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Rating: B-
The Predator
Once again the world of men and Predators collide in the latest installment of the franchise The Predator. The Film stars an impressive cast of characters ranging from Sterling K. Brown, to Olivia Munn, Thomas Jane, Keegan-Michael Key, Jacob Tremblay, Boyd Holbrook, and Trevante Rhodes. This time around we follow Army Sniper Quinn McKenna who has a close encounter with a crashed Predator ship and manages to escape with not only the Alien's helmet, but one of his gauntlets as well before government agents come in and lock-down the area. With a new kind of predator on the loose who is hell-bent on getting his stuff back, a massive chase ensues bringing in not only shady government entities but a ragtag collection of military soldiers who are destined for a psych unit and one of the countries leading biologist as they all try to figure out this new predators purpose before it is too late.
This film started out with a fairly cheesy opening scene, which I am sure is not what they were going for, but between the rigid dialog and the Star Wars-esque music it just came across poorly. The film had all the makings of another terrible over budgeted alien action film, but then about 30mins things started to turn around for the better. This film finally catches it's stride and pulls together comedy, action, and a fun story that is highly entertaining to watch. Once all the main cast of characters come together you can really start to enjoy this film. Thomas Jane and Keegan-Michael Key work great off each other as Baxley and Coyle, two military guys who both suffer from PTSD in different ways, one with serious terrets and the other who can't stop cracking jokes makes for an amusing duo. Holbrook as Quinn McKenna out sniper-bad ass keeps things on track and from going too far off the rails at any moment. Olivia Munn as Biologist Casey Bracket handles herself like a champ as both a no-nonsense scientist and a serious fighter when the things start to turn up the heat. Jacob Tremblay plays McKenna's young autistic son Rory and he is just as charming as he ever is. I really love him as an actor. Lastly, I kinda really dig Sterling K. Brown as Traeger, our resident bad guy in this film. It is such a twist from what we are used to seeing of him in This Is Us. it is very refreshing to see his range.
The story is a fun one to watch but definitely isn't perfect. The film is a continuation of the series where we are in a world where the government knows about the existence of these creatures, but the general population does not. This does leave some room for plot holes all over the place, but you just kind of have to suspense your views of reality and remind yourself this is just a movie. It is pretty cool seeing the addition of the Predator's "dogs". They are an interesting twist on this story and the end of being pretty awesome. There are a few scenes words the end of the film though that the filmmakers left me personally with one too many questions about. #WhatHappenedToTheRealDog . Seriously, I need answers on that. You can't show me a dog in danger a movie and not let me know he is okay. Please reference The Meg. I need answers.
Anyways, I am getting off track here. Overall, this was still a pretty entertaining watch. It is hardly a perfect film, but hey I can't even count how many Predator films in total we have had. I am not expecting them to remake the wheel here. We show up to films like this for the over the top plot and boatloads of action and this film deliver plenty. So would I recommend it? Sure, why not. If you are reading this you enjoy these types of movies anyway, so you might as well check it out. Get your crew together, get some popcorn and a drink and kick back and just enjoy yourselves. It is a silly good time. it won't change your life. It probably isn't the best in the series, but it isn't the worst addition we could have gotten and of course, there is always room for sequels.
let us know your thoughts on The Predator in the comments below!
See The Predator in theaters everywhere September 14th!