Review of 'Aliens vs Predator - Requiem'

avp_requiem.jpg I have to admit I was one of the few people that did not think the first Aliens vs Predator was completely trash – It was not fantastic but watchable but perhaps that is because it is quite short?

This new attempt at the franchise is a complete departure – Where the first movie had mystery and a bit of atmosphere this one shows pretty much everything – unfortunately.

A predator ship crash lands just outside of a small American town. On board the ship is, of course, a number of aliens including a “scary” alien-predator hybrid nasty. Carnage of the townspeople quickly gets underway with the aliens running rampant along with a predator doing it's share of damage as it hunts the aliens. Along the way we meet a number of forgettable and uninspiring characters with all of the cliches typical to American film nowadays (it seems): The disaffected youth suffering at the hands of his peers seeking to impress an attractive girl (with the requisite “do you want to go swimming late at night with me – with no swim suits” thrown in for good measure), a gungho sheriff that is trying to figure out what is going on, government betrayal, the list is endless. The story has a number of flaws with too many questions remaining unanswered: What is the predator attempting to do? Why does he keep disintegrating the alien victims but not his own? Why am I watching this movie?

The effects are, of course, very good and cannot be faulted but the power of the original Alien and Predator movies was the atmosphere and suspense. Here there is none of that. After an hour you get sick of the predator tracking yet another face-hugger trail up a tree or along the ground.

Another disappointment. A not-so-subtle ending leaves open the door for a sequel (could see it coming a mile away)…Perhaps they will get it right the third time? One can always hope…Mind you, since the first Alien movie we have been waiting…

Rating: “Not great, but not the worse”

Review Date: 2008-01-19


Directed by: Brothers Strause (Colin Stause; Greg Strause)

Studio: Twentieth Century-Fox

Year: 2008

Length: 86 minutes

Genre: Science Fiction

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0758730/


Other reviewed films by Brothers Strause (Colin Stause; Greg Strause):