After revitalizing the Predator franchise with Prey and Predator: Killer of Killers, Dan Trachtenberg is back again in the director's seat for its next installment. And as you can imagine, expectations are quite high for Predator: Badlands, especially since it would also mark a return to theaters for the series, after the last two aforementioned movies had gone direct to streaming. So is the latest Predator film actually worth a trip to your nearest cinema, or are you better off waiting for it to drop on Hulu?
The film centers upon Dex, a fledgling Yautja warrior struggling to prove his worth to his clan, or more specifically, his father, their leader. And yep, you heard that right, the film actually has a Predator as its main protagonist, a species that has been relegated to the role of villain or reluctant ally ever since its 1987 introduction. In order to earn his place in the clan, Dex must journey to Genna, a planet so harsh that even the strongest of Yautja warriors have failed to conquer it. And even though he plans to hunt down its apex predator, he must first work his way up from the very bottom of the food chain.
When Predator: Badlands was first revealed through its teaser trailer, the first thing that stood out to many people was its titular Predator, or more specifically, how he looked. There was just something distinctly uncanny about him, with special effects that frankly seemed undercooked. After all, this is a series that has historically relied more on makeup and practical effects to bring the Yautja to life, so to see this one lean so heavily on CG was indeed immediate cause for concern.
Well, I am pleased to report that the CGI in the final film is vastly improved from that first showing, even though part of me still misses the fully prosthetic mask and suit of the original film. But I understand the decision to go digital, given the vast array of emotions the Predator needed to be able to express as the film's lead. And after a while, I did get used to how he looked, so I imagine most others would as well.
The area where the effects in the film get to shine, though, both literally and metaphorically, is how they've been used to portray the Predator's arsenal of gadgets and weapons. From his grappling hooks to his laser sword and bow, the whole thing maintains a design language that doesn't stray too far from the earlier films while staying consistent with the more recent entries. We've definitely come a long way since the janky Invisibility effects of the original film, that's for sure.
And as you would imagine, all those gadgets and weapons are put to good use during the film's action setpieces, of which there were plenty. Each one was appropriately grand and spectacular, and it is here that the film makes its biggest case for why it deserves to be seen sprawled across the big screen. There were many oohs and aahs from the audience I saw the film with, and it was quickly clear to me that we were all getting our money's worth from the spectacle alone. But I suppose all that shouldn't really come as a surprise for an action movie of this size and budget.
One aspect of the film that did catch me off guard was the humor in it. I certainly didn't expect to laugh as much as I did during the movie. It helps that the humor didn’t feel particularly forced or shoehorned in at inappropriate moments. And sure, the first two movies had the occasional quip and oneliner, but by and large, they were serious affairs with straight-up horror elements. This one ditches all of that in favor of something closer to Godzilla vs Kong, but you won't catch me complaining.
The only minor gripe I have with Predator: Badlands is how it barely expands upon the overall Predator lore. I mean, this was supposed to be the clearest picture we've gotten to date of Yautja culture, outside of that final sequence in Predator: Killer of Killers. And it is no secret that the film has connections to the Alien universe, with Weyland-Yutani synthetics and whatnot.
But a part of me wishes they'd gone deeper with that connection. After all, there was all that talk from the director of Alien: Romulus himself, Fede Alvarez, regarding another potential crossover between both properties. But what we got here was pretty surface level stuff, so perhaps that is something we'll simply have to wait for future installments to see come to fruition.
Predator: Badlands is another slam dunk for Dan Trachtenberg and his take on the Yautja. The film is easily the most crowd-pleasing the series has ever been, and depending on who you ask, that could either be considered a good thing or a bad thing. But if you ask me, I am perfectly okay with watching the franchise continue to evolve the way it has under his stewardship, provided, of course, that he still retains some space for future entries that skew closer to the horror side than the campier, action-adventure thrills on this one.
