This movie works better as a sequel than "Predator 2" did but is it also a better movie? In most ways yes, though it at the same time is being far from a perfect movie and also never comes noway near the level of the first Predator movie.
You could say that this is a maintaining and entertaining movie. A perfectly good enough movie to kill some time with and have a good time with as well. But that is all this movie is really. All of the tension and action remains quite formulaic and is all something we have seen before. Of course there are no real surprises anymore, after already 4 Predator related movies. Still the movie manages to come up with plenty of original stuff, while at the same time remaining loyal to its original concept and to the first movie.
Yes, in lots of ways this movie is really being like the first Predator movie, from 1987. No Arnold this time but still a Gatling gun, a jungle, boobytraps and even lots of characters are similar to those from the original first movie. It even mimics some moments out of the original and even its buildup is sort of the same, which does feel a bit forced at certain points but it will please the fans of the 1987 movie. It's a real throwback to the first original movie, which is only a positive thing to say, since that movie is such a fantastic one, that still holds up very well today.
It really was a great move to make this movie much like the first movie. It takes the concept back to its original roots, of a cat and mouse game, set in an hot, dense jungle. It's something very simple but yet so effective, also because the Predators are such awesome looking and skilled aliens. It really doesn't change much about this concept and I'm glad the movie didn't tried too hard to improve on the first movie and alter stuff heavily. At first some of the changes about the Predators seemed quite redundant and I felt sort of 'offended' by it (such as the fact that the heat vision of the Predators had suddenly received a modern updated look) but I must say that the movie does give a rather good, simple, plausible explanation for it as to why the Predators and some of their weapons are different from those in the previous movies. It all makes it obvious that this movie was put together by people who really put lots of time and effort into it and also had a real love for the first Predator movie. Even John Debney's musical score is totally like Alan Silvestri's original "Predator" score, which is not something I'm criticizing, simply because it keeps suiting the movie and all of its moments so extremely well.
But it only is the first half of the movie that is being like a real great throwback to the first movie. Literly as the movie starts to get dark it starts doing its own thing, which just wasn't as great or entertaining as the stuff it did in its first half. You could say that the movie becomes a bit too much a science-fiction flick and decides to go more over-the-top with stuff. Perhaps it also tried too hard to be like the "Aliens" out of the Alien movie-series, hence also the title "Predators", with a S at the end. No, I didn't really liked the second half of the movie as much as the first but it at least didn't ruined the movie for me.
It seemed like a very unlikely choice to cast Adrien Brody in the main lead for an action flick but he simply did a great job and was totally believable in his tough role. And lets face it, he also really needed a big, successful movie again. This movie shows once more how incredibly versatile he actual is as an actor. It also has a good supporting cast, which provides the movie with plenty of solid, fun characters in it.
It's simply a solid, good sequel, that paves the way for more Predator movies. And who would had ever thought that would be possible, after the somewhat disappointing "Predator 2" and the weak Alien vs. Predator movies.
7/10
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