Predators (2010) (Movie Review)

    I’ve often considered the predator creature to be one of the biggest bad-assess of science fiction cinema, but I’ve also felt that he deserved a far better, and bigger series than what he got. The first “Predator” was a great B movie classic, “Predator 2” had its moments, but wasn’t consistent enough to called a great sequel, and the two AVP movies, while entertaining monster flicks, still didn’t help generate the awesome series I was hoping for. Then at long last in 2010, we got “Predators”, the 5^th, entry in the predator series, and for me … I think it’s an absolute blast!  

All I could say after words was “FINALY!”, “That was the predator sequel I’ve been waiting for”. It may not reach quiet the same level of quality or even memorable characters of the first film, but I do feel this is the best of what the sequels offered at the time. Still kept in the continuity of the first “Predator”, this film takes us back to basics, as well as moves things further into outer space. “Predators” was also produced by one of my favorite writers/directors Robert Rodriguez, who’s delivered some of my favorite B action movies of all time, including “Desperado”, “From Dusk Till Dawn”, “Sin City” and “Machete”. He wrote this script back in 1994, but the studio turned it down because it would have required a huge budget that they couldn’t afford. By the end of the early 2000’s, the film finally saw the light of day, and it perfectly fits alongside all his other great macho, action flicks.

  

    The premise does a brilliant job bringing us back to the roots of what we loved from the original, while also giving us something new, and further exploring the predator universe. Eight strangers, all of whom are skilled fighters, have awakened in a strange and mysterious jungle, which just happens to be an alien game preserve. It doesn’t take long for the humans to discover that their part of a hunting game, with a lethal team of alien hunters closing in around them, and it quickly becomes a fight for survival. While the film threatens to buckle under its familiar elements of soldiers being hunted in a jungle, I feel there’s just enough new material to level out the enjoyment of the experience.

I love that the series is finally going into space, but in a subtle way that doesn’t feel too outlandish for the franchise. There’s a really cool moment when the team is on a hill top and they can see all the different planets (including the predator home world) in the sky, and they thankfully never say anything to obvious, they know that there on another planet and so does the audience, so they really don’t have to explain it further. The mystery and buildup in the first half of the film is great, because they give us so many new things never seen in any of the previous films. By extent, everything we already know is summed up nice and quickly. As I was watching this exposition, I kept saying to myself “Brilliant, brilliant, brilliant!” they’re giving us just the right amount of familiar content, while also giving the surroundings a fresh and original concept. The film’s location crew did an excellent job finding really cool looking spots, which look like they could be from another planet. 

    We also have a nice twist with the main characters … they aren’t just regular people that the hunters have abducted … these are the predators of our world. It’s a team comprised of mercenaries, mobsters, convicts, and death squad members, making them the perfect prey for the real threat. The brilliance of this team is that while they’re all technically bad people, they still hold my attention, and some of them display a reserved sense of honor and dignity. It’s really cool seeing these people put aside differences, develop trust and team skills, and it’s a great contrast to the team of heroes from the first film. 

There’s also an engaging cast of talents on screen, including Robert Rodriguez’s regular Danny Trejo, as well as Alice Braga, Mahershala Ali, Topher Grace, Walton Goggins, Laurence Fishburne, and Adrien Brody in the lead role of a tough as nails soldier. He genuinely surprised me as the films leading tough guy, as I’m so use to him in dramatic films like Roman Polanski’s “The Pianist” but he actually did a great job in the role and was naturally believable as this really tuff soldier. However, I’ll admit that while the cast in consistently engaging to watch … none of the characters are memorable in of themselves. Adrien Brody certainly delivers, but his character isn’t the most likable of leads. Alice Braga’s role as the single female soldier is easily the most compelling, but sadly not very memorable either. Laurence Fishburne is given a thankless role as a cooky survivor, who gets ejected from the film as abruptly as his sudden arrival. Oddly enough, I found Topher Grace the best utilized as a seemingly feeble doctor, who secretly has a dark side, and feels at home on a world of monsters … too bad he didn’t keep his slimy Venom costume from “Spider-Man 3”, then he really would have fit right in.   

