My two reviews I put on a film website... I gave AVP an angry 3/10 and AVPR an overly generous 6/10, maybe I should lower it to a five.
AVP
To be honest when i first heard the news that AVP was being directed by Paul W S Anderson i was sceptical, mainly because i'd witnessed Resident Evil... a movie which he seemed to lose interest in after about 15 minutes! Don't get me wrong, it had some nice ideas and a couple of nice little bits here and there but the more i watched the more i was horrified... and not in the good way.
As a big fan of the Alien and Predator films (apart from Resurrection)i remained positive, watching small clips of Paul on the internet telling us he was a big fan of the franchise blah blah blah. The trailer looked good too! (school boy error, if the trailer is good the film generally is bad) So i sat in my seat at the local cinema happy as larry... it was the first time i had ever had the privilege to witness an Alien or Predator film at a cinema, but both in the same film... a dream come true! My first annoyance was when the certificate came into view... a 15? The film hadn't even started yet!!! For these films we need the 18, the people who want to see this movie are the ones who were 18 in the first place or have grown up with the film... i deserve the right to witness a full 18 rated film... it's double the monsters, that means double the carnage... it should by all rights be double the rating! So as i watched i noticed the gore was lacking! Killing machines from another world armed with mops and sponges?! If there is less blood does this mean the swearing has been knocked off? One of the things i loved about Predator 2 was the bad script with a swear word thrown in here or there! With the lack of bad language when the only swear word near the end of the film is emitted from the heroines lips it just sounds lame!!! (A tear roles down my cheek) My major hope would have been they had taken the main idea for the film from the'Aliens Vs Predator' Dark Horse comic series (the Randy Stradley script one), or at least an edited version! Nicely in the distant future, with a made up planet, with big open areas to battle in! Some of the shots with the use of CGI would have been amazing. A predator running through an open area armed with a sword-staff thing facing a horde of aliens, not as a short flash back!!! My rating for this film was a 3, maybe a little harsh but i felt very let down. There were some really nice bits sure, i enjoyed the Queen Alien fight, the Kung fu face hugger bit... not so much the almost wrestling esquire one on one but there, like Resident Evil, were things i enjoyed in sections! The bit with the Predator space craft flying over the unsuspecting guards' head I loved, the opening tease shot of the satellite as well. The problem in general for this film was the little things that as a fan i picked up on. The over-weight Predators with overly long dreadlocks and tarted up expressions... they didn't look disgusting enough as well as the aliens looked a bit too CGI at times! The lack of blood, the lack of swearing, it all added up.
I tried to like this film, i really did... but my willing suspension of disbelief was no way strong enough!!! I even bought it on DVD to listen to the commentary in hope that Mr Anderson might say sorry... i was let down! I can see Paul W S Anderson in the future being quite a good director, but i wish he wouldn't practise and perfect his art with things I hold dear! p.s. My new annoyance with this film is that I have just spent all this amount of time writing about this film!
AVPR
I almost gave this film a far greater rating out of ten... mainly because of the trashing it has been given. However I felt that I had to be honest in my review or what was the point of it!? Once again I admit I got my hopes up for this film and once again I ignored my logic of listening to my heart and not my head! The unforgettable rule... excellent trailer, disappointing film. In my anticipation i must have watch the red band trailer several times and the official trailer just as many! The trailer was excellent! When I was younger, script and directing were very far down my list on a film, really it was all about the monster and the action! The thing this film hits on is the fantastic effects, the Predators are back to their basics and look the part as to the Aliens. I was dreading (no pun intended) the Pred-alien, worrying it would be a calamity of something like the new born in Alien Resurrection. I was very much pleased with the out come! Even the CGI looked pretty solid, possibly the odd point of obvious computer graphicary shone through but it is a very solid effort. If I was the age I were when I first saw predator or predator 2 (underage) I would of loved this one for a very long time indeed. This film I feel is more for that child in me that loved the imagination and the look of the creatures and the horror and power they would have on life if a part of reality.
However the child in me seems to be a blood thirsty one, so he was very happy! Though I question how this was a 15 in the UK... and maybe slightly worried it was! This was a blood soaked death affair which you do need in an Alien or Predator film. Some very cool deaths indeed pulling no punches what-so-ever! I have to say though even I was shocked as a couple but hey I guess I'm getting old! If you're expecting... do not watch this film!
While this ticked my boxes on action and blood (double ticked on the blood) I realised that the that's all the budget seemed to be on. The dialogue and acting was terrible, I'd sunk in my chair with embarrassment! On a lighter note this did mean I was definitely routing for the monsters from another planet!!! At least the government of the film realised the acting was so poor they decided to take out the whole town! Another problem I found was the directing. Though the action sequences were very well done I found the dialogue scenes just didn't work, i feel this might be the fact of brothers were possibly fresh off directing music videos but the cutting of the character conversing was just poor!? (worse than the grammar in this review) The film was also a bit on the too dark side, which was a shame to fact we missed out on some of the brilliant special effects. Another problem I found was there was absolutely no suspense to this film! I didn't mind this too much, it takes you on a ride and keeps the action fast and pacey but I just wasn't scared or worried or nervous. I watched and love or hated! This got me thinking, this could be a film that was maybe trying too hard to please the fans who were let down by the original. Trying to please everyone by having as much key iconic moments in one film as possible. From a signature skinning to a tough chick in a tank!? It's good attempt, gory & fast paced, definitely a step in the right direction for effects and creating a broader scale. However the more I think about and dissect it, the more black holes I find. It was almost like they read my review on the first AVP and made the changes I complained about... but they ignored everything else that was fine with the last one! I think one reviewer put it best, awful film, excellent movie!!! Brain go in fridge for this one! Fanboy's should be satisfied with this one as it's like an inner child has created it. Film geeks however won't enjoy the trashy scale! I still want more though of this franchise because if it's been this bad it can only get better! Just needs work on the suspense and acting and the finer details... possibly a bit more soul! I'll end with an 'on my knees begging' to the film industry! In the next one can the main hero be played by Bill Paxton please!!! He's been killed by Aliens and decapitated by Predators, I'd think it would be brilliant he managed to survive them next time! Plus he can act! P.S. Was it me or did anyone notice that the predator skinned around the meat n two veg when we see the body being zipped up in the body bag???!!! Or am I just warped!? Answers on a postcard...
