Alien vs Predator
Year: 2004
Director: Paul W. S. Anderson
Starring: Roul Bova, Lance Henricksen & Sanaa Lathan
Runtime: 101 mins
BBFC: 15
Published: 06/09/22
Director: Paul W. S. Anderson
Starring: Roul Bova, Lance Henricksen & Sanaa Lathan
Runtime: 101 mins
BBFC: 15
Published: 06/09/22
Back in the days when monster movies were big business, crossover ‘versus’ films were a major event. Seeing the likes of Godzilla and King Kong square up against each other and answer the age-old question of who would win in a fight was one of the most tantalising action experiences audiences could ask for. But the versus style movie went the way of the dodo the moment monster movies stopped being as popular. But in the early 00’s there was a brief time when this style of crossover film was considered viable once more with the release of Freddy vs Jason (a crossover of The Nightmare on Elm Street and Friday the 13th franchises), and Alien vs Predator (a crossover that speaks for itself).
Like many people my generation, Alien vs Predator was the first time I was exposed to either franchise. With Alien going on to become one of my favourite movie franchises, I guess I reluctantly owe this film a lot. So, with my Predator reviews all done and dusted, and I’ve been wanting to tackle Alien for quite some time, I feel it’s about time I looked back at AVP.
Wealthy industrialist Charles Weyland (Lance Henriksen) has discovered a pyramid like structure two thousand feet below the ice in Antarctica. Recruiting expert archaeologists like Sebastian De Rosa (Raoul Bova), and survival experts like Alexa Woods (Sanaa Lathan), Weyland charts an expedition underground to uncover the secrets to what may be the oldest building on the planet. Meanwhile a colony of perfect killers, the Xenomorphs, have awoken from their slumber within the pyramid; and the most skilled hunters in the galaxy, the Predators, are on course for the pyramid to begin an ancient hunting ritual.
Like many people my generation, Alien vs Predator was the first time I was exposed to either franchise. With Alien going on to become one of my favourite movie franchises, I guess I reluctantly owe this film a lot. So, with my Predator reviews all done and dusted, and I’ve been wanting to tackle Alien for quite some time, I feel it’s about time I looked back at AVP.
Wealthy industrialist Charles Weyland (Lance Henriksen) has discovered a pyramid like structure two thousand feet below the ice in Antarctica. Recruiting expert archaeologists like Sebastian De Rosa (Raoul Bova), and survival experts like Alexa Woods (Sanaa Lathan), Weyland charts an expedition underground to uncover the secrets to what may be the oldest building on the planet. Meanwhile a colony of perfect killers, the Xenomorphs, have awoken from their slumber within the pyramid; and the most skilled hunters in the galaxy, the Predators, are on course for the pyramid to begin an ancient hunting ritual.
Alien vs Predator is not good, I’m not going to make out like it’s something that it isn’t. However, when taking into account the purpose of what a versus film represents…the answer to the question of who would win in a fight, AVP can at least deliver some satisfying action sequences.
The plot is really just there as set dressing, it serves its purpose until all three factions (humans, xenomorphs, and predators) are all in the same room together, and then it just disappears. The human characters are all one-dimensional cannon fodder, which is fine because why would you come to a versus film expecting deep character arcs and emotional depth?
It does unfortunately mean that the majority of the film’s opening act, which lasts around forty minutes, is horrendously boring. There’s so much bad dialogue, and so many awful performances from everyone involved that I wouldn’t blame you if you turned the film off and never returned to it.
But once the humans are inside the pyramid and become caught up in the ancient killing ritual, AVP does step up to become a somewhat satisfying action film with absolutely zero brains. It also acts as a franchise revival of sorts for Predator, as Fox hadn’t done anything with the property since 1990’s Predator 2 fourteen years earlier. Despite AVP’s rather dismal reputation, it did help reinvigorate interest in the property which ultimately led to 2010’s Predators.
Paul W. S. Anderson, perhaps most well-known for his work on the Resident Evil film franchise, does make AVP a fun experience once the bullets start to fly, and along with cinematographer David Johnson, AVP actually contains some of the most iconic and beautiful looking shots of either franchise. The xenomorphs are truly terrifying, lurking in the shadows, only visible by the whites of their teeth or the slight reflection from their shiny bodies. The predators are also incredibly imposing, larger than the humans and the xenomorphs, with the brute strength to match it, but lacking in agility.
The CGI work also isn’t too bad either, it definitely looks dated now, but for 2004 it’s reasonably decent. Especially when looking at the snakelike movements of the xenomorphs, there are moments when it’s hard to distinguish between when it’s a real-life model, or a completely digital creation.
I don’t really need to say that much more about AVP. Can you have fun with it? Yes, and it’s even better with a couple of drinks and some friends. But is it a bad film? Absolutely, and the first forty minutes are by far the worst bit. I can’t really see AVP appealing to fans of either Alien or Predator, because it’s so far removed from what either franchise represents, but for people that just want to see powerful aliens fight each other and brutally murder a bunch of humans then AVP has you sorted.
The plot is really just there as set dressing, it serves its purpose until all three factions (humans, xenomorphs, and predators) are all in the same room together, and then it just disappears. The human characters are all one-dimensional cannon fodder, which is fine because why would you come to a versus film expecting deep character arcs and emotional depth?
It does unfortunately mean that the majority of the film’s opening act, which lasts around forty minutes, is horrendously boring. There’s so much bad dialogue, and so many awful performances from everyone involved that I wouldn’t blame you if you turned the film off and never returned to it.
But once the humans are inside the pyramid and become caught up in the ancient killing ritual, AVP does step up to become a somewhat satisfying action film with absolutely zero brains. It also acts as a franchise revival of sorts for Predator, as Fox hadn’t done anything with the property since 1990’s Predator 2 fourteen years earlier. Despite AVP’s rather dismal reputation, it did help reinvigorate interest in the property which ultimately led to 2010’s Predators.
Paul W. S. Anderson, perhaps most well-known for his work on the Resident Evil film franchise, does make AVP a fun experience once the bullets start to fly, and along with cinematographer David Johnson, AVP actually contains some of the most iconic and beautiful looking shots of either franchise. The xenomorphs are truly terrifying, lurking in the shadows, only visible by the whites of their teeth or the slight reflection from their shiny bodies. The predators are also incredibly imposing, larger than the humans and the xenomorphs, with the brute strength to match it, but lacking in agility.
The CGI work also isn’t too bad either, it definitely looks dated now, but for 2004 it’s reasonably decent. Especially when looking at the snakelike movements of the xenomorphs, there are moments when it’s hard to distinguish between when it’s a real-life model, or a completely digital creation.
I don’t really need to say that much more about AVP. Can you have fun with it? Yes, and it’s even better with a couple of drinks and some friends. But is it a bad film? Absolutely, and the first forty minutes are by far the worst bit. I can’t really see AVP appealing to fans of either Alien or Predator, because it’s so far removed from what either franchise represents, but for people that just want to see powerful aliens fight each other and brutally murder a bunch of humans then AVP has you sorted.