Friday, December 21, 2018

4K Blu-ray Review: The Predator



Walmart; Amazon
Now available to own on 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray + Digital Combo Pack from Twentieth Fox Home Entertainment is the science fiction action film The Predator (R; 107 minutes; $39.99).

Directed by Shane Black (Iron Man 3), the film stars Boyd Holbrook, Trevante Rhodes, Jacob Tremblay, Keegan-Michael Key, Olivia Munn, Thomas Jane, Alfie Allen, and Sterling K. Brown.

The film centers around Army Ranger sniper Quinn McKenna (played by Boyd Holbrook), who is attacked by a Predator while on a hostage rescue mission. After his entire team are killed, he knocks out the Predator and steals the creature's mask and arm armor, which he later mails to his home to prove to the world that aliens do exist. McKenna is eventually captured by government agent Will Traeger (played by Sterling K. Brown). He is taken to a lab where he is examined and interrogated. Also, at the this lab is the Predator, which is being studied by biologist Casey Bracket (played by Jake Busey).

Meanwhile, McKenna's autistic son Rory (played by Jacob Tremblay) receives and opens the package containing the Predator mask and armor. This when he accidentally pushes the wrong button on the armor which turns on a tracking beacon.

A second enhanced Predator arrives on Earth to hunt down and kill the capture Predator. Then it goes after Rory, who decided to go trick-or-treating wearing the mask and armor. Unknowingly, the armor contains the location to other Predator's spaceship, which is exactly what the enhanced Predator wants. Well, plus the Predator want's Rory's spinal cord!

To protect his son from the Predator, McKenna teams up with several PTDS soldiers and Dr. Casey Bracket (played by Olivia Munn).

Special Features include:
  • Deleted Scenes
  • A Touch of Black
  • Predator Evolution
  • The Takedown Team
  • Predator Catch-Up
  • Gallery 

Final Thoughts

At one point in time, I was actually excited about seeing The Predator. I mean it is directed and co-written by Shane Black who happened to co-star in the original 1987 Predator; plus, he also did a little bit of script doctoring on it. After hearing about all the reshoots and the all the negative reviews, my expectations dropped considerably. However, I'm a big of of the other films in the franchise (minus the Alien vs. Predator films), so I still wanted to see the film when it finally landed on Blu-ray.

The picture and sound quality is topnotch on the 4K Blu-ray. There are a few special features, including a ten-minute Predator Catch-Up, which contains scenes from Predator, Predator 2, and Predators. The Digital code can be redeemed on Movies Anywhere.

I have mixed feelings about The Predator. The first half of the movie s somewhat entertaining, but everything falls apart during the latter half, many thanks to lazy writing, choppy editing, and horrible CGI. The acting is decent, but all the characters are unlikable; well, all except for the kid Rory. The dialogue throughout the film is cringeworthy and the action scenes are generic at best.

I would give the movie a 2 out of 5 rating. However, I did like the picture quality on the 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray, so I am giving it a 3 out of 5.

*Note : I received a complimentary copy for review purposes. 
All opinions are my own.


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