Predators
3/4
Starring: Adrien Brody, Alice Braga, Topher Grace, Walton Goggins, Olek Taktarov, Laurence Fishburne, Louis Ozawa Changchien, Mahershalalahshbaz Ali
Rated R for Strong Creature Violence/Gore and for Pervasive Language
To be quite honest, I wasn't all that enthused with the original "Predator" starring Ah-nuld. I gave it a 3/4, but if memory serves me correctly, I wasn't very enamored with it. The 2010 reboot produced by Robert Rodriguez isn't a classic (and neither was the original), but it's better.
A man wakes up to find himself falling through the sky. It's a common nightmare, only this guy (he's named Royce, and played by Adrien Brody), isn't dreaming. Fortunately a parachute opens up and he hits the ground in one piece. Shortly thereafter, he hooks up with a number of other people in the same position. None of them know where they are or how they got there, but that's going to be the least of their problems. It turns out that they are on a different planet, and have been brought in to be hunted by some nasty aliens.
"Predators" works because it delivers exactly what is expected. A diverse group of badasses (most of whom are on hand to fill up body bags. Or worse) packing impressive firepower. Nasty aliens with shoulder-armed guns, nasty cutlery, heat-vision and invisibility. And gobs of gore. More importantly, director Nimrod Antal is able to raise the tension to an acceptable level and stage some good fight scenes. He's no John Woo, but he's much better than Jonathan Liebesman or Len Wiseman.
If you're looking for someone to cast as an action hero, chances are Adrien Brody isn't going to be on the top of your list. He looks more like a bohemian than an action hero. Surprisingly, he does a great job as the gritty mercenary. He's surrounded by a solid supporting cast, although apart from Alice Braga (who is in entirely too few movies) and Topher Grace (another odd but effective choice), no one has much to do. Laurence Fishburne appears for a bit as a total whackjob, but he's miscast.
I do have one criticism with the film, and that's the pacing. The film takes a while to get going, and there are times throughout the film where I wish it would hurry up. But the once it starts, it rarely lets up, and that's an acceptable trade-off.
Starring: Adrien Brody, Alice Braga, Topher Grace, Walton Goggins, Olek Taktarov, Laurence Fishburne, Louis Ozawa Changchien, Mahershalalahshbaz Ali
Rated R for Strong Creature Violence/Gore and for Pervasive Language
To be quite honest, I wasn't all that enthused with the original "Predator" starring Ah-nuld. I gave it a 3/4, but if memory serves me correctly, I wasn't very enamored with it. The 2010 reboot produced by Robert Rodriguez isn't a classic (and neither was the original), but it's better.
A man wakes up to find himself falling through the sky. It's a common nightmare, only this guy (he's named Royce, and played by Adrien Brody), isn't dreaming. Fortunately a parachute opens up and he hits the ground in one piece. Shortly thereafter, he hooks up with a number of other people in the same position. None of them know where they are or how they got there, but that's going to be the least of their problems. It turns out that they are on a different planet, and have been brought in to be hunted by some nasty aliens.
"Predators" works because it delivers exactly what is expected. A diverse group of badasses (most of whom are on hand to fill up body bags. Or worse) packing impressive firepower. Nasty aliens with shoulder-armed guns, nasty cutlery, heat-vision and invisibility. And gobs of gore. More importantly, director Nimrod Antal is able to raise the tension to an acceptable level and stage some good fight scenes. He's no John Woo, but he's much better than Jonathan Liebesman or Len Wiseman.
If you're looking for someone to cast as an action hero, chances are Adrien Brody isn't going to be on the top of your list. He looks more like a bohemian than an action hero. Surprisingly, he does a great job as the gritty mercenary. He's surrounded by a solid supporting cast, although apart from Alice Braga (who is in entirely too few movies) and Topher Grace (another odd but effective choice), no one has much to do. Laurence Fishburne appears for a bit as a total whackjob, but he's miscast.
I do have one criticism with the film, and that's the pacing. The film takes a while to get going, and there are times throughout the film where I wish it would hurry up. But the once it starts, it rarely lets up, and that's an acceptable trade-off.
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