Monday, October 22, 2012

Scene of the Week: Prometheus

By s. Monday, October 22, 2012 , , , ,
  Hello Mommy
directed by Ridley Scott

The scene: After Dr Elizabeth Shaw (Noomi Rapace) learns that she is pregnant with her boyfriend, who just died after being infected with something, she is horrified - not only the place she believed to be a beautiful miracle is a hideous nightmare - something strange and unnatural (the fetus is growing very fast) is growing inside her. She manages to escape and go to Meredith Vickers's room where she finds the machine that is capable of performing surgery. Shaw is trying to tell the machine that she needs a caesarean but since it's mysteriously programmed for a man all she manages to do is to program it to remove foreign object from her body. She gets into the machine, with the syringe packed with painkillers, as her stomach starts rising. The machine manages to cut her open and remove the fetus. Upon seeing it, Shaw looks at it with astonishment until it comes to life trying to attack her. She escapes and leaves her offspring behind, locked in the machine.

The scene was Ridley Scott's answer to the famous birth scene from Alien where the creature bursts out of Kane's chest. While the scene doesn't exactly has the same shock factor it is certainly the most intense moment of the movie, superbly acted out by Rapace and something that no pregnant woman should watch. While the ending certainly disturbed me more because of how bizarre it was, that scene was very uneasy and suspenseful and joined the list of the most disturbing birth scenes I've seen.


Previously in the series:
 

28 comments:

  1. This scene was fucking terrifying. Birth scares me as it is. I didn't want to see a bloody (literally) Caesarian. And then the stapling :O :O
    But the funny thing is that throughout my recent illness, I kept wishing for this machine so that it would be able to heal me within seconds :P I guess all is not bad.

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    1. The stapling was really terrible, but that moment where her flesh is being opened by the machine was truly the worst.

      Yeah technology was pretty cool here, if Shaw didn't have that she would probably end up as that poor Engineer in the ending :)

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  2. Decent scene yet.. after she had that surgery her physical condition was up and down, up and down. One time it hurt, the other time she ran like crazy.. But is it horror? Nah, I think it is more or less just disgusting.

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    1. I assumed that the stuff she had in syringe was kicking in :)

      For me it was very scary - the idea that something is growing inside you as you are detained and it's part something you want, since it's a part of your dead boyfriend and part something that scares you and is quite possibly a monster was just horrifying.

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    2. The idea.. yes, if you think about it long and hard is disturbing but the scene itself, for me, it wasn't. I don't know, I don't get freaked out by medical stuff like that.. growing things, nah. Not scared. When Jackass guys start cutting their fingers and eyes with paper - then I'm running to the opposite direction like there is no tomorrow!

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    3. Well, that's what so cool - different things scare different people :) I'm usually not freaked out by medical stuff too, but since the scene was shot at times from her POV it definetly added to the creepy factor.

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  3. Easily the most memorable scene for me. Loved it.

    Rapace is unbelievable here.

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    1. She really was, the scene wouldn't be as powerful if it wasn't for her.

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  4. This scene was brilliant, so tense and terrifying. Rapace killed it, she was really terrific here.

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    1. She's my current best actress win, maybe it won't even change - the competition isn't exactly impressive this year.

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  5. I forgot how disturbing this scene was...I literally cringed when I first saw it.

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    1. Me too! Especially since it was in 3D that creature seemed even more freaky.

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  6. Disturbing, indeed. That's the first scene I think of when someone mentions Prometheus. It's too bad Rapace won't get noticed during awards season for her performance.

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    1. Yeah it's a shame indeed, both her and Fassbender were terrific in the movie.

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  7. Replies
    1. Me too! I can't watch that scene without feeling uneasy.

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  8. Ohh that gif is fucked up. :) That's definitely the most memorable scene from Prometheus in my opinion. Rapace is awesome.

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    1. She really is, I can't wait to see how bad ass she will be in the sequel.

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    1. I'm really impressed by Rapace - there was actually a puppet thing that was the model of creature moving around with her in that machine, I'd be scared shitless.

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  10. Yes. Yes. Yes. Best scene of the film. Unbearably suspenseful. One of the best scenes Scott has ever put on film. Gives me chills just thinking about it.

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    1. I agree, it's really up there with some of the stuff from Alien, not quite the legendary impact of chesbuster but the way it was filmed was even more impressive.

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  11. This scene haunts me every time, esp. seeing it in a big screen. I really think pregnant women shouldn't watch this, or perhaps women who want to get pregnant. But again, Elizabeth Shaw/Noomi Rapace was excellent performing it. You know I really love Noomi Rapace now.

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    1. Absolutely, that is a seriously awful scene to show pregnant women :) I do, she really is fantastic!

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  12. Oh man, yeah, this was a disgusting scene alright. Pretty crazy stuff!

    Great job highlighting this one, Sati.

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    1. Thank you! It was space insanity at its finest :)

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