Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem

The potential is there, both space monsters are still an irresistible attraction for viewers, but the resulting dud is something that even those for whom the names Alien and Predator never meant much do not deserve. The level of B-ness was truly unbearable, whether it was the routine and impotent direction or the utterly insane and chaotic editing, where probably even the crew couldn't find their way around. Thank God that Rodriguez fixed everything with his Predators. (02/03/2013)

I had the same problem as with the first one: it became boring after a few minutes. That’s surprising because there’s something going on almost all the time – the aliens killing someone or fighting with the predator – but it’s executed in such a sterile and dull way that it almost makes you sad when you imagine how it could have been if… If the action scenes weren’t confusing, if the characters uttered sensible dialogues, if the extraterrestrial monsters were shown in full at least for a bit, or if it focused more on the atmosphere – in other words, if someone else had directed. The final impression is a little bit better than with the first one, but still weak. AvP 3 this time in space and without Straus, please. (01/31/2008)

It's as if you were walking around a fair's House of Horror with exclusive exhibits, but you couldn't see anything because there’s a blackout. In the night scenes (which make up two-thirds of the film), the Straus brothers deliver confusingly edited action sequences drowned in darkness, in which many times you have no idea who is killing whom, who is shooting at whom, and whether this creature is a predator or an alien boss. The brothers prove with their script that they can squeeze some water out of a rock, but they shouldn’t have got behind the camera. (04/20/2008)

What bothers me most about this crossover series is the fact that the creators have sucked the soul out of two icons of horror sci-fi, leaving us with only a marketing product. It’s dressed up and packaged to attract the masses and neutered enough to hurt anyone drawn to the series with any sort of sympathy. The Brothers Strause understood the task perfectly, but in looking at the individual parts, they didn't understand a single one. And so they ride a wave of references (mostly to Cameron), which they intersperse with fashionable zigzags between the boundaries of correctness (dead children and pregnant women, an interesting kill list). The result is an unwanted B-movie dominated by... the Predator. His sovereign hunting instincts entertain about as much as the Aliens have been relegated to the role of expendable insects. I’d say that kids would be entertained, but my 13-year-old brother told me that it would be better to adapt the game than to create this... shit (I added). (08/08/2009)

I didn't expect anything extraordinary from this, yet the result negatively surprised me. Even in the context of the genre, it's a desperately clichéd spectacle that resigns to nothing more than a run-of-the-mill shooter that steals from the sci-fi genre. It is definitely not a horror or sci-fi, just a cheap action movie. I don't know the budget they had, but the majority of the film is drowned in darkness, and such poor lighting is quite rare - only a total blackout at the production site could excuse this. The editing is chaotic, at times the viewer has no idea who is shooting at whom, who is screaming, and whose blood is splattering everywhere. I haven't seen the first film, and after watching this, I have no desire to. I get the feeling that after this discrediting of the subject matter, no one will ever make Alien 5... Overall impression: 10%. (01/20/2009)