Wednesday 19 September 2018

The Predator Spoiler Free Review




Hey everyone, talking about the newest Predator film today, The Predator. No spoilers ahead!

Okay, real quick I want to talk about Predator 2. I did get to watch it before we saw the new one, but didn’t have time for a review. Basically, it’s a lot of fun. It takes every late 80’s-early 90’s cop movie/show trope and leans into them hard. And then they throw the Predator in on top of that. I haven’t watched that one as many times as the first one, but it’s quite enjoyable. I also really love the ending and the design of the interior of the Predator ship. It’s so neat. I know people kind of pooh-pooh this one, but I like it.

look at this interior!


Let’s move on to The Predator, which is the fourth Predator-only film, but falls chronologically between Predator 2 and Predators. I know, the naming of the films in this franchise is super confusing, so bear with me. This movie has been getting mixed reviews so far, but you know what? I had fun with it. Let’s talk about the good:

-the music. I really liked the score. It had callbacks to both the original theme, and the drum pieces played during more tense moments. At one point when the theme was playing all I could think was that I hoped in the next scene Olivia Munn was going to have a manly handshake with someone.

-Some fun callbacks to the other films. Mainly the first one, but there’s some nods to the others, too. The movie itself is actually quite funny, in a rather dark way.

-There’s a dude in a suit as the Predator. He doesn’t move the same way that Kevin Peter Hall did in his tenure, but it gives the idea of individuality of the creatures. And I will never say no to practical effects! There is obviously CG stuff, too, but this was nice to see.

-There’s more information on the different Predator factions introduced in Predators. Not enough to fully answer my questions and really get deep into it, but it’s what seems like a start of more going forward. If this goes forward, of course.

-Boyd Holbrook actually has something to do in this movie! The last thing I saw him in was Logan, and man, the only reason he was there was to occasionally propel the plot forward and even then he was pretty much unnecessary.

-Olivia Munn kicking ass!

-The portrayal of the boy (Jacob Tremblay), Rory. It is shown quite early on that Rory is on the autism spectrum. I am not autistic myself, but my husband is, so I asked him what he thought of the character’s portrayal. He thought it was good, in fact his exact words were ‘it didn’t offend me, if that’s what you mean’. He said that there were things, especially when showing Rory’s school life that were extremely reminiscent of his own experiences.

-The camaraderie between the soldiers. They are an odd bunch, with their own quirks, but you feel that they’ve known each other for some time. They are very different from Arnold’s bunch in the first film, and in a way in kind of reflects the difference between action movies of that time and now.

-Sterling K. Brown is totally owning his role and having a lot of fun with it. No spoilers, but you just love to hate him.

-New Predator weapons! Rope dart, anyone? Sadly my favorite weapon (the combistick) is not.

How do you say 'get over here!' in Yautja?


And now, let’s look at the not so good:

-The Predator hounds are back but don’t get a whole lot to do (again!). I really hoped there would be more with at least one of them that showed up a few times through the film.

-I can see people not liking the end. It wasn’t what I expected, either, and it leaves room for a sequel. It’s ambitious, maybe too much for its own good.

-Tell me more about what’s going on with the Predators! I think I just need a whole movie that takes place on the Predator planet and is all in subtitles and practical effects and you give me the low down on their culture. It’ll never happen, but I want a movie where the Predators are the only characters and you find out about these factions.  Most of my issues boil down to ‘TELL ME MORE’.

-In the final act there’s some stuff going on at night and it gets hard to see in spots, especially with the way it’s edited. Not as bad as AvP:R, but still confusing (nothing’s as bad as Requiem).

So, there you have it. Would I recommend this movie? Sure. The only thing to keep in mind is if you have issues with bad language/non PC language, this might not be your movie (violence is a given). If you’re unsure, go on a cheap Tuesday or something, but overall I enjoyed the movie and had fun with it. It is one of those I feel like I need to see again, though, but I’m not sure when that will happen. Either way, there are my thoughts on The Predator.

