Reel Review : Predators

PLOT: A group of battle-hardened warriors are transported to the Predator home world, where they are hunted for sport.



Predators has been one of my most anticipated films of the year ever since the trailer debuted. The trailer gave off the impression that the reboot had the same atmosphere that the original film had, but modernized with a new cast and contained more than one Predator. While the Alien Vs Predator films were either terrible or left a lot to be desired, could a new Predator film get everything back on track? I'm delighted to say yes. That's exactly the case.

The cast seems bizarre on paper; there's that guy who had sex with a creature that contained spliced human and animal DNA (Adrien Brody), Eric Forman from That 70's Show (Topher Grace), that girl who was mostly artificial organs in Repo Men (Alice Braga), that guy who always manages to play a bad ass Mexican and appears in most Robert Rodriguez films (Danny Trejo), Morpheus from The Matrix (Laurence Fishburne), and Jason Voorhees (Derek Mears) among many others. The dynamic cast is actually one of the most absorbing factors of the film. Topher Grace adds that little bit of humor in most of the screen time he has and his character ventures off into territory you may not be expecting. "Justified"'s Walton Goggins steals quite a few humorous lines, as well. Royce (Brody) and Isabelle (Braga) would probably be pretty dull if it wasn't for the chemistry the two develop the longer they're around each other. Laurence Fishburne's introduction scene alone is arguably more bad ass than anything he did in The Matrix. The cast really makes this film work; plain and simple.

Returning to the jungle was another great move. It brings back the nostalgic factor of the first film that everyone seems to love. The fact that they referenced the events in the original was a nice touch, as well. Even though Predators is not a direct sequel or a remake, it's good to know that at least all of this is taking place in the same universe. The other thing that really makes this film fantastic other than the cast are the Predators themselves. They all look rather brilliant. While there are "smaller" Predators that look incredibly similar to the original design, there are others that are larger, stronger, and have slightly different weaponry or tracking devices. The film doesn't shy away from blood and gore either, which I highly approve of. When a film like this uses the R-rating to its advantage, it just gives me goosebumps.

The one thing that can really be nitpicked is the ending since the film just kind of stops and leaves way too much room for a sequel. Oddly enough though, it's still strangely satisfying but that could be due to the rest of the film being so superb.

Predators delivers what could be the most solid reboot to date and is at least the best one that comes to mind when that term comes up. The visual and make-up effects are top notch, the strong cast seems to play off one another and is entertaining to watch, and the film manages to pay just enough homage to the original film while venturing off into its own territory. Predators should please any fan of the franchise or anyone who enjoys action, sci-fi, thriller, or even horror films. If you've been anticipating this film as much as I have and it didn't disappoint me, then you have nothing to lose.


B+