Predators

Let me start off by saying that I, for one, enjoyed Predators. I liked it for what it was, an action movie. I know many fans of the original disliked this film because of the lack of predators, but sometimes less is more.

The first thought of Adrien Brody playing a buffed up action hero seemed a rather strange casting choice. Adrien is versatile, but is he up to Arnold’s beefy standard? Well, I’m very pleased to say that he most certainly is. He brought such a depth to his character that he became more than just prey, he was mysterious. I wanted to know more about his background. Granted it was hard to side with the humans because personally I’m a predator fan. However, the less we saw of the predators the more I liked the humans.

(Spoilers ahead). 

Starting the film with the characters in a free fall into an unknown land brought everyone immediately into the story. If you begin with chaos it can only get better from there.

I liked the characters even though they resembled the same from the original. I think that everyone is so used to Robert Rodriguez’s style that people were somewhat thrown having a different director. If Robert’s name wasn’t attached to the film at all I think there would be a higher rating from the general public. He’s an amazing filmmaker but with his name also comes a reputation. I don’t think Predators needed that extra bad press. This wasn’t his typical movie but there were still touches of him within. People either hold him on a pedestal or dislike him for his personal choices. Unfortunately, to no fault of his own, the film suffered from him only being partly involved. Case in point, the controversial moment that was in the trailers but not in the movie was a poor marketing ploy. Sure it brought people into the theaters, but at the same time left a huge void by not being as promised. In watching those lasers light up on Adrien’s chest one could only think ‘how in the world are they going to get out of that?’. The anticipation on that danger couldn’t hold up to the reality of the scene.

All of that aside, my only real complaint is that Danny Trejo didn’t have a bigger part. My compliment is the casting of Topher Grace, he was perfect. Even though there wasn’t a huge difference between the two species of predators I enjoyed the additional twist of it being predator against humans, and predator against predator.  It offered the audience a chance to side with a predator as well as the humans. What I loved the most about the entire film is the element of human nature. Would you sacrifice your own survival to save another’s life? Each character struggled with that decision throughout the film. Fight or flight. There was danger lurking around every corner.  

Who do you trust in a land full of hunters?

Rated R for strong creature violence and gore, and pervasive language.