Predators Review: Preying on a Weak Summer Box Office

I was able to get into a preview ofPredatorslast Thursday night. After watching the film with a few friends I found that my opinion differed from the majority of them. I decided to wait a little before writing a full Predatorsreview in order to collect my thoughts and see what others had to say. My opinion on the film didn't change.

Predators opened with a solid $25 million and a very strong per-theater in-take considering that Despicable Me opened in a thousand more theaters and that Twilightis still open in another thousand more than that. Despite the numbers, and it seems a given that it will make back its modest $40 million budget, I was disappointed with the film.

Perhaps I should have expected less as the Predator property has been stale for quite some time. Truly, in the film world, the franchise has stunk since they failed to produce a quality sequel to the original Schwarzenegger classic Predatorin 1987. The Predator name has done well in the graphic novel and gaming world in the interim, but even the attempt to bring that into the film world (Aliens vs Predator) was a colossal failure.

Most detractors will point to the casting of Adrien Brody. I agree in part to that, it feels like a bad choice when he is given some classic Arnie lines from the original, and when he has to deliver lines played for a macho-bravado-humor mix. Still, Brody has a strong presence and is not as scrawny as he used to be. When the other characters follow the man like he's Toucan Sam, it's not hard to buy.

The dialogue and story are the issue here in Predators. if I wanted a ridiculous human-hunting story I would watch Surviving the Game. Gary Busey, Rutger Hauer and John C. McGinley hunting Ice-T?! So ridiculous it's awesome. There is too much dialogue played for laughter; it's not subtle at all. Also, there are two "major twists" near the end of Predatorsthat you would have to be asleep to not see coming.

In the end, I expected much more out of a "reboot" or what's been billed as a true sequel to Predator. Referencing the original and borrowing lines as well as film score (Using a lot of the original film music was actually a really nice touch for setting the mood), is simply not enough for a major franchise like this. They brought nothing really new to this universe.

What is with the weak movie offerings so far this summer and really all of 2010? The only movies that actually exceeded my expectations were The Losers, The A-Team, which got trounced by the Karate Kid (spoiler: has absolutely nothing to do with karate!), and a few others. If you love Predator, and actually like AVP, go see Predators. Otherwise wait for a rental or you will be disappointed.

Predator Film 1987 - Wiki
Predators Film 2010 - Site
Rotten Tomatoes Box Office Results July 2010