Presented by the Film Society of Lincoln Center May 25 through June 3
Ridley Scott is best known for the iconic films Alien and Blade Runner, two of the most visionary works of science-fiction ever produced. Credited for changing the language of contemporary Hollywood moviemaking, Scott’s remarkable career spans 35 years and includes 19 films. Now, on the eve of the opening of his 20th production, Prometheus the Film Society at Lincoln Center is honoring the renown filmmaker with a comprehensive retrospective.
Born during the onset of the Golden Age of Hollywood in South Shields, England it’s not surprising that Scott’s work demonstrates an obvious influence of American movies of the time period, and later the big-screen epics such as Lawrence of Arabia. His 1977 feature debut, The Duellists was followed closely by Alien, a film that scared the hell out me and my friends when we watched it on
VHS a few years later in high school. Unfamiliar at the time with the language of cinema or its history my friends and I didn’t know the significance of what we were watching. We just knew as we clutched tighter to each other and sank deeper into the sofa in my family’s recreation room that it was an amazing experience that would stick with us the rest of our lives. I don’t think any other film has had such a lasting effect on me, or scared me as much as Alien.
In the decades since, Scott’s films have been extremely profitable, earning more than $1 billion at the American box-office (and much more internationally). He’s also done very well critically, garnering an Academy Award for Best Picture (Gladiator), and three Best Director nominations; Thelma & Louise, Gladiator, and Black Hawk Down. Now you have the opportunity to see for yourself the skill and artistry that marks a Ridley Scott film, and on the big screen too. What better way to start the summer than by watching a some of the best bona fide blockbusters. Then follow it up with Scott’s latest release. Could be the start of one hell of a summer.