MPAA Rating: R/Genre: Sci-Fi Action/Stars: Adrien Brody, Topher Grace, Alice Braga, Walton Goggins, Oleg Taktarov, Laurence Fishburne, Danny Trejo, Louis Ozawa Changchien, Mahershala Ali, Derek Mears, Carey Jones, Brian Steele/Runtime: 107 minutes
I think it can safely be said that in the early part of the 2010s, the sci-fi franchise revolving around the notorious creature known only as the Predator was in a much different place than it currently is at the moment. To be sure, the first film was still even at that time being touted as the genuinely great cinematic outing that it is and yes the 2nd film from 1990 was still being debated on though the number of people who saw it as an underrated follow-up was definitely growing. With that in mind though, this was also a dark time for the franchise overall. Yet whilst many were still unsure of such aspects of the franchise as the aforementioned merits of Predator 2, there was one thing that was pretty much universally agreed on and that was the reason for why the Predator franchise was not in the best of shape. That being that the release of the 2 Alien vs. Predator crossover films from 2004 and 2007 respectively had definitely left a sour taste in the mouths of both professional movie watchers (or critics if you prefer) and the general movie-going public in equal measure as seen by both box office and critical reception respectively. At any rate it should not be all that surprising to learn that the state of the franchise as a whole was most assuredly in that horrific state known as “cinematic purgatory” or “limbo” if you prefer things to be on the short and sweet side. Fortunately, in the long-ago year of 2010, the franchise showed a bit of life when iconic film director Robert Rodriguez managed to get 20th Century Fox to work alongside his production company Troublemaker Studios on an attempt toward giving the franchise a fresh stab courtesy of a new film that would acknowledge the first 2 films whilst (much to the happiness of fans the world over with myself definitely being including in that group) ignoring entirely the events of Alien vs. Predator and Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem entirely. As a result we as movie goers were soon treated to a film, and slice of cinema I happen to be reviewing for you today incidentally, known as Predators and I must be honest with you: I really do dig the heck out of this movie dear reader. Yes, the franchise would once again hit a bit of a pothole in terms of 2018’s The Predator (even if there are aspects of that film which I do enjoy) before the road (for now at least) becoming a heck of a lot smoother thanks to 2022’s immensely engaging prequel Prey, but I still definitely have a bit of a soft spot for this film all the same. To be sure, it is by no stretch of the imagination a perfect film, but with the aid of fairly well-done work both behind and in front of the camera, Predators from 2010 is definitely one rainy-day viewing experience that is sure to keep you relatively engaged and entertained in equal measure from beginning to end and every minute in between.
The plot is as follows: Predators gets its intriguing narrative afoot at a rather unusual place. That being in complete and total freefall. Now lest you think I am just being a sarcastic jerk and making a rather pointed statement about the quality of the film right off the bat rather than just giving you a plot synopsis let me assure you I am not….at least in regards to this film. This is because when our film opens, we see that we are following a guy who looks like he could be an elite member of the U.S. Military as he is falling out of the sky before he proceeds to land smack dab into a very unfamiliar looking jungle environment. Of course, it should come as no surprise to soon learn that this guy, who we eventually goes by the name of Royce, is not alone. A fact that soon becomes apparent as he encounters a group of other human beings who have arrived in this environment much in the same way that he did (though hopefully without the headache and pain from landing). In an intriguing twist however, we see that for all the differences that exist between them there is one thing that most of them do have in common with each other. That being that the majority of them are all people who are highly skilled in the art of conflict be it as a cartel enforcer, a member of Spetsnaz, a sniper for IDF, a member of the Yakuza, or even as a valued guest on death row at the San Quentin Hotel to name but a few of the chosen professions that exist among this eclectic group of individuals. Incidentally I say most because there is one outlier amongst the group in the form of a member of the medical community by the name of Erwin, but I guess he’s just there in case they need any wounds they may get patched up. A good thing too because shortly after the group has been assembled, we witness as they discover some truly unusual things in the form of not only a collection of giant cages that look like they have been there for some time, but also a set of deadfall traps set by a now no longer amongst the living member of the Green Berets that look like he had been desperately trying to keep something big from getting to him before he was killed. As weird as these discoveries are, we see things soon go from ominously odd to just plain horrifying when they discover two other things. The first being something that I shan’t spoil for you here, but the second is that they are also being hunted by…..something otherworldly. Indeed, and in case you hadn’t put two and five together dear reader, this group of “lovely and endearing” individuals has just found themselves the latest targets of that notorious species of extraterrestrial hunter known as the Predator. Thus can our dysfunctional group learn to work together and find a way to kick some alien butt or is this one fight that even these tough as nails individuals might not have the spine for? That I will leave for you to discover….