Tuesday 11 September 2018

Countdown to The Predator

Had to go with the 'Contra' poster lol

Hey folks, it’s been a while. But we’re here today counting down to the release of The Predator, the newest entry into the eponymous franchise. So, to do so, we are going to look at the previous entries in the series to both refresh ourselves and to see how they’ve held up. Today we’re starting with the one that started it all: Predator, from 1987. Since this film is over thirty years old, I’m not worrying about being spoiler-free.

Okay, so even if you haven’t seen this movie before (and I’m sure most people have, right?), you’re probably familiar with it in at least some sense. It’s got those great lines that everyone remembers ‘get to the chopper!’ or maybe ‘I ain’t got time to bleed’ or ‘… one ugly motherf -----r.” And, of course, the awesome Stan Winston-designed creature itself. And how it’s so dripping in glistening muscles and testosterone that you grow chest hair just watching it. But how does it fare as a movie?
The answer to that question is: surprisingly well. Okay, not ‘surprisingly’  as in ‘wow, this isn’t complete garbage’ and more like the surprise lies in just how well it’s aged. I watched it for the first time on blu-ray, and damn did it translate onto that format nicely. The scene in the final fight where the Predator is blasting the trees trying to get Dutch and you see the Predator’s silhouette through the rain of sparks is just….just…..

beautiful
                                                            

And that’s just one scene. It all looks great, though, and it’s nice to have upgraded our copy.
I know in some ways this movie just seems to be one of the dumb action movies of the era, but it’s really much better than that. And, with it being the first introduction of the Predator alien (a name for the species Yautja, would not be coined until later in the expanded universe), it’s that first taste into a fascinating alien culture that we still really haven’t gotten that much information about. It’s something I’d really like to see more of in the films, actual Yautja cultural practices. Maybe that’s just the anthropologist in me talking, but the bits that we have gotten are just so awesome that I’d love more. And Stan Winston’s design (although the mandibles were a suggestion by James Cameron) is just so iconic and so cool

One thing I noticed, more so than any other time I’ve watched this movie, was the score. Alan Silvestri’s score is really awesome in its simplicity. A lot of the times in the movie you hear mainly either the main theme or the drums (‘Long Tall Sally’ notwithstanding, even with the Saint’sRow IV intro that parodies that and Conan). It’s so effective for building tension, which is one of the film’s strengths. You know how much screen time the Predator has? Less than ten minutes of the 107 minute run time. The first really good, full-on shot of him isn’t until about an hour in. It’s so much more satisfying when you finally see this creature that’s been hunting these guys when you don’t get the goods too quick. Of course, when you do get the creature, Kevin Peter Hall brings such life to it behind the suit and even the helmet. I love his little cameo at the end, too, as the pilot. Oh yeah, and I also love seeing Peter Cullen’s voice in the credits because it just tickles me that the voice of the Predator is the voice of Optimus Prime. 

Although if I hadn't known I probably would've guessed Frank Welker

The only issue I can see with the movie is a little continuity thing. After the Predator takes out Mac with the shoulder cannon, when Dillon finds him his head is still intact, even though we just saw his brains get blasted out the back of his skull. It’s nothing major, but I noticed it. And I’m not sure how well Hawkins’ jokes or one of Blain’s lines would play today. Although ‘goddamned sexual tyrannosaurus’ is still awesome, it’s the line before (‘bunch of slack-jawed [Redacted] around here’) that probably wouldn’t fly. 

Alright, so I’m trying to review this movie but what can you say? Thirty-one years later it’s still freaking awesome. I seriously love this movie, it’s a great late 80’s action flick with a sweet sci-fi note that culminates in a huge, man vs. alien fight that relies as much on cunning and planning on Arnold’s part as it does brute strength. Still holds up, absolutely. I really hope I can say similar nice things about The Predator after I see it. 

Especially since the director was IN the original

So that’s the first movie down, two to go. I’d like to watch Predator 2 and Predators before we go see the new one, and if we can sneak in Alien vs. Predator, that’ll just be an extra cherry on top. Less said about Alien vs. Predator: Requiem, however, the better. I already talked more about it than I wanted to by writing out its full title. That and we don’t own a copy of it anymore.
Well, that’s it for this time, folks! I’m still debating what to marathon for Halloween/October this year, but hopefully more news on that soon.