Unblooded
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Post
12
written Dec 30, 2007 at 19:49
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Modified: Dec 30, 2007 at 22:02
I'll give a short review.
(I'll try to remain unbiased, but I warn you: I like this film)
AVP-R is dark, when I say dark you are automatically thinking of lighting and you'd right, theres a lot of darkness in this film but the darkness I am thinking of is in the tone of the film; it's a solemn movie, the characters are automatically assaulted by tragedy from the get go; whether it's the father and son hunters or the police officer getting taken out by the Wolf (more on this beauty later) or even Ricky getting his ass kicked by Dale, this is not a happy movie. But neither is Alien, Aliens, Predator or any of the others in the series. There are of course lighter parts, afterall the Strause Brothers want us to enjoy the movie, but they are few and far between and almost all center around Kelly and her daughter. If you are expecting Alice In Wonderland, go away.
The cinematography is great, both the camerawork and the props are very well thought out and done, taking the scenes with the PredAlien as an example, she is kept in the dark which helps us to ignore the somewhat shoddy effects with her (the dreadlocks are ridiculous) and she is never in frame more than a few seconds, which really helps the character and the film, because it keeps her as an unknown, unlike her Alien kin who after 5 movies no longer hold the same dread or terror they did in the originals.
The Predator is amazing, from the first time you see him on the Homeworld, you know this guy is going to kick ass, his helmet and weapons are brilliantly made and his movements are on par with the original, the Wolf is the star of the show and he knows it, the ease with which he takes down the aliens reinforces the idea that he is an elite Alien Hunter, although he may be out of touch hunting humans, as he is snuck up on by a police officer (who the Wolf precedes to skin,which is rather confusing as he is supposed to be cleaning up the Aliens) and is completely bemused by the actions of Ricky when he shoots him, resulting in him falling down an elevator shaft (although Ricky somewhat gets his comeuppance when an Alien stabs him with his tail). If I had one complaint about the Predator, it would be his "powerglove", which he uses to punch through the pavement, this looks cheap and tacky and ripped from the pages of a "Warhammer 40K" novel.
Pros:
+The Predator is back.
+The PredAlien is a throwback to the Alien
+Great special effects
+Great sound effects from both the Predator and Aliens
+Great pacing
+Great human characters
Cons:
-Length, it's a very short film
-Story is weak, little to no expansion is given to the human characters
-The ending is bad
-Theres too many homages to the original films
So all in all I enjoyed the film and I'll give it a 7/10.
Personal highlight:
The Wolf dropping into the crashed Predator ship
The Aliens scurrying on the ceiling of the sewers
Steven Pasqaule (Dallas)
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Does anyone like Paul Andersons AVP retcons