Review of The Predator (2018) by Barb C — 13 Sep 2018

Wow. Saw this yesterday. I'm very disappointed that Shane and company mailed this one in. The trailers actually made it look kind of good in parts, but before long I realized those trailers had been incredibly misleading. This film isn't anything like those previews. It's as if they tried to make it look like something it wasn't in the trailers (very dishonest, but common). Something that could still be considered a Predator film and exist in that same universe while introducing some new ideas. That couldn't be further from the truth. What this is, is a really weird and inconsistent effort that truly did seem promising at times but never felt like it could be a part of the Predator series. This movie is really, really bad overall. There's no getting around that.

There was almost zero tension. How can there be tension when everyone's always talking. There was no atmosphere. They were sloppily jumping from one thing to the next, and I definitely had the sense that this had been endlessly butchered and reshot. It was never even remotely scary. I have considered Predator 2, which isn't the greatest film by any stretch, to be a pretty decent sequel nevertheless. I saw it as a child and it scared me to death (particularly the subway scene). I still enjoy it for what it is. I'd like something better, but I can live with it. Predators gets about the same reaction from me. Pretty decent overall, although not as good as the first. However, both Predator 2 and Predators are without a doubt head and shoulders above The Predator. This film totally deserves the 23% rating it's getting from the top critics.

What was really missing from The Predator? Pretty much everything. I mean, seriously, at times I had to check to see if I had a controller in my hands because I thought I might be playing a video game. I want a scary movie, and also a movie that truly does inspire that Close Encounters feeling you talked about Shane. I didn't get that at all, what I got instead was a mailed-in effort that's trying to be a Marvel offshoot but is also failing at that.

I'm still kind of shocked the day after. A slap in the face to those who have been waiting so long for a good predator sequel. Don't get me wrong, I thought Predators was pretty decent. But this... This truly depressed me.