As mentioned before, there are films made for art reasons and there are films commissioned by the film studio purely as a money making exercise. So when you hear a studio is combining two of the most iconic sci-fi foes into one action thriller you have to question the motives behind it. In principle a great idea, especially if written and filmed correctly, plus there is the potential it could enhance both franchises.
'The enemy of my enemy... is my friend' - de Rosa (Raoul Bova)
So here we are, Alien vs Predator, the deadliest species 0f hunter going up against the fiercest of prey. Creating a tale that fits into the Alien timeline was always going to be a difficult task, given there is so much depth and layers spanning over 300 years. If you have seen the prequels to the Quadrilogy then you will know the potential minefields writers and directors face when taking on such projects. To then try to fit the Predator into a coherent complimentary addition, to both original tales, you are asking for something exceptional from all involved.
The movie opens with a chase, a hunt in an Alaskan whaling village set at the turn of the 1900's, a chase through the buildings and paths. The man is clearly scared and when he finds himself trapped we see the familiar triangle dots of the Predator's weapon. Cut to a Weyland Industries satellite discovering a previously undetected heat signature deep below the ice. Awakened by the Predators, a temple hundreds of feet below the ice is coming to life and Charles Bishop Weyland needs to be the first to discover what is hidden inside.
'My experts tell me it's a pyramid' - Charles Weyland (Lance Henriksen)
Assembling a team of historical specialists, mining experts along with high risk expedition leaders, they rush to the heat source to ensure they are the first to discover what wonders are hidden inside. Whilst the crew are waiting to make their way down through the ice to the entrance of the temple we see a Predator ship silently fly overhead dropping off the hunters whose turn it is to prove their worth. A Xenomorph Queen is awakened from a frozen state to begin laying eggs, she is clearly chained and contained.
What transpires is, Earth has historically been used as a hunting ground, the Predators have been using human hosts to incubate and produce the Xenomorphs for their coming of age. The temple is a combination of all ancient civilisations in human history, with many of these civilisations willing to sacrifice themselves for their gods, there is even the suggestion some of these civilisations were wiped out as a result of a failed hunt in true Predator style. In the instances where the Xenomorphs are taking control the Predator self destruct system is used to ensure that none of the Alien beings make it off the planet. With the passage of time, along with the advancement of the human race, the ancient rituals have disappeared, long forgotten, and through the intrusion of the Weyland research party the natural order of the temple has been broken. The Xenomorphs now threaten to escape the hunting grounds, not only killing all members of the research party but the Predator hunters as well.
What follows is the full understanding that the Xenomorphs are the ultimate enemy, the enemy of my enemy is my friend's situation, causing the Predators and Humans to work together to ensure the safety of the human race.
'It's a bomb. Well, I hope it kills every fucking one of 'em!' - - Alexa Woods (Sanaa Lathan)
The cast are a pretty standard affair, no stand out characters or actors of any real note. Lance Henriksen, as Charles Bishop Weyland, makes his return to the Alien timeline giving the back story to both the founder of Weyland Corporation and the visual inspiration to the 'Bishop' synthetic that appears in Aliens and Alien3. Sanaa Lathan plays the lead character, Alexa Woods, an expert climber and expedition leader. Lathan is probably the only performance to mention, I'm not saying it;s the best performance you will ever see but it is good enough in a film that lacks any real conviction or quality.
So with a film that tries to incorporate two franchises, as well as trying to link two timelines together, your impression on the film can depend on how you view it. Do you take it as a separate entity, an alternate reality, or do you accept it is part of the grand story. With the introduction of Charles Bishop Weyland as a character, I take the standpoint the makers of the film meant 100% to associate this into the Alien timeline and is confirmed even further with Lance Henriksen's casting.
'Don't turn your back on me' - Charles Weyland (Lance Henriksen)
If you look at this as a stand alone action film written and directed by Paul W.S. Anderson then it is an entertaining action movie that keeps you locked into the story. It's not an amazing film by any stretch of the imagination, the script is basic and predictable, the characters are very two dimensional, the depth of the story is that of a paddling pool and the ending is telegraphed and in ways comical. But as a film you can switch off, disengage the brain and just sit back and enjoy, this is a great film to watch. However, as I say the creators have taken steps within the story to ensure this is shoehorned into the Alien timeline. If that's the case, this is a pretty terrible film that has so many holes I can't understand how they would think it would pass as a prequel. In fact Ridley Scott never endorsed the films as part of his original and cemented this fact with the release of Prometheus and Alien Covenant that contradict everything in Alien vs Predator.
'You are one ugly mother....' - Alexa Woods (Sanaa Lathan)
It is clear that this was made with money in mind, the dollar signs must have been floating in front of their eyes, unfortunately like every other film made for this reason it misses the mark and in this case misses the mark drastically. The fatal mistake was not distancing itself from the original films, if this was made as a complete reboot and alternate universe then there is an element of success. The closing of the film is terribly predictable and in no uncertain terms was written to ensure a sequel would be made, that again begs the question of how they felt this would ever be able to fit into the overall saga.
Farquaad's Score: 2 stars or 3/10
IMDB: 5.6/10 (176,897)
Metascore: 29 (21 Critic Reviews)
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