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Rating: 3 out of 5
If you know me, you will know that I think Predator starring Arnold Schwarzenegger is one of the best action films around. Who wouldn’t love hearing Arnold scream, “Get to the Choppa!” That movie is intense with the way it draws you in and keeps the Predator hidden until shit really goes down. Arnold’s team falls one by one until he manages to kill the beast in the heart of a Central American jungle. After that film, there was actually a second film starring Danny Glover, with that film taking place in the concrete jungle of New York. That film was more blah than entertaining. Petty much Danny Glover spent most of his time looking up in the sky trying to fight the beast. It was a way step down from the original. Even after that was Alien vs. Predator, but we shall stick with one main creature and discount that film for this review. Now a third installment has graced the world after many years since Predator 2. This film is called Predators, starring an ensemble cast where a few even won some Academy Awards.
The film starts off with quite a bang, with Royce (Brody) awakening from being unconscious to find himself falling toward a rainforest. He has a parachute attached to his back that opens on its own, having him make a hard but safe landing. As Royce tries to get his whereabouts, he meets several others who have arrived just like him. The group includes a Mexican drug cartel enforcer Cuchillo (Trejo), Spetsnaz soldier Nikolai (Taktarov), Israel Defense Forces sniper Isabelle (Braga), Revolutionary United Front officer Mombasa (Ali), death row inmate Stans (Goggins), Yakuza enforcer Hanzo (Changchien), and doctor Edwin (Topher Grace). None of them know where they are and why they are in the place they are. After some talk, Royce says he is going in one direction and becomes the leader but reveals little about himself. Isabelle comes to the conclusion that he is former Black Ops. While searching for answers in the jungle, they come upon empty cages, plants that make some paralyzing toxin, and several deceased traps. After making their way out of the jungle and to the high ground, they find themselves staring at an alien sky and conclude that they are not on Earth. Shit soon hits the fan when the party is attacked by a pack of quadrupedal alien beasts. After killing some beasts and hearing a whistle that calls the others away, Royce deduces that the planet is some type of game preserve and that the humans are being hunted as game. Not that the game has been set, the group must fight their way off the planet or die on it as another trophy for those that have hunted them.
Now is this an all-time great action film? It’s okay, but it is a worthy successor of the original movie, and that’s why I like this film. It actually plays on the name with the hunt being back in a jungle. Actually, on a planet with many different environments for the Predators to hunt and perfect their craft. This made the film fun to watch. The thrill of the chase was high among the group as they try to survive even when they are cut down one by one. I like how the Predators use actual tricks to get their prey. When Cuchillo gets captured, they kill him and set up a voice box that calls out “help” for them to come to him. It is all fascinating to see how they track.
Now one of the best areas of this whole film is the Predators. I love what the movie did with them. First, it introduced the concept that there are different types of Predators. The Predators are identified in the film’s credits as the “Classic Predator,” “Tracker Predator,” “Falconer Predator,” and “Berserker Predator.” In this film, the Classic Predator is actually the weaker and smaller one. It is one that the others chained to a stump. That is pretty messed up right there. The Falconer Predator has this bird-like drone that flies around looking for the prey. The Tracker Predator controls the dog-like creatures and is actually the slimmer of the three. The one that is an absolute beast is the Berserker Predator. Just saying Berserker should give you a chill, and it is freaking intimidating. This muthasucka is big, strong, and has a xenomorph mandible attached to its helmet. So, you know, dude has killed a lot of creatures. I love how the technology has become even better for the Predators.
The story gets really interesting, and almost a little off course is when the group runs into Ronald, a United States Army Air Cavalry soldier who has survived on the alien planet for multiple hunting cycles. Now we don’t know how the hunting cycles work, but we do get information that each cycle, the Predators come back bigger, smarter, stronger, and with advanced weaponry. I don’t know how advanced the weaponry needs to be since that cannon on the shoulder is already cool and powerful enough.
The fights between the humans and Predators are pretty fun to watch. When the Yakuza enforcer squares off against one of the Predators, it was fun to watch to see one using their retractable claws and the other using a katana battling in an open field. The final battle was intense as we see the Classic and Berserker Predators square off against each other.
One of the questions that I have is where do the Predators actually live and come from? We haven’t seen an ounce of their homeworld or how they even got started. They are a true mystery, and they have such advanced technology, you wonder why they haven’t invaded us yet. We need some damn answers, people. Are their female Predators? How does this society work?
The cast is one of the most diverse casts you can see on campus. First, there is Adrien Brody as Royce. I was a little skeptical of Brody because he always seems to play a person that doesn’t look strong. I was impressed when homeboy put on some major muscle and had that strong voice. Still, nothing like Arnold but the dude has my respect. If you need a badass woman, then you call on Alice Braga. She was the one that wanted to get everyone together and work as a team. I like how she told it how it was, and she is handy with that sniper rifle. Walton Goggins as Stans was one of my favorite characters. I actually like Goggins as he always seems to be the crazy one with that thick southern accent. You need someone to be crazy and give zero f**ks, then call on Goggins. Topher Grace as Edwin is as creepy as ever. The dude has never been the same since Spider-Man 3. Always playing the wimpy person, and this one doesn’t change that. What about Mahershala Ali? It is amazing to see people in their earlier work. I couldn’t even believe he was in the movie, Mr. Tow-time Academy Award winner. What can I say about Danny Trejo? If you need a tough-ass muthasucka, then this is the person to get because he looks like he can beat anyone’s ass, even though he did die first.
Predators is a decent sequel to the first and second films. It is hard to top the first one because that one will be an all-time classic. This film introduces some new types of Predators that make the film very interesting. I am hoping they can expand on this new world of Predators. The acting isn’t great, but hey, when you are running around from a beast that is trying to kill you, there is no time to talk. Give this film a chance and if it doesn’t work for you, then watch the original with Jesse “The Body” Ventura saying, “I ain’t got time to bleed.”
