SYNOPSIS:
Robert
Rodriguez presents Predators, a bold new chapter in the Predator
universe. Adrien Brody stars as Royce, a mercenary who reluctantly
leads a group of elite warriors in a mysterious mission on
an alien planet. Except for a disgraced physician, they are
all cold-blooded killers - mercenaries, mobsters, convicts
and death squad members - human "predators". But
when they begin to be systematically hunted and eliminated
by an unimaginably horrifying alien, it becomes clear that
suddenly they are the prey!
MOVIE REVIEW:
Under the close supervision of fan favourite, producer Robert Rodriguez and his Troublemaker Studios, "Predators" is highly anticipated to revive the flagging franchise for Fox and erased the existence of the crappy "Alien Vs Predator" and its sequel; unfortunately it never hit the mark despite the above stated reason and a cast including Oscar winner Adrien Brody, Topher Grace and Laurence Fishburne.
Part of its failure lies in its all too simplicity and similarity to the original. Instead of a bunch of macho-looking commandos on a mission to rescue hostages, we have a mercenary, Royce (Adrien Brody), a doctor Edwin (Topher Grace), a defense force sniper, Isabelle (Alice Braga) and a bunch of other dubious characters including a death row inmate, Yakuza and Mexican drug cartel enforcer falling from the sky and onto a strange alien-infested planet. Why they are dropped into the alien reserve and become the hunted? It never explains. The plot supposedly taken from an early rejected script written by Rodriguez back in 1994 fails to establish much of the mysterious powerful hunters, the Predators either. And without the screen presence of Schwarzenegger, this continuation of the original Predator just isn’t the same.
In the absence of the governator comes Adrien Brody, shedding off his usual acting muscles and replacing them with a six-pack ab, Brody proves to be tough and grunt liked a fierce Rottweiler throughout. That 70’s guy, Topher Grace gives another uninspired performance due to the puzzling development of his character in the third act. Even worse, the mysterious introduction of Noland (Laurence Fishburne), an army soldier who has survived on the alien planet for years never brings anything to the under-developed characters and story exposition.
We already knew how good the hunters are and pitting ordinary humans with combat skills against these aliens didn’t bring up the stakes much despite the potential opening act which involves some really cool attacking predators hound. As expected, the only enjoyable experience is to guess correct who is the next guy to get his head or limbs chopped. Fortunately director Nimrod Antal is competent enough to deliver the adrenalin and bombastic moments and a glorious battle of warrior-versus-warrior for the climax.
With Rodriguez overseeing things, the most outstanding factor is the physical creature effects, the different breed of Predators showcased in the 106 minutes movie will dazzle the fanboys and audience alike.
Predators is a genuine effort by Rodriguez and Antal to revive the iconic creature but disappointingly there isn’t sufficient characterization and plot to make you feel for the humans in the end. What you get is nothing more than some cool ammunition, pyrotechnics and creatures on display.
SPECIAL FEATURES :
Commentary with Director Nimrod Antal and Producer Robert Rodriguez is rather interesting as the duo discuss various aspects of filming Predators. Rodriguez seems to be a big fan of the iconic creature and it’s still a wonder why he never opt for the director’s chair.
Decloaking the Invisible: Alien Terrain is a short segment that showcases the various natural location shoot in Austin, Texas.
Crucified is a two minutes Motion Comic that show audience how one of the predators in the movie came to be captured.
AUDIO/VISUAL:
The visual look of Predators is stunning and despite the night setting for the most part, details and black levels are fantastic. Dialogue is clear and balances well with the rest of the ambient sound effects and the dynamic noisy gunfire and explosions in the Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack.
MOVIE RATING:
 
DVD
RATING :
Review
by Linus Tee
Posted
on 8 January 2011
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