Now right off, it should be said that the work done by the various departments behind the camera, while by no means perfect, still manages to do what it can to ensure that this is a fairly solid viewing experience. This starts with the work done by Nimród Antal from the director’s chair and honestly this is very much not bad yet not game-changingly spectacular by any stretch of the imagination either. To be sure, there is no denying that Antal does a wonderful job of drawing from the original especially in regards to not only little winks and nods to the OG film from 1987 and the jungle locale that this slice of cinema is set in, but also in its wonderful emphasis more so on tension and suspense rather than making the choice to just go full-blown gory and visceral at any given opportunity. Along with that however, it should also be said that Antal does a terrific job at giving movie goers a collection of action beats that are legitimately thrilling and are sure to keep you on the edge of your seat whilst giving us a collection of characters that are, for the significant lack of characterization they are faced with, worth caring about while they are being mercilessly hunted down. Suffice it to say that it might not be perfect, but even so I do feel that the work done here by Antal does at least stay somewhat honest to the work done on the original film whilst also distinguishing itself just enough that it’s both not a carbon copy to say nothing of able to retain a degree of welcome unpredictability to how things are going to play out in the story. Indeed if there is an issue that really does bring the work done behind the camera down a notch or 2, it would have to be in terms of the work done by the writing team on this film. Now don’t get me wrong: the story that this film has cooked up for us as movie goers is genuinely entertaining and there are some intriguing concepts at play here. With that said though, the problem is that not only is this film working with too much material for one movie, but the characters aren’t really given that much in the way of characterization to distinguish themselves. To be fair, I know that the characters in the first Predator were by no means three-dimensional themselves, but they were at least each given a chance to shine at some point during the narrative. Along with these departments, this slice of cinema also gives us as movie goers solid work from Gyula Pados (2014’s Million Dollar Arm, and 2017’s Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle among others) in the cinematography department. Indeed Pados does a wonderful job here of managing to deliver an atmosphere for us here that is not only, from a visual standpoint, fairly riveting, but which also manages to be the right degrees of ominous and tense that are necessary from a film in this franchise. Lastly, this section would be completely lacking if I didn’t take some time to talk about the work done by John Debney on this film’s musical accompaniment. Indeed by combining pieces of the OG Predator’s score with an intriguing mix of dark guitar and beats that are close to techno in nature, we see that Debney is able to give us a film that is very much part of this franchise whilst also being a genuinely unsettling film in its own right. Suffice it to say that when you also factor in solid work from the editing department among others it’s clear that this film might not be flawless by any stretch of the imagination, but the work done behind the camera definitely helps as much as it possibly can to make this as engaging of a sit as it ultimately manages to be.
