The Predator

As if the Predator got into the hands of Carpenter in the mode of Big Trouble in Little China / Escape from XY. Yes, it's a truly B-rate nonsense. Yes, it's stuck time. Yes, it has little in common with the Predator. But it's extremely fun; sometimes intentionally (it typically uses one-liners in a Black style) and sometimes not (it does not hold together and does not make the slightest sense). Which doesn´t mind because whether it's silly, degraded, B-rate in terms of one-liners, it's just fun at all times. I this movie had been made a decade earlier, it would have been a cult movie today. So, the worse Predator, the better the B-movie. And it´s a damn good B-movie. (09/12/2018)

The best film in the last thirty years with the Predator in the main or a supporting role. Which is weak praise and a truly dismal business card for the series' sequels and spin-offs, since there are inconsistencies in almost every scene. For every good line, there is at least one awkward one, and every great action scene is followed by a WTF moment (all thanks to Thomas Jane and the overly used dogs). While the casting of Boyd Holbrook and Sterling K. Brown is on point, Olivia Munn's unfortunate presence is a disappointment, as I cannot believe her as a doctor even for a moment. Similarly, Jacob Tremblay, who never fails, seems to have stepped out of a different movie. But beware, this is unstoppable and relentless entertainment, and after almost falling asleep eight years ago while watching Predators, this is a big step forward, though unfortunately with a sad lack of care. Shane Black must have known how many fans look up to him as the savior of the entire franchise, and his sometimes self-parodic approach must have surely shocked many of them. (09/13/2018)

It's not as bad as the ratings and reviews say, but from one of the most anticipated films of the year and the guy who wrote the screenplay for The Last Boy Scout, the untapped potential hurts quite a bit. As an action B-movie, though, the film works reliably. There's quite a bit of action, blood is not spared, and especially at the end it's a pretty decent carnage and the characters are pretty good. The prevailing triple combo is the likable Boyd Holbrook, the beautiful Olivia Munn and the witty Keegan-Michael Key, who finally has a role tailored to him and quite a lot of space. Disappointingly, the atmosphere is almost non-existent, the suspense is also lacking and I couldn't find any Wow effect or scene that made me want to see the film again. That the story is uninteresting and naive I won't criticize, because the old Predator doesn't have a sophisticated script either. For me, the film is hurt quite a bit by the fact that it takes place in a city instead of a jungle. Anyway, the film fulfils its purpose of entertaining, but unfortunately you will not take anything more away from it this time. 65% (09/15/2018)

A new comic-book toilet flush from Marvel, or maybe even worse, DC, who coincidentally feature the Predators. You piss me off, Hollywood. Why is it that there are almost no good adult films produced anymore? Why is it that when studios pour a lot money, what comes out is uniform, sterile infantility? There is plenty of blood and it does fuck things up all the way to 11, but it has the mental level of a six year-old kid. The characters must utter stupid one-liners and jump 10 metres up in the air, even is nothing is happening, and fearlessly balance on a moving bus and a flying spaceship (!!!). Plus a cute clever boy and a domesticated predator dog. Did we fucking need any of that, really? In a Predator film? In the first half, at least the humour works sometimes, but in the second half, absolutely nothing. It falls apart to such extent that you can even see massive editing mistakes, when there isn’t a fundamental continuity between two consecutive scenes. It is as if parts of it were missing (I got scared at the transition from the barn to the helicopter, I thought I had fallen asleep for a moment). Shane Black deserves nothing but hell from this. And maybe people will start retroactively appreciating Antal’s well executed Predators. (09/13/2018)

I love that Shane Black wrote and filmed it his way and didn't merely need to slavishly reference the original, like Predators did last time. He simply made a typical comedy full of verbal wars and unexpected situations (in which once again a child in danger plays an important role, but who is far from defenseless), and although he was mostly interested in entertainment, there is also a decent amount of tension. Even though I have a few reservations, mainly about the beginning and the end, I'm still very satisfied. I was also pleased by the unknown but sympathetic actors (Black's screenwriter helped them a lot by ensuring the viewer would like them, and their deaths are therefore seriously impressive), and I have to praise Henry Jackman, too, who played with Silvestri's music in a much more original way than John Debney did last time. (09/13/2018)