 

   Another thing I love about this movie is that it makes the predators fierce hunters again, and they got so many new things to offer. First on display are the new predator hunting dogs, which engage the team in battle, and it’s an appropriate new trait to give the hunters there hunting dogs. This way the Predators can study the team, and learn about their strengths and weaknesses before going in. We have a fun collection of booby traps, new weapons, a predator drop ship, and even a robotic predator stealth bird, which is awesome. There’s also a phew other ferocious alien creatures that were dropped on the planet to be hunted, which again sells the premise of an alien hunting ground.

  

    Just like in the first film, we don’t see the predators till the end, but we feel their presence throughout the whole movie, and the payoff is more than satisfying in this film. This film expands on the different breeds of predators, and the film delivers with some new designs. They still have the same basic features of the original predator, but with just enough little differences … as the film states, it’s kind of like dogs and wolves. These new predators are so cool, and I love all the different details in their helmets and armor. One has a bony jaw, while another has tusks, and there’s this one predator that looks like the Shredder from the Ninja Turtles series. We also get an awesome scene with one of the new predators fighting the classic predator ... which is nothing short of awesome! 

  

   The whole third act of this film is a bloody, testosterone-fueled, action-packed spectacle, complete with explosions, slow-motion decapitations, unexpected character betrayals, fires, monster brawls, shoot-outs, and sword fights … it’s great! I actually feel that there’s select improvements over some reservations I had with the original “Predator” movie. 

For example, there’s a scene in the first film where one lone man stays behind from the grope to make a last stand, but it’s completely wasted as he dies for nothing, and his whole last stand fight is off-screen. In this film, we also have a scene with someone making a last stand, yet his death isn’t in vain, as he proved helpful in giving our team a chance to escape, and we actually get to see his whole fight with the predator. It’s an awesome fight that’s like a classic samurai flick, the two battle with swords in this big open field, with tall grass that’s blowing in the wind. Actually, a lot of the characters get hero deaths, and either die saving someone, taking out a Predator, or helping the team, and that’s one thing that the first movie never did, and needed to have more of. As the climax reaches its peak, Adrien Brody puts up a really good fight against the new lead predator, and this time it’s more of an even match, it’s not just one character beating the other. 

    To sum things up, “Predators” is no game changing classic … but it’s a rock-solid instalment to the franchise, and is one of my personal favorites. It interjected life back into a dyeing franchise, right when it really needed a good boost. It took the series back to its awesome roots, while also giving us something new, kicked some ass, and even improved on minor problems that even the original had. I’d say the films only real shortcomings are that the human characters could have been a little stronger, but at least the cast was engaging to watch. All around, I found this a thrilling hunting season … and I eagerly await to see where this cat and mouse game takes us next.

Thanks for reading my review of the 2010 sequel “Predators” … and continue to enjoy the movies you Love! 

         

Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem (2007 Review, 4th review of 5)

                       

    Having Predator and Alien rumble in “Alien vs. Predator” was a nice little treat but it did leave me wanting a little more then what I got, then three years latter there was a sequel titled “Aliens vs. Predator Requiem” and I got really excited. I was sure that they knew by now what works and what doesn’t in a film like this and it would be that stellar clash of titans epic that I’ve been waiting for, did it succeed, um, not really. Remember what I said about monster movies being nothing more than trashy entertainment, well, more often than not, they can come off as just plain trash and this film comes very close to fitting that description but it was at the very least saved by a hair.

    The film starts off very strong, picking up were the last film left off, the Predator/Alien hybrid that was seen at the end of the last AVP film bursts out the chest of the predator and stows away on the ship. We get some cool shots of outer space, including an awesome first gimps of the predator home world, sure it’s not a very long scene but after 3 films, I’ve always wanted to see this place and from what we do see it looks really cool, there’s tall statues, futuristic buildings, control rooms and a really interesting orange lighting to the whole planet, which is really neat. The ships also look really good and we see a few cool interiors like a map room complete with a hologram of Earth and the lab where they keep the alien face huggers. Then without warning, the hybrid makes his attack, killing off all the Predators on board the ship, freeing the face huggers and crashing into a mountain side on earth near a small Colorado town. Now the aliens are free to spread throughout the town like wild fire, meanwhile a single predator learns of the downed ship and goes out to avenge his fallen brethren. Okay, so we had a really cool opening and the setup sounds really exciting, how could they mess this up?