Alongside the fairly well-done work behind the camera, this particular cinematic outing also benefits from a collection of not-bad performances from a game cast of talent even if they sadly aren’t given a lot in the way of characterization due to the issues with this film’s script. Without a doubt in my mind, this starts with Adrien Brody (the 2005 take on King Kong, 2004’s The Village, and 2006’s Hollywoodland among many others) in the role of extremely reluctant group leader Royce and he is really good here. No, the script doesn’t give his role a lot in terms of characterization, but even so there is no denying that Brody does a good job of giving us a guy who is a terrific blend of combat expertise, intellect, pragmatism, and who may start off as a bit of a one-man army yet slowly learns the importance of cooperating with others to say nothing of trusting other people to watch your back. Suffice it to say that it might not be his usual role, but Brody nevertheless makes it work and gives us a character definitely worth following. Besides Brody, this slice of cinema also contains a solid performance from Alice Braga (2013’s Elysium and 2020’s Soul) in the role of IDF sniper Isabelle. Indeed I have long felt that Braga has been one of the more underrated actresses of her generation and here she does a good job at bringing a wonderful degree of both empathy and dependability to a character that I feel is very much meant to be the moral compass of the group to say nothing of a highly skilled combatant in her own right. Now I will admit that at first I too found myself scratching my head when I saw Topher Grace (Eric Forman from That 70s Show) on the cast list. Yet while I will say that I’m not entirely sure he was the best person for the role (honestly Lukas Haas would have been my choice), I will say that I do at the very least appreciate what he is trying to pull off here. That and at least he’s not Eddie Brock in Spider-Man 3-miscast here so I guess that’s something….Lastly, this section would definitely be woefully incomplete if I didn’t take some time to focus on the work done here by screen legend Laurence Fishburne in the small yet pivotal role of a U.S. Army Air Calvary soldier named Noland. Indeed it might take a little while for him to pop up in this and he may only have 25-30 minutes of screentime tops, but even so there is no denying that Fishburne does a wonderful job of giving us a character who, in addition to his role of exposition provider to both the other characters to say nothing of the audience in general, is a brilliant mix of resourceful, snarky, a wee bit on the unhinged side, and just the right hint of moral ambiguity all rolled into one. Suffice it to say that when you also incorporate efforts from such noteworthy screen dignitaries as a delightfully sarcastic Walton Goggins (the Justified and Fallout TV shows, 2015’s The Hateful Eight, 2012’s Django Unchained), Louis Ozawa Changchien (2012’s The Bourne Legacy), retired MMA fighter Oleg Taktarov who is a genuine delight as Nicolai, iconic character actor Danny “Machete” Trejo, and a fairly contemplative performance from Mahershala Ali among others it’s clear that this film definitely has its issues, but the work done by this cast most assuredly does what it can to help keep things grounded and, dare I say, a bit more down to Earth than you might be expecting.
All in all and at the end of the day is Predators “2010” a flawlessly executed slice of sci-fi cinema by any stretch of the imagination? Honestly no, but that’s ok because not every movie has to be perfect to be good. With that in mind however, does that make this the worst thing to happen to this franchise since either of the Alien vs. Predator movies from 2004 and 2007 respectively? Thankfully, to the immense happiness of my peace of mind, I can confirm that this most assuredly is not the case either. To be sure, this film does have a few issues working against it with the most prominent being that not only are the vast majority (if not all) of the characters in this fairly one-note, but also the fact that there is just too much material here story-wise for a film that, if we’re being honest, really didn’t need to be all that complicated. With that in mind though, there is no denying that the work done at the helm is fairly well done, the cinematography is definitely skilled in its delivery, the soundtrack definitely works as both its own thing to say nothing of a wonderful throwback to the original film, the action beats are sure to leave you on the edge of your seat in the best way possible, the visual effects especially in terms of the creature designs are truly stunning, and the work done by the undeniably talented cast of players in front of the camera (despite the aforementioned significant lack of characterization) does what it can to help make their respective characters worth following, let alone even remotely caring about, throughout this film’s 107-minute runtime. Suffice it to say that it might not be a flawless film by any stretch, but if you are wanting a film that was designed with the main objective of just being an engaging, entertaining, and just plain fun movie then congratulations because you are definitely in the right place! Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to go make sure that this trip I’ve booked does NOT include an excursion to a jungle where I will find myself being hunted by a cadre of alien warriors. Not that I think it will happen, but better to be safe than sorry….Make of that what thou will dear reader. On a scale of 1-5 I give Predators “2010” a solid 3.5 out of 5.
