JoshuaParis

From the opening shot you know what sort of film you are getting in to. It's slow and methodical, brimming with atmosphere and music that sets the tone just right. It's been compared to the Exorcist but I think its better compared to The Shining. I wont spoil the story, but recommend this as one of the best horror films and my second favourite film of 2018 only slightly behind First Reformed. Watch it now!

I haven't written a review in a long time but felt it necessary to try and warn people about how bad this movie is. It's unfunny and most of the plot and cinematography is copy & pasted from the first picture (which I loved.) The jokes are often crude and there are only one or two strong laughs mainly coming from Galifianakis. People will like this film or pretend too, just because of the first movie, for example laugh when Alan or Phil do anything out of the ordinary, like most of the audience did at my theatre. Overall an extremely unsatisfying and at times tedious sequel to a brilliant first act, that like so many comedies before it, didn't know when to quit.

Predators Review

In A Nutshell...

Eight of Earth's most dangerous Soldiers and Criminals awaken falling into an unknown jungle – on an alien world. As they try to work together to stay alive, an invisible enemy hunts them for sport.

Review

In 1987 John McTiernan directed a testosterone filled action flick, which pitted Arnold Schwarzenegger against a bad-ass alien, it did well with its worldwide audience and is still considered a solid action film today. But after a poor sequel, which replaced The Terminator himself with Danny Glover (bad idea) and two laughable spin-offs, it seemed the predator franchise was all but dead and buried.

Twenty-three Years later producer Robert Rodriguez (Sin City) and director Nimród Antal (Vacancy – but don't be put off just yet) have come together with an unproduced 1994 script by Rodriguez – who has been eager to get the picture made for quite some time. The film does well with the original formula, a jungle, a group of mercenaries with big guns, a strong leader — who in this case is Oscar winner Adrian Brody (The pianist, King Kong) who has bulked up for the role of Royce, but is merely a shadow of Schwarzenegger's Dutch in size. But what Brody lacks in statue, he makes up for in pure acting talent, and brings a well needed central performance, to a film that ultimately lacks in dialogue.

The supporting cast unlike other movies of this genre, don't just play the part of a large body count, but have a likable mentality (well some do) similar to James Cameron's Aliens – but don't get me wrong, none of them are by any means Bill Paxton's Hudson. An honourable mention goes to the Katana wielding yakuza Hanzo (Louis Ozawa Changchien) whose sword skills are somewhat deadly. Unfortunately one of the biggest disappointments of the film is how the predator is handled, with the introduction of the new berserker Predator, which hunts the humans and Predators alike. You would think they would be ten times the hunter that the first was – But actually they are a lot sloppier in comparison to the 1987 original.

Final Thoughts

The first half is a brilliantly paced action movie which lives up to expectations, in many ways surpasses them. Unfortunately due to a few minor hick-ups and a dull climax it suffers in the third and final act. But overall a well earned three star effort, which should grant Nimród Antal another bash at the recovering franchise.

3/5 Stars www.CrazyAboutFilm.com