PREY (2022)
The Predator franchise has