Following up the 1987 Schwarzenegger film was on the mind of Producer Robert Rodriguez for years before the Troublemaker cameras rolled, and having passed the directing reins to Nimrod Antal we finally get a chance to see a ‘proper’ Predators sequel.
Dave’s review of the film here is generally positive, finding weaknesses in the use (or underuse) of a few characters, and a lack of character development and while I agree with this the decision to buy Predators on Blu-ray won’t sit with a rumination on the duplicitous nature of humanity when set against an unknown evil. This is a bloodthirsty, balls-out, action film, pure and simple, and it succeeds in resurrecting the character of the Predator from the previous two outings against those pesky Aliens.
Literally dropping their characters into the action, Rodriguez and Antal begin simple and pare down the hunt until a bombastic finale leaves us with a sequel firmly in our sights and for the most part the film makes the most of the Predator mythology, while expanding the world with the other Predator warriors and some well choreographed action set pieces.
Adrien Brody continues to pick some oddball career choices but that only makes him more likeable – this year alone I’ve seen him in The Brothers Bloom, Vincenzo Natali’s Splice and now Predators and every time he convinces me that he’s both completely serious about the parts he chooses and capable of having a great time while shooting, as he and the rest of the cast are clearly having fun with the film.
Though the film loses momentum around the time a certain actor cameos Antal knows enough about the Predators as a movie monster to keep his audience interested. The interviews Dave conducted with Rodriguez and Antal over at Troublemaker Studios in the last few weeks show off the passion the entire production crew had for the project and they are well worth a look. The commentary on the Blu-ray are great fun as both producer and director have a lot to say about the project.
The rest of the special features are fairly standard, and the transfer is pretty flawless and the film enjoyable. There’s a contagious enthusiasm that carries the film when the pacing flags and there’s enough gruesome, hard boiled action to keep fans of the franchise happy.
Blu-ray Special Features –
- Commentary by Robert Rodriguez and Nimrod Antal
- Tactics of War: Featurette from Theatrical
- Fox Movie Channel Presents Making A Scene
- Motion Comics: Moments OF Extraction & Crucified
- Deleted & Extended Scenes
- Evolution of the Species: Predator Reborn
- The Chosen: Character Featurette
Predators is out on a triple play Blu-ray, DVD and digital copy combo today.
