Prometheus

Prometheus

Ridley Scott's terrifyingly good Prometheus is the latest in his Alien series, and with nightmare-inducing visuals, it's an installment audiences won't soon forget. In the future, a team of researchers (including Noomi Rapace and Logan Marshall-Green) head to a mysterious planet to find out if there's a link to human origins. Soon, people start acting strange, creatures appear, and blood begins flowing. It's science-fiction horror at its best, and Michael Fassbender and Charlize Theron also give chilly but impressive performances. The DVD comes with commentary by Scott and deleted and alternate scenes.

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Rock of Ages

Alec Baldwin, Tom Cruise, Julianne Hough, Catherine Zeta-Jones, and more stars headline the fun but inescapably cheesy film adaptation of the hit Broadway play. On her journey to become a star, Sherrie (Hough) meets Drew (Diego Boneta) and the two pursue their dreams and embark on a romance filled with rock 'n' roll music. The movie features Cruise playing against type as a rock star, as well as hits from '80s legends like Journey, Poison, and Bon Jovi. The actors are clearly having a ball performing, but off the stage, the story all comes off as highly produced karaoke. The DVD includes a behind-the-scenes featurette.

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One more release after the jump.

Fiery Merida made her mark at the box office as Pixar's Brave brought in $66.7 million in its opening weekend. Kindred animated flick Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted took a distant second with $20.2 million. Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter placed third with $16.5 million in its debut weekend, while Prometheus and Rock of Ages rounded out the top five with $10 million and $8 million, respectively.

Photo courtesy of Disney/Pixar

Despite competition from new releases, Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted remained steady at the top of the box office, earning $35.5 million this weekend. For the second week in a row, Prometheus placed second with $20.2 million. Rock of Ages had a disappointing opening weekend with $15.1 million, followed by Snow White and the Huntsman with $13.8 million. Adam Sandler's new comedy That's My Boy also had a very poor showing, earning just $13 million in its opening weekend.

Photo courtesy of DreamWorks

Families headed to the theater this weekend instead of the zoo, helping launch Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted to the number one spot at the box office with $60.4 million. Coming up behind the animated flick was Ridley Scott's Prometheus, which earned $50 million and was also in its first weekend. Snow White and the Huntsman dropped to third place with $23 million, followed by Men in Black 3, which took in $13.5 million. Finally, The Avengers hung in the top five with $10.8 million.

Photo courtesy of DreamWorks Pictures

I know I'm going to be suffering from nightmares because of Prometheus for months, but I'm also sure that it's one of the best movies I've seen in a while. It has horror-film imagery with a science-fiction premise: A team, led by researchers Elizabeth Shaw and Charlie Holloway (Noomi Rapace and Logan Marshall-Green), goes on a mission aboard the spacecraft Prometheus to a distant planet in 2093 to find information about the origins of humankind. Before they get into the field, though, they get the feeling that something is amiss when Meredith Vickers (Charlize Theron), the head of the corporation that's sponsoring their mission, gives them strict guidelines about what they're allowed to do. Then things get freaky: strange creatures emerge, people start acting weird, and the blood starts oozing. It's creepy, tense, and graphic, but unforgettable.

The main elements of Prometheus, like the script and the performances, come together to make it a solid movie, but it's the visual experience that makes it memorable. The film is stunning, and its special effects make you feel like you've really been transported to another planet (and for that, even 3D haters won't mind that it's in 3D). From the incredible opening scene to some of the more horrifying, "I wish I could unsee that" images, Prometheus is worth checking out for anyone who loves sci-fi — and jolting movie experiences. To find out why else I thought the movie was so good, just keep reading.