Director:
Nimrod Antal

Cast:
Adrien Brody
Alice Braga
Topher Grace
Walton Goggins
Laurence Fishburne
Oleg Taktrarov
Louis Ozawa Changchien

Synopsis:
A group of elite killers are hunted by Predators on a remote planet.

Review:
What Robert Rodriguez does best is over-the-top B-movie action flicks. With him signed on as producer, this is what you should expect because this is what it most definitely delivers. While this installment is not the classic the original Predator film was, it is certainly miles ahead of any of the installments that came after (Predator 2, the AVP films).

With the best opening scene to a film I’ve seen in at least two years, Predators starts off with a bang. Introducing us to the group of characters including Adrien Brody (The Pianist), Alice Braga (I Am Legend), Topher Grace (In Good Company), Walton Goggins (FX’s Justified). While this film has nowhere near the body mass the original film toted with Schwarzenegger, Carl Weathers, Bill Duke, and Jesse “The Body” Ventura, it makes up for that with good actors and a great sense of direction. Here we get to see a different side of Adrien Brody we’ve never seen before, he has the chance to become a full-on action star here and he’s obviously been to the gym. He gives the film a true leader and hero to root for throughout the film, even when his decisions are not so black-and-white. Director Antal knows how to build tension and shoot the action set pieces where we can actually see what the hell is going on, not the shaky-cam stuff we’ve been seeing recently.

Honestly, I had a lot of fun with this film. The first time you see the Predator off in the distance under his camouflage like they did in the original, it gave me chills. I felt like how those must have felt watching the original in the theater, seeing that for the first time. While I never found the original (or this installment) to be scary, they are very fun for an action-thriller. Now, there are a few problems here including sub-plot involving Laurence Fishburne’s character, that storyline I could have done without, as it really distracts from the tension that is present throughout the rest of the film. Other spots I don’t want to mention because of some possible spoilers, but the biggest problem all comes back to Fishburne’s character. His character should have “revealed” himself earlier, because by the time he shows up, he is absolutely useless.

Other than that, this film lives in B-movie heaven as the original did. The film delivers on tension, action, character, and atmosphere…we even get a direct shout-out to the original film and Arnold’s character. If you go into the film expecting to have a good time, then you should enjoy the film, just remember not to take the film too seriously. There are some great twists and a finale that you cannot help but enjoy. I hope that fans of the original check this movie out, because there is a lot of fun to be had. I can’t really see this film bringing in a lot of money in the box office, because it is an acquired taste.

Rating: R for strong graphic violence and strong language

Runtime: 106 minutes

Review:  B+