       Well, the problems start as soon as we see our main extras and I say extras because there really aren’t any main characters to speak of. Nothing that these peope say or talk about is interesting, they have no personalities, they give you no reason to care about them, other than the fact that there humans. The characters in the first “Alien vs. Predator” were mostly just cardboard cut outs but at least there was an effort to make them actual characters and to be fair some of them were genuine enough to care for. But these new people are so bland, boring, unimaginative, uninspired and forgettable that when they show up again in the film, I forget that they were introduced to us earlier. I never thought I’d say this but give some small credit to the jerks in “Predator 2”, they were at least characters. These people might as well have there scripts in their hands for how obvious they are. It actually makes for the first time in a film that a steaming hot chick got in a sexy bathing suit and I couldn’t care at all. Now I know it’s typical for slasher films to have characters like this but the Predator and Alien movies were about more than that, they were about good characters (for the most part) and really good stories (again for the most part) and this film can’t give me a single good character.

      Actually, I take that back, there is one good character that I like and that of cores is the Predator himself. Of all the different Predators I’ve seen, this one is easily the best. Sure, he has some boring moments like when he’s cleaning up a mess with his magic blue disappearing liquid. But then he has some really great moments, there’s a scene when he comes across one of the dead Predators from the crashed space ship, he puts his hand on his head and quietly grieves to himself. That was pretty surreal, this shows that Predators are more than mindless monsters that kill for sport, they do actually care for their own kind. He also has his fare share of really cool moments, he’s the only predator to use a wipe, he has two plasma cannons on his back for the price of one, he’s also equipped with a laser net and there’s a really awesome moment when he kicks down a glass door.  The Aliens look a lot more menacing and are closer to the ridge warrior head designs from the 1986 “Aliens”, unfortunately while they look cooler, there not as formidable as they were in the first AVP movie. The new Predator/Alien hybrid doesn’t offer that much new, aside from aesthetics, but it is still a cool design and a great appoint to go against this new heavily armed Predator.

      Now it really hurts me to confess this but the film did have some worthwhile entertainment. The  alien and Predator battles in this film are pretty sweet, and they don’t just fight once, they have all kinds of brawls throughout the film. We get a fun fight in the sewers, a shootout at an electronics plant, a fight in a discount store, an exciting battle inside the hospital and the final showdown on the roof top between the main Predator and the Hybrid is really awesome. The two body slam one another, predator swings his spear like a samurai, using his tail the hybrid kicks him across the roof and there’s this one really cool moment matched to some great music where the predator slowly takes of his weapons and mask as if to say “I don’t need any weapons to defeat you”. The roof top setting is also a really cool location because there are so many pipes and electrical boxes for them to crash into and crawl around on.  Yes, for as bad as this film is, it has one hell of an action packed climax. There also isn’t as much of a shaky camera effect as there was before and the fights are a little longer. However, we do dive back into negative territory because while we do have those improvements, the action (and the just about the entire movie) still suffer from too much dark, murky lighting. Of all the horror, monster movies I’ve ever seen in my life, I have never had a harder time seeing anything that was going on then in this movie.

       

      While the film gives both creatures a lot of screen time, the movie never has a moment when it addresses the two different species. The people in this film just keep running around saying that there being invaded and that they need to escape but they never acknowledge that there’s two different alien spices that are at war with each other. For all the flaws in the first AVP movie, they at least addressed the two different creatures, the humans were aware of the two fighting, why they were fighting and it was a story that worked with both specific creatures in it. In this movie, there just creatures invading a town, they might as well be the Martians from “Mars Attacks!” for all the difference it makes. On that note, there’s no A too B connection between these two films. Sure it takes place right where the last one left off but nothing else from the first film is brought up here, there’s no mention of any of the events, no mention of the main character from before, no mention of that pyramid, it’s literally like a standalone squeal that doesn’t feel at all like the first. 

