My Prometheus review is going up tomorrow. I'm carefully constructing my argument and just need to let it rest overnight to make sure my angle makes sense. I will say I enjoyed the film a lot. I'm just struggling to clearly explain why. One of the more baffling arguments against Prometheus, to me, is the intrusive sound claim. The music is too invasive. The sound is overblown. Too much is happening for space.
Have we been so spoiled by Alien's tagline, "in space, no one can hear you scream," that we've forgotten how integral sound was to that movie? Lack of score does not mean lack of sound. So many of the major moments were set up by a brief moment of absolute quiet before a big explosion of events onscreen. Otherwise, everything made noise: doors, computers, controls, people, footsteps, and the cat, just to name a few.
The same applies to Prometheus, just slightly off. If the music stops playing, you have problems. Even the naysayers have to acknowledge that this is a beautifully mixed movie. The sound is possibly more immersive than the 3D visuals.
SoundWorks Collection is an excellent series of videos that deals with the how and the why of sound design in big movies. Their newest video is all about the wealth of sound in Prometheus. The sound team argues that the atmospheric scoring is the silence of this movie. It's an intentional choice, not a random musing or mistake.
So what do you think? Did you like the sound design in Prometheus. I've heard arguments both ways and some are rather compelling against it. Sound off below with your thoughts.