Paradise

! I got my whole family to watch with me (after lots of bargaining) and even they loved it! And they all hated the original two movies! My mom particularly was not looking forward to it, not just because of her dislike of the original movies, but because she's not exactly what I would call a "believer" in fan edits. She's usually the one to say "Why don't we just watch the original?" but even she loved it!

The way that the narratives of the past and future interweave and reveal information is brilliant! Specifically how, from what we can see in the past, we can tell that, by the time the Covenant crew lands on the planet 10 years later, there’s something going on but we don’t know exactly what yet so we’re practically just as in the dark as the Covenant crew. But that's not to say that you can solve the problems of Alien: Covenant by simply not watching Prometheus because then you wouldn't know what was going on with David and such. So it reveals just enough at just the right times to be ominous without telegraphing exactly what's going to happen to the Covenant crew. It avoids the pitfalls that Covenant had of having them looking like idiots by visiting the planet in a “shouting at the screen while watching a horror movie sequel as the dumb one goes into the basement with the chainsaws” sort of way ya know?

Another great thing this edit does is instead of having certain members of the crew feel like weak attempts to create a new Ripley in the way that they're oh-so badass and strong, only for them to get killed off at the end, it makes them feel like humans in Greek God myths, where they are trying futilely to survive against the whims of a heartless God, and in this story that God is David, And having the story focus on him not only makes the narrative more interesting and fulfilling, but also plays up the themes of man vs. nature and man vs. God.

My mom had a little trouble telling what time period was which which might be able to be fixed with a time and date appearing on screen but really that's my only big complaint. Other than that there was one scene where a scream cut out second too early and the music removal in the final scene could have been a little bit better but that's just a limitation from the technology of removing background music, which I'm sure all us fan editors can relate to.

And now that I've finished watching this, I can go on to Alien and Aliens and then onto Job's other alien edit Ripley! So excited!

Somehow Job Willins has outdone his Derelict edit with Paradise, despite having weaker material to work with. If you're familiar with both Prometheus & Covenant, then the first hour or so may be a little tedious as it is essentially all set up, but one you get into the meat of the two films, Paradise grabs you and doesn't let go with some prolonged suspense scenes.

I respect the hell out of what you've done here with this project. The pacing and editing and the flow of intertwining these two movies was excellent and outstanding. I think everyone should check this out.

This edit sits in a similar place for me as Wraith's: Split Unbreakable Glass.

You both took what was a pretty solid movie(s), and spliced it with a movie that wasn't as good, in an attempt to create a film that was greater than the sum of its parts. Both of these were extremely creative, and were executed to perfection.

However, similar to my feelings about SUG, I am currently undecided as to whether I felt the better half of the source materials (Prometheus in this case) were improved within this edit. I certainly think you did something extraordinary with it here, but I personally really liked Prometheus, despite its flaws. On the other hand, like almost everybody else, I thought Covenant was pretty.....not good, with a few redeeming qualities (most of which involved David). I can't say that I DIDN'T like this edit, because I did! I only have to say that I really liked Prometheus, and while this edit certainly improved Covenant, that movie just had far too many garbage scenes (like locking your friend in a room to contain a potential contagion despite the fact that you have blood from the host all over your face) and so I felt that Prometheus was diminished slightly as a result of being tied to Covenant more than it already was.

That being said, I'm glad I watched this, and I recommend it to anyone who likes the Alien franchise (or sci-fi) and I'd like to thank Job for getting me a link, and Wakeupkeo for pointing me in this direction!

This is the story of David, an artificial being. Like a child he craves aproval from his demanding father (creator) who doesn't expect anything less than perfection. And he will. Oh, he will....

I wish this was the real prequel to Alien. It rearanges all the mess of those two movies into a strong cohesive story.

It got me hooked on fanedits again! Congratulations JobWillins, you saved two movies in one blow!

Wow! I've always wanted to like Prometheus. I'd say I enjoy it - particularly the themes it explores, and I've watched it multiple times because of those themes. Alien: Covenant did both less and more for me as a movie, but I've only watched it once - I love the David scenes.

I've watched multiple fan-edits of Prometheus and thought one of them did a pretty good job of making the most of Prometheus. It still fell short of the themes through no fault of the editor.

Paradise takes two okay films with grand themes and makes one super-epic that no studio would have ever made. I absolutely loved every moment of it. I have nothing but praise for the film, and while it will indeed replace both Prometheus and Alien: Covenant any time I want to watch either, more impressively, this is now one of my favorite sci-fi movies - of all time.

Re. the Beatles as the end. I thought this tied up the use of popular music throughout. The lyrical content and tone worked well to inform David's expression at the end. I didn't expect it but loved it.

Tweaks? Honestly, I was too immersed to notices much. To my ears both, 'Country Road' and 'Carry That Weight' should be brought down in the mix while they are under dialogue. I found the lyrics/volume of the tracks competed with the dialogue. To be fair: my 5.1 setup could be highlighting this issue as the rear speakers aren't as far back as they should be. I also felt that there was a possibility for 'Country Road' to be brought in more subtly. Maybe after rewatching, I'll have more specific feedback.

Again, I am and was blown away by this edit. Thank you so much, Job, for creating it!

If you're looking for an Alien or Aliens repeat, you won't find it here, but if you want to watch a sci-fi epic about creation, god, androids, the cosmos, and humanity, I couldn't recommend it any higher!