Prometheus: The search for our beginning could lead to our end.

This tagline in the title of the movie explains everything the story encloses. At the end of the 21st century, a group of scientists fly to a remote planet in search of what they think is the origin of human life, but what they find there is something quite unexpected.

A king has his reign, and then he dies. It's inevitable.
Prometheus has landed.
These are ancient civilizations that were separated by centuries, and yet this same pictogram was discovered at every one of them.

They're smiling.
I think they want us to come and find them.
We're all here because of a map you two kids found in a cave.
Not a map, an invitation.
From whom?
 
Please tell me you can read that.
 
Prometheus, are you seeing this?

Whatever that probe is picking up, it's reading life-form.
What do you mean a life-form?
Oh, the head. They are changing.
Changing into what?

Is it moving? Are these things moving?
What is that?
That's a ship.
They're leaving.
To go where?
Earth.
We were so wrong.
Take us home.
If you don't stop it there won't be any home to go back to.
Why is that door open? Cut it off! Cut it off!

Big things have small beginnings.

REIGN= /reɪn/ The period of time during which a king or queen is ruling.

INEVITABLE= Impossible to stop from happening, unavoidable.

PROMETHEUS= /prəmiːθɪəs/ In the movie, this is the name of the spaceship that is sent to look for the origin of human life in a distant planet. But this name comes from an ancient character in Greek mythology. Prometheus was a Titan (the generation of gods ruling before the birth of Zeus and all the other Olympic gods) and he is the one credited with the creation of man from clay. He also tried to protect the human race and helped them by stealing the secret of fire from Zeus and giving it to humans, thus enabling civilization. For this transgression he was sentenced by Zeus to be chained to a rock in the mountains, where every day an eagle would come to eat his liver out; but the liver regenerated every day too, so the torture was eternal (at that time, the liver was the place where emotions resided, much the same as the heart for us today).

LANDED= When a plain or spaceship lands, it stops flying and touches the ground.

ANCIENT= /eɪnʃənt/ Very very old (we’re usually talking about centuries old)

CIVILIZATIONS= /sɪvɪlɪzeɪʃənz/ (also /sɪvɪlaɪzeɪʃənz/)

CENTURIES= /sentʃərɪ/ A century is 100 years.

AND YET,= Nevertheless; but.

PICTOGRAM= A picture representing information.

THEY WANT US TO COME= The verb WANT (and some others) uses an object pronoun to introduce a second subject:
- I want to go = I want, I go
- I want YOU to go = I want, you go
- She wants to talk to him = she wants, she talks to him
- She wants ME to talk to him= she wants, I talk to him
Examples with other verbs:
- I need you to stay here
- They expect us to keep the secret

BECAUSE OF A MAP= The word BECAUSE is a conjunction (it joins two sentences together; with two verbs), but BECAUSE OF is a preposition (it joins two words or phrases together but with just one verb):
- John is wet because it’s raining = John IS wet because it IS raining. (2 sentences)
- John is wet because of the rain= John IS wet due to the rain. (1 sentence)
- I was late because there was a lot of traffic= WAS – WAS
- I was late because of the traffic= WAS

FROM WHOM?= We don’t use WHO after a preposition, we use WHOM.
 
WHATEVER= No matter what; anything that…

PROBE= A device or machine that collects samples or information in an investigation.

PICKING UP= Collect something from the ground. In this context it means: gather information.

READING= In this context it means: registering. If a machine or detector reads some information, it gets that information from the outside automatically (the opposite is when a person “feeds” the machine with information by introducing information into the machine).

SHIP= A ship may be a boat to travel by sea (see picture) or a spaceship to travel through space (see picture), also called “spacecraft”.

CUT IT OFF= To cut something off is usually to separate two things by cutting, but also (as is the case here) means to shut off or bar a door so it gets blocked and impossible to open.)