General Discussion

It's been a while since I've written a Defending My Movie and I hope no one was waiting on pins and needles for the next. It's been a busy end of the year but I'm jumping back in with my next installment. Now this is a first in a series of Defending my movies to come where I won't exactly be defending a movie that was poorly received but a movie that I think just doesn't get the attention I feel it deserves or it's just a film I really enjoy talking about. I hope you enjoy.

I've said it before but the Predator franchise is one of my favorite Sci-Fi film series of all time. I must have watched Predator 1 and 2 over a hundred times each since I was a kid. I read the novels and comic books and played the video games. If it was Predator branded I was all over it. So when I heard that there would finally be a third movie in the franchise it was impossible for me to not be excited. I followed all of the news I could for an entire year and then I finally went and saw the movie on opening night. I found it to be an amazing experience and loved the movie. I thought it was a worth sequel to the first two films and expanded even more of the Predator fiction. Now while the movie made money and was pretty well received among the fan base I've always felt that some people just overlook the quality of the movie or were just turned off by the idea of such a late sequel. I thought I would just take some time and talk about why I think this movie is a well made sequel and a worthy addition to the franchise.

It's hard to ignore a "We're not in Kansas anymore" reference.

One thing I thought Predators did very well was invoke the feeling of the first film. Robert Rodriguez said in the beginning that they planned on ignoring every one of the other movies except the first (even though the second one easily fits in with this one as well) and the movie plays very well as a direct sequel to the first. The movie wastes no time jumping into the character introductions as we open with someone falling through the air with a parachute attached to them and then we then quickly meet the rest of the cast. The film sets the tone amazingly by having us follow the characters through the jungle trying to figure out why they were dropped there only to discover they are on an alien planet! However one thing I will say the film could have done better was introduce the Predator. The first time we actually get to see one I didn't really feel like it was the grand reveal that it should have been, but given the story explanation it manages to make sense in context.

I'm very mysterious . . .

The characters really make this movie interesting. While with the previous movies all of the main cast have been macho good guys or military, these people are all killers from different background all thrown into one place and forced into trusting each other. I will say one downside with the film is I would have liked to have seen a little more character development and that Laurence Fishburne needed a larger role but overall I thought the cast well well selected and really helped set the tone for the film. A lot of people were skeptical about Adrien Brody playing the lead character who is supposed to be this bad ass mercenary but I think for a guy his size he pulled of the role very well and was believable as a clever killer more so than an overpowering one, which is something that could be said for a few other members of the cast.

One thing Predators does fantastically is the action. I would say this movie is up to par with either of the movies that came before it. There is plenty of gore and lots of intense moments. I remember shouting in excitement multiple times in the theater when someone was brutally murdered by a Predator in the film. I mean a Predator just punches through a mans back and rips out his spine and skill. It doesn't get more masterful than that! What's more impressive is how well the humans manage to hold their own against these alien hunters. Watching a Japanese Yakuza go tow to tow with a Predator in a sword fight was pretty amazing and comes to a satisfying conclusion that doesn't feel too exaggerated. With numerous references to the first movie by mimicking some of the action scenes feels like great nostalgia and not just a cheap ploy or lazy writing.

I learned this in a movie.

While Predators may not be a masterpiece by any means it does provide a highly entertaining sequel to a very beloved franchise and was placed in good hands with Robert Rodriguez. I would watch any sequel coming from this production team and I will continue to watch Predators many times in the future. The Predator franchise has always been one of my favorite Sci-Fi series and this is a sequel that has earned it's place among its peers.

I agree, this does feel like great nostalgia for the first film, and was surprised how good it came to be. Those invisible predadogs were lame, though. And that ending, so cheap!

But yeah, the Yakuza vs Predator fight was too badass:

@AssInAss: fantastico

Overall, I did enjoy the movie as well. I love the original Predator, but Im generally not a big fan of the second one. I feel like both sequels make one major mistake when it comes to the Predators though: the stealth issue. Personally I feel like the Predators spend too much time uncloaked, out in the open in both movies. Still, I really like Predators, much more than I ever did Predator 2. A couple of the deaths are unsatisfying though, and Larry Fishburne is kinda wasted. But in the end it's probably a far better sequel than most people expected, especially considering the abysmal AvP movies.

@advent_crash Nice write-up man, I'm a huge fan of this film. If you haven't already, check out the commentary with Rodriguez and Antol, it's interesting to hear about the journey this film took.

@JoeyF: Thanks I appreciate that. I haven't listened yet I really should! I know I would love it. I always love the commentaries and I would be really interested to listen to them talk about this movie.

Predator left such a distinct and good impression on me that I did not take well to its sequel. Maybe I could never see the guy who's too old for this sh1t as being the lead when the prior movie was full of my muscled up action heroes, coupled with the change in setting. Predator 2 is a film I've seen once and never returned to, leaving me with Predator as the one and only film in the non-versus franchise . . until Predators. It doesn't matter that a lot of time has passed between filming, the latest feels to me like the sequel I had been waiting for. It has a tone and faithfulness that I can view them both back to back, for the most part pleased (most movies have their logic hiccups). I can envision that any of the characters from the 1st could have just as easily been plucked from the jungle and dropped onto this remote planet to be hunted in a 'game preserve' vs their own territory (planet). Plus being in the jungles, Predator and Predators feels less bootstrapped to the decade they were filmed in . . . city scenes seem to put a finite date on a movie . . be it this is an 80s or 90s film vibe. I find liking Predators easier than Predator 2 and less troubling than the Aliens vs Predators sequel (I liked the first AVP)

When I saw it on HBO, I must have missed the first 10 minutes of. I was not expecting much out of it and by the time it was over I was pleasantly surprised. I liked it quite a lot.

I hate Predator 2 and i didn't like Predators very much either, i don't know what it is, i just didn't enjoy it.

Great write-up for a great movie. Well done!

people didn't like predators?

Good write up, I'm really interested to see how they will approach a sequel if they chose to do so. I would like to know more about the Predators, nothing crazy, just a little more basic information would be nice.

Predators needs no defending in my eyes, but nice write-up anyways.

@DXmagma said:

people didn't like predators?

Yes. Bad people.

Predators was actually moderately well recevied and managed to do well at the box office.

I enjoyed it much more than Aliens. Sorry fans. :(

totally agree, i found it ten times more enjoyable second time around whilst watching it on Blu Ray though for some reason ... ace film, worthy of the Predator name.

I actually wound up liking this a great deal more than The Expendables, which I think suffered for the studio's original intent to release it as PG-13.

I really liked this movie. It made me forget about Predator 2 and the Alien vs Predator movies. Those were just awful.