Predators (2010)

Director: Nimrod Antal
Starring: Adrian Brody, Topher Grace, Alice Braga

Synopsis:
A mercenary and a mix of soldiers and criminals find themselves on an alien world, the prey in the most dangerous game.

Impressions:
While I thought Predator 2 was fine, some fans of the original were less than impressed. I really didn't like Aliens vs. Predator, though, and never bothered with the sequel, which I heard was littered with its own share of problems. Given the decline of the Aliens franchise, I wasn't expecting much from a new Predator movie. However, when I heard of Robert Rodriguez's involvement in the project, I became a little more optimistic. Rodriguez can be a bit of a mixed bag as a filmmaker, but the man knows action. Some people actually mistake him for the director, but he was a producer. (Still, I have to imagine he had some influence in Danny Trejo's inclusion in the cast.) Well, when I first gave this movie a shot, I was duly impressed. It not only captured the spirit of the original, but also carved out a good little place for itself. The characters are nicely varied. I have to give Adrian Brody credit in particular for casting himself as a plausible action star, bulking up for the role and demonstrating how you do a gravelly voice without sounding silly (Christian Bale, take note). I liked all the other characters, but I'll give special mention to Laurence Fishburne for a small but memorable role. There's good action that's well-paced, plenty of call-backs to the original and some intriguing new ground explored. Any Predator fan should give this one a watch. It's good stuff.

Rating:
Watch It