                                 

      The violence and gore is really overblown and there’s one scene in particular that really pushed my hot button. There’s a moment in a hospital were the aliens are in a room full of babies, real live babies! We don’t see the creatures eating them but we can assume that they did, considering that this hospital becomes the main location for their nest. That just feels like a very sick attempt to kneejerk an uncomfortable reaction from the audience. If you thought that was bad, it actually gets worse. Latter in this scene we see a pregnant woman on a hospital bed, then the hybrid creature fills her up  with multiple alien eggs, so she can produce multiple aliens, it’s nasty. Just to make this even worse, the directors stated that the hybrid prefers to impregnate already pregnant woman with aliens, because it gives the babie aliens something to eat inside the womb to give them strength and that’s the straw that broke it for me, if a film does something that monstrously cruel and sick then it is just dead to me or at the very least ignored more than the others.    

       Usually, I’d give a bad movie like this 1 ½ stars, but I sadly must confess that there is some enjoyment that saved it from being a complete waist of time. The predator is awesome, the musical score is decent, the monster battles are fun and the climax is one of the best that the series has to offer. But that’s still not enough to save this film from its stupid characters, lame scripting, lack of attention to the source material, painfully murky vision and unnecessary disturbing sequences like that horrible hospital scene. I just can’t be as easy on this film as I was on the last one, the first AVP felt like a traditional, fun 1950’s Sci-Fi monster flick and was self aware of what kind of film it was. This film is trying to be so many other things at once and is constantly forgetting what it’s supposed to be. So how do I properly rate and recommend this film, well I’d say it’s a safe one to skip but if you’re curious then rent it and fast forward to all the good stuff. I give “Aliens vs. Predator Requiem” 2 stars, the climax gets a 3.5. Anyway, if this series was to survive and grow, then it would need to do something really good the next time and leave the Aliens behind from now on, a review for “Predators” is up next. 

     To Be Concluded.....                

Alien vs. Predator (2004) (Movie Review)

              

  From 1990-2004 the “Predator” series was put to rest, and with only two movies prior, it seemed like a potentially great series was taken before it’s time. Then in 2004, the franchise was given a new chance under the direction of “Resident Evil” director Paul W.S. Anderson. I’ll admit, the only other film of his that I really liked was his 1995 picture “Mortal Kombat”, but I wasn’t on board with his other films like 1997’s “Event Horizon”. 

Regardless, I was really excited to not only see Predators back on screen, but in a crossover with the “Alien” franchise titled “Alien vs. Predator”. The original AVP comics were already a huge hit from the “Dark Horse comics” company, there were several successful video game crossovers, and 1990’s “Predator 2” confirmed they were part of the same universe … so, this monster mashup was a long overdue. At the time of its release, I was in middle school, had only seen the first two Predator movies, and hadn’t experienced anything with Alien Xenomorph’s yet. As such, I can’t help but look back on this film fondly as a jumping off point to a larger universe.       

  The movie wisely drops continuity with the previous films and is a standalone adventure, but with holdover elements that make the experience feel at home with the series as a whole. Our story begins with the discovery of an ancient pyramid in Antarctica of all places and a team is sent in to investigate. At first, it seems like the discovery of a lifetime, but things go south once they discover it’s a breeding ground for the Alien Xenomorphs, along with their monstrous Queen, who’s been frozen in ice. Once they’re all released from the icy prison, a rite of passage begins for a group of young Predators to hunt them down in the ruins, all while the humans are caught amidst the fighting. As Michael Buffer would say before a big match … “Let’s get ready to rumble!”

  Throughout the film, there’s a number of fun little easter eggs, and references that don’t go too overboard. One detail I appreciated was a scene in the opening, in which people are watching the 1943 picture “Frankenstein meets the Wolfman”, which was the first crossover monster movie ever made, and I always love callbacks to older genera films. 

Speaking of callbacks, the most noteworthy actor in the film is Lance Henriksen, who previously stared as the android Bishop in “Aliens”, and the company leader in “Alien 3”. In “AVP” he’s playing an unrelated, but similar character named Charles Bishop Weyland and is definitely a bright spot in the film. Our new lead heroin named Lex is played by the beautiful Sanaa Lathan, who you may recognize from “Blade” or “Contagion”. She’s no Ripley, but a reasonably strong female lead in her own right. The rest of the characters are basic, but inoffensive, and are just likable enough.

