Back in 1988, we were first introduced to The Predator when Arnold Schwarzenegger took on the alien creature in a fight for survival, then the alien killing machine returned to the big screen and the city in the 1990 sequel, in the midst of territorial gang war and was taken on by Danny Glover.
Then in 2004 AVP: Alien vs Predator was released with the two mighty killing alien hunting each other, followed by the sequel Aliens Vs. Predator: Requiem in 2007, we returned to the Predator world in 2010’s Predators, now in 2018 director, Shane Black (who played Hawkins in the 1988 movie) has brought The Predator back to Earth.
Much like Aliens vs Predator: Requiem the majority of the film is set at night time, which was one of the things that I didn’t like about the 2007 movie, it’s a bugger to watch in daytime on a TV, unless you have a room with no windows! So no doubt The Predator will have the same issues when it has its home release.
The Predators have a bit of an upgrade in this latest movie in the franchise, they are stronger, smarter and bigger, which is something that you can see from the trailer. If you think that they are hunting for trophies then you’re wrong, they are harvesting the DNA to make themselves the dominant species.
It’s now down to a rag-tag group of ex-soldiers to take on the might of The Predator and not only save themselves but to save humanity from annihilation.
The Predator – A Popcorn Movie!
So, where do I start with my thoughts on The Predator, well for starters over the many years since the original, nothing in my personal opinion has matched or surpassed it, this latest movie in the franchise is certainly one that besides the introductions of the characters, doesn’t really slow up on the action, it’s one heck of a wild ride from start to finish.
The special effects are nicely done and the RealD 3D looks good in the brighter scenes and scenes with the alien holographic controls that pop up from time to time, but dark movies do lack the depth that I’m used to in a 3D movie, but still there are moments when the depth to the screen is a nice touch with the RealD 3D technology.
The movie is a popcorn movie, things are explained quickly, almost as if we’ve skipped a movie in the franchise and has gone straight into explaining things, such as the character Traeger (played by Sterling K. Brown) suddenly knowing what the Predators have been up to and he almost seems to just know about everything about what they are here for etc. But I suppose you could argue that he is bound to know these things after capturing the one that crashlanded at the beginning of the movie, quicker worker I guess.
Without going into spoilers, it was interesting to see a character with Aspbergers being a central part of the story, but I wasn’t overly sure that they needed to have Thomas Jane playing a character with Tourette’s syndrome as a character for comedy moments. Talking of comedy, there is so much thrown into The Predator that it does take away the feel of a movie with a killing machine slicing and dicing.
The Predator 3D is out now in cinemas and is directed by Shane Black (Iron Man 3, The Nice Guys) and stars Boyd Holbrook (Logan, Gone Girl), Trevante Rhodes (Moonlight) and Jacob Tremblay (Room, The Book of Henry).
The Predator Returns To Earth, Smarter and Stronger!
Summary
The Predator is a popcorn movie that has the action to keep your heart rate racing but lacks the feel of the 1987Â movie.
Karen Woodham is the founder and owner of the Blazing Minds. She is also a Cinema reviewer and works with RealD 3D reviewing the latest 3D releases and IMAX, she has also had several articles published in various publications including the first edition of SFW Magazine. In 2015 she became an Award Winning Blogger and also has her website listed as one of the UK’s Top 10 Film Blogs.
