AVP: Alien vs. Predator (2004)

Alien vs. Predator

Matinee

Straight up: this is a movie for fans of the first halves of these

series, to wit: Alien/Aliens and Predator (not Predator 2). It is as

chock full of stupid "oh jeez" moments as it is full of genuine

enjoyment for said fans. But if you are not a fan, the "oh jeez"

moments will far outweigh the enjoyment.

The off-putting preview seems to give away the story, in a

nonsensical combination of elements that directly contradict the

known mythology (first halves, people!) of the two series. To wit:

the Predator only comes when it's hottest and the Aliens have never

discovered Earth. Taking place in October 2004, they set themselves

some serious obstacles even before our butts are in the seats. My

companion and I were satisfied with the story as it ended up actually

unfolding, but I don't want to give it away. I am led to believe it

has little to no relation to the popular Dark Horse comic series from

the 1980's.

Myself, I root for the Aliens, and it seems they just are a better

movie device than the Predator. As a result, I noticed a million

small inside jokes put there just for us. Having re-watched Predator

the night before, and having seen no nudge nudge references to that

series in the film, I conclude that Aliens continue to be the

ass-kickingest critters this side of the Big Bang. The Queen, well,

she could tour as a rock band and sell out every time. She is simply

too cool for words.

Oh yes, your eyes will roll, you will clap your hands in amusement

and glee more than in sheer adrenaline, but these guys still have the

power to be scary and awesome, and so it's a perfect, perfect popcorn

movie. Familiar cast (including Aliens' Bishop, Lance Henrikson, in

a surprise role), well-rounded team of experts, familiar perils, a

killer setting, but actually wrapped up in a pretty nifty little

conceit. The information is parceled out bit by bit just enough to

keep you interested, even when you might think, "oh come on!" It is

precisely the kind of written-for-the-joy-of-the-idea that fans of

these sorts of movies have clamored for these 20 years. (Staggers at

the thought of 20 years) It's a modern day Dracula meets

Frankenstein - the impulse is always within us to pit two adversaries

that we love to scare us against each other. This time, the rules

change.

I'm serious!  It was a fun ride of a movie, and the goofy parts were 

well compensated for by the "oh that's a cool way to introduce that

information." As a bonus, we get a female hero, almost as good as

Ripley.   Check it out, if it's your cup of tea.  It's a great time.

-- 

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These reviews (c) 2004 Karina Montgomery. Please feel free to

forward but credit the reviewer in the text. Thanks. You can

check out previous reviews at:

http://www.cinerina.com and http://ofcs.rottentomatoes.com - the

Online Film Critics Society

http://www.hsbr.net/reviews/karina/listing.hsbr - Hollywood Stock

Exchange Brokerage Resource

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X-RT-RatingText: 4/5