When I saw they were making a new Predator movie I was filled with mixed emotions. The first Predator with Arnie playing Arnie was as near a masterpiece as comic book sci-fi had ever been before. It maybe does not hold a candle to some of what we have seen since but I loved it all the same. The second movie Predator 2 was enjoyable but predictable and the acting was that of a television pilot, but still good enough for me want to own it on DVD.Alien vs Predator was the movie I was hoping for but was so short if you blinked you missed it. It was quality but it left me feeling cheated, just like I had just had a nice juicy steak but there were no vegetables, pepper sauce, fries or onion rings. I hoped AVP Requiem would be the chocolate gateaux and cream that I missed in the first movie, but it was a damp squid and not even worth £3.oo for the DVD from the bargain bin. The only reason to own it was for completeness.
Up until AVP Requiem I thought that the Alien movies were far superior and a couple of them are still up there in my top 100 movies. Even the worst of them was better than Predator II. I however feel that the Predator potential for engaging sequels had been missed. If the quality of the second movie had matched the first then this new movie might not have been so long coming.
It is therefore that I await Predators with a mixture of excitement and impending disappointment. Having been bitten by AVP Requiem at the checkout I will not be queuing at the cinema or buying it when it comes out on DVD unless I have it on good personal authority for my sons that it is up to scratch or I have seen it on TV and think it is worth adding to my collection.
The reports are good so far. Adrien Brody plays a darker version of the Arnie type character with a good few more brain cells. Lots of stupid mistakes that we have seen in similar action movies are avoided such as people running out of ammunition when there are weapons and ammo lying there from fallen comrades and the commandos act like soliders rather than frightened school girls. Laurence Fishburne should be okay and the producer Robert Rodriguez studied at the feet of Quentin Tarantino. The director Nimród Antal, who's name sounds like an anagram, is someone I don't know and I have never seen any of his movies. Lets hope he is not the weak link.
There are always going to be lots of people who don't get this movie and it was never going to be very cerebral but I am hoping for a fast and furious romp that I can sit back and enjoy without engaging the brain to much. I expect a chill out and an adrenalin rush and not a "why did I bother watching that crap?" moment. Cult classic or cheap rip off? We will have to watch it to see.
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