Alien vs. Predator

Review by Jason Donner

First of all, and I know it's been pointed out by many people before now... the title of this movie makes no sense... first, the Predators themselves are aliens... Secondly, the Aliens are predators, so... how does Alien vs. Predator make sense? Are the aliens the aliens or the predators the predators or vice versa?

Riding the wave of success that Freddy and Jason enjoyed last Summer, the slime-covered aliens and the vagina-faced Predators finally face off in an isolated pyramid in Antarctica... Yes, kids, I said pyramid.

Billionaire Charles Bishop Weyland (sound familiar?) enlists the help of several experts when one of his satellites detects a pyramid under the ice of the frozen continent. When they get there, they discover that the hunt is on between Predators and aliens and they are all stuck in the middle of the delightful fracas.

It's a simple story, but it's also a simple movie so, hey... it works.

Given the critical lashings this movie has taken, I have to admit that my expectations were rather low. That being said, I have to say, hey... lighten up! Aliens vs. Predator may not be an award-winning masterpiece, but it is an enjoyable action romp that can be a fun diversion for at least a matinee.

The script is pretty much brain-dead with some appallingly bad dialogue and plot contrivances, but at its core... at the very heart of the movie, there is the fun. A lot like Freddy vs. Jason, but to a lesser degree, this is just an event that can only be appreciated by the fans of both movie series and, although the first two of each series are better than Alien vs. Predator, at least it beats the crap out of Alien³ and Alien Resurrection.

One thing that does hurt AVP is that there are few interesting characters. Lance Henriksen is painfully wasted in his role as the human forbearer of Bishop and the rest of the cast is pretty much there to become alien chow and, of course, no one watching will give a hoot. The filmmakers do make an attempt at a Ripley-like character with Sanaa Lathan, but she often falls flat. Still, she does try her little precious heart out.

Still, none of that matters... the real star of this movie are the Aliens and Predators. AVP may not be high-brow entertainment, but it matches the two adversaries well and there are several great action sequences involving the two hunters and enough clever moments to keep it from getting boring even if the film carries a very tame and lame PG-13 rating.

Hey, it's not a great movie, but it's an entertaining piece of fluff that thrills at the least. If you're a fan of the Alien movies or the Predator movies and can stand a couple of small inconsistencies in the mythos, by all means check it out.