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| photo courtesy of infamoushorrors.com |
Shane Black directs The Predator, the latest installment in
the long-running Predator franchise.
The movies revolve around a species of alien warriors who travel across the
galaxy to hunt prey from different worlds—and often, Earth. When two different
sub-species of Predator bring their bloody conflict to our world once more,
it’s up to ex-Army Ranger Quinn (Boyd Holbrook), biologist Casey (Olivia Munn),
and a band of misfits known as “the Loonies” to stop them.
With the exception of
Arnold Schwarzenegger’s 1987 original, the Predator
films don’t have a particularly sterling reputation, and The Predator aims to change that. The strategy is simple: infuse
the typical Predator standbys (a
jungle setting, plenty of violence, and hard-body action heroes) with more
popular modern impulses (updated CGI, a dose of 80’s Spielberg nostalgia, and
the bare bones of a Marvel Phase One movie). The resulting amalgamation isn’t
strong enough to reverse the ill fortunes of the franchise, but it does make a reasonably
spirited sci fi flick.
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| photo courtesy of screenrant.com |
The Predator’s
first two-thirds are substantially better than the final act. It’s here that
the mixture of suburban charm, black comedy, and gory action works in relative
harmony. Jacob Tremblay (Wonder) gives
us an outlet for our E.T. nostalgia,
and the Loonies (anchored by Keegan-Michael Key) are likeably eccentric action
stars. Their comedic scenes often appeal to the lowest common denominator (hey
look, curse words!) and sometimes veer into unfortunate territory, but there’s
fun to be had.
More importantly, the
Loonies serve as a vital counter-balance for the movie’s R-rated action, of
which there is quite a bit. We expect bloody goodness in a Predator movie, and The
Predator delivers—though more in quantity
than quality. The antics between the
Loonies and our protagonists help mask the places where the action lacks
suspense or fright… or, occasionally, logic.
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| photo courtesy of hollywoodreport |
But the movie falters
in its third act, where most of the good things about the previous scenes give
way to an extended, uninspired action sequence. The pace slackens, the stakes deteriorate,
and weird mistakes—dropped subplots, jarring tonal shifts—work their way in. Most
regrettably, it’s just disappointing. Having introduced new aesthetic
dimensions and new characters to the series, The Predator unceremoniously drops them in favor of a familiar,
jungle-set Predator brawl. For less engaged viewers, it’ll be one let-down too
many.
For others, though, The Predator’s faults will be forgivable.
It delivers on its most fundamental promise (grisly action sequences), and Black
even adds in some unexpected flavors for good measure. So even though The Predator can’t muster anything altogether
groundbreaking, it just might be the undemanding, completely unnecessary sci fi
sequel the doctor ordered.
TRAILER
Watch the trailer here.
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| photo courtesy of bloodydisgusting.com |
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