  My favorite character is actually the setting, which certainly has a personality all its own, and gives this movie an identity beyond being a creature mashup. Despite being on Earth, the setting of Antarctica still feels alien, with the pyramid itself being a suitably claustrophobic environment. 

I also love that it frequently re-configures itself, making it even harder for our team of humans to find their way out. The sets and production design also look great and again help give the movie some character. We have a cool little flashback of the creation of this mysterious pyramid and discover that thousands of years ago, the Predators found Earth, taught humans how to build civilizations, temples, and the humans in turn began to warship them as Gods. It’s an interesting contrast to the first “Predator” film, in which the creatures were regarded by secluded cultures as demons, and now we have an ancient culture that viewed them as Gods.

  It’s awesome to finally get more than one Predator on screen and their helmets, costumes and weapons are really awesome in this film. I especially love this one Predator that has a helmet which looks like “The Punisher”. 

Also, the facial esthetics now manage to show more expression in the creature’s faces. The Predator spaceships also have some brief, but cool moments. One of the more mixed concepts of the film comes near the end, when the last predator makes a temporary alliance with the leading heroin. I can understand why this wouldn’t click with fans, but I personally enjoy the idea of a human achieving a warrior status, which our hunters can approve of. In general, I’ve always preferred Predators over Alien Xenomorph’s because they have a culture, an intellect, and even a warrior code to abide by … albeit a very aggressive and violent one. I’m also a sucker for visual storytelling, and I love seeing how the Preator and our female lead communicate without words.   

  As for our Alien Xenomorph’s, they all look great, with some terrific puppets and animatronics on display. The creatures and effects were brought to life by “Amalgamated Dynamics Inc.”, the same company that did the creature effects in “Starship Troopers” and 2002’s “Spider-Man”, and they don’t disappoint. I like that one Alien can be singled out with green scars on his head, so we can identify him as a pack leader … although I do wish they did more with him. The alien queen is awesome, and while nothing can top the climactic final battle with the Queen in 1986’s “Aliens”, this is easily the second-best appearance of this creature on film. Her final confrontation and chase with both our female lead and the Predator on the surface is a lot of fun and leaves me satisfied.

  The battles in general are decent enough, with practical destruction effects on display, and a fair amount of slimy carnage for a PG-13 release. 

The unrated cut of the film features a pinch more blood, but aside from smoother scene transitions and less choppy edits, there isn’t that much of a difference. The music was conducted by Harald Kloser, which is good, and helps give life to the action. I will admit, the delivery of seeing these two iconic monsters battle is hit and miss. The set-up is promising, and I like the action as it unfolds, but nothing remarkable really happens either. The first battle between the two is cool, but there’s not much variety to the action afterwords, and they all blend together in this one big chase through the pyramid. After the action concludes, our lead heroin is approached by the same elder predator from the ending of “Predator 2” and he gives her a staff, as if to say … “We honor you as our equal”, which is great. Things close with the birth of a strange new alien/predator hybrid, setting it up for a sequel, which I’ll talk about in another review.

  When I first saw 2004’s “Alien vs Predator” during my youthful teenage years, I loved it, but I’ve gotten older, and looking back as an adult, the film is a little too safe, disposable, and never archives anything too impressive for such an exciting crossover. 

With that said, I do still enjoy this movie for what it is, and I don’t think it’s nearly as bad as its reputation suggests. One thing this film can be credited for is bringing Predator back to the big screen and giving him a second chance to reignite his long dormant franchise. To that extent, there have been a number of Predator sequels sense … with varying levels of quality, but those will be covered in their own time. As for this first crossover, I'd say that between all the films of the lengthy Alien and Predator franchises, I feel the first “AVP” fits somewhere comfortable in the middle of the collection … not one of the best, but certainly not one of the worst. 

Thanks for reading my review of the 2004 crossover “Alien vs. Predator” … and continue to enjoy the movies you Love!