Hey Fools!

This weekend was big for hardcore Sci-Fi fans as the culmination of 23 years of wait came to an end with the release of Predators, the actual sequel to the original John McTiernan sci-fi/actionner we’ve all been waiting for. And if I was allowed to say only three things about it, it’d be:

-23 years might’ve been too long a time for some who won’t feel any surprise or awe.

-It’s a $40M film that looks like three times that much.

-It’s a film of characters, and it’s a damn shame most of them die!

The film really takes it’s cues from the original, setting the action in the jungle and pitting a bunch of badass gun-totters against a nasty hunter. For part of the film I had a feeling that they simply replaced the characters with new ones and voila, but as as the film progresses a few new elements are dropped in that does indeed make it a worthy sequel: keeping to the original and warping it. You get a cool brochette of characters AND actors to replace the special ops bunch who got skinned in ’87. Might sound weird on paper, but the mix of Alice Braga (I Am Legend), Danny Trejo (MACHETE!! WOOT!), Walter Goggins (TV’s Justified), Adrien Brody and Topher Grace (of all people...) is absolutely spot on.

First of the “different” elements is that the group gets stranded on a different planet, which pretty much spells doom form the start: you guys are NOT going home, one way or another.  The film starts right on it and stays there throughout, intensifying the effect that those people are trapped, even if there in an endless jungle. Then the “preys” meet up with a strange creature: a survivor from a previous “hunt” who’s been dodging the hunters for so long he’s left  a few marbles behind – kudos to the great Lawrence Fishburne who for the first time since The matrix doesn’t simply play a variation of Morpheus; this dude is three sheets to the wind and could truly be as much friend as foe.

The best of those elements in my view –SPOILER WARNING- is pitting the Predators against their natural enemies – bigger, badder, uglier Predators from a different branch of the same race who carry a blood feud with their lessers. As cool as the fight scenes and ‘splosions are, the icing on the cake is being treated to a Predator vs Predator burly brawl, and one like PWS Anderson could never aspire to. The creatures themselves don’t have a huge spotlight on them, which makes their scarce appearances that more ingratiating; no need to always see them, just make their presence constantly bearing down on their victims.

The film offers nothing exactly new in terms of sci-fi nor action, but is written, paced and acted to a perfect pitch and results in a kick-ass good time at the movies. Too bad that it came out during a summer of little interest from audiences, not to mention the studio practically avoided any marketing save for a few online featurettes that seem to have been more the initiative of producer Robert Rodriguez than anything else. If there is to be further sequels in that franchise, I hope to Hell they let those people –Nimrod Antal and Rodriguez- handle them as well, ‘cause my only actual complaint is that it was too short; I wanted more of those characters, know more about them and see them taken to their extreme. Starting with Adrien Brody who does an extremely surprising good job at playing action heroes.

As we previously did this year for big summer blockbusters, I called upon a little outside help to assess that one, and got word from the gentleman known as Faxanadu who gracsiouly submitted his thoughts to us; any Fools out there who’ve seen the film and wish to share thoughts, drop us a line –however short or long you wish-  and we’ll add them right here.Fools Speak! For now, here’s Fax in his own words.

Faxanadu’s Review

Well I just got done watching the new Predator film and I was actually surprised how good it really was. I wasn't to keen about the film being made due to the last two movies, Alien vs. Predator, but after reading the storyline and learning more about what it was I was interested.

I thought they went back to it's roots and it was a lot like the movie Aliens. You have a group of powerful soldiers/killers from the planet Earth that have to fight against an unknown "Aliens" which are Predators. I liked how the characters were all different types from across the world. Military soldiers, an assassin from the Yakuza, a convict, a cartel enforcer and a doctor. Now what got me was the Doctor, because I couldn't understand why in the hell he was there in the first place? He as a skinny "weak" man, not like the rest of the group. It just stood out and I started realizing that there is something not right about the guy, considering why would the Predators waste their time with someone like him? Which of course you find out towards the end that hes not really a "doctor" but more like Hannibal Lecter, a psychotic serial killer who is a sociopath and have been wanted by the F.B.I. for years.

The film also takes a different direction when you find out from the character Noland, that it turns out that there is a "blood feud" between two different races of the Predators, which explains why half way into the film why the group found a Predator tied to a post, still alive. You also find out that this place that they are in, has been used for hundreds of years as a "hunting/training ground". You also find out that the Predators were not just kidnapping humans, but all types of species from other planets to hunt. Which explains why they were finding all types of stuff throughout the area, classic weapons like a classic authentic samurai katana that is centuries old, and we get to see the Yakuza use it in a pretty cool fight scene when he stays behind to fight one of the Predators face to face.

I also liked how the first Predator movie was mentioned as well. Isabel, the only female in the group reveals to the rest of the group half way in the film that she knew more about what was going on than she let on, mentioning about Arnold Schwarzenegger's character, Major Alan "Duth" Schaffer, about how years ago him and his unit was attacked and killed off one by one until he was the only one left. Apparently she was in the same military section that he was, and during a briefing years before she was told about this event while the military were trying to figure out what the hell was going on and if there would be more to come later to attack the world.

All in all, I have to say that it was a great movie. It is nothing like that past two Alien vs. Predator movies, which I thought they were pretty dumb and boring. It goes back to the original formula and brings us back to the way it used to be.

So what did YOU Fools think? let us know!