The Predator Shows Not Much Of A Spine

Reboots and spiritual sequels never get much respect in the film industry. They can come off as lazy and disingenuous, and The Predator can be described as exactly these two things.

Shane Black’s The Predator is a 2018 American science fiction action film that stars Boyd Holbrook, Trevante Rhodes, Jacob Tremblay, Keegan-Michael Key, Olivia Munn, Thomas Jane, Alfie Allen and Sterling K. Brown and follows a group of PTSD-stricken soldiers who must fight off an invading pair of Predators.

It’s at best okay, and with that said I will talk about what I liked first — I got a few chuckles from some of the jokes. I found the performances of Rhodes, Brown, Allen, Key, Jane, and Tremblay enjoyable and there were a couple of cool action scenes.

Olivia Munn and Boyd Holbrook did this movie no favors with their presence. I know Olivia Munn has fought hard to prove herself since her humble beginnings in this industry, but Shane Black gave her nothing to work with this time around. And then we have the Ken doll, I mean Boyd Holbrook. I don’t know him from anything else and this wooden performance as the Gary Stu leader did little to cement him in my memory. The Predator’s casting budget must have been super small because it’s littered with B- and C-list actors.

There was some bad CG on display. For a movie series known for amazing practical effects, The Predator was absolutely a step down. When juxtaposed with live action scenes it broke what little immersion I had.

Music was there, not memorable but so-so.

Shane Black hasn’t let me down this bad since Iron Man 3, so clearly sequels to long running franchises aren’t his forte. He goes into them halfheartedly and gives a product that pleases the masses but will alienate longtime fans, like myself.

If you must see this one I recommend waiting for Netflix or basic cable.

I give The Predator (20th Century Fox, R, 1hr 47min) a 1.9 out of 5.