiot
how the hell did you ever manage to pass the captcha?
comment not directed at you Rob, but these pussy trolls who like to pretend to be us.
Stop impersonating me
Hey Xeno you little dick puller go back to the warmth of your moms stench hole.
fuck you all fags u are all trolls and douchebags especially you Rob
this is the Real Xeno Fan……..the above statements are not mine.
fuck you too you fucking xeno fag fuck i can’t stop fucking swearing fucking trolling fuck
Mr. Troll…..you really are showing your intelligence in here.
Scatology is my methodology
Cause i attack like a fecalfeliac
Can’t we all just get along?
cock cheese too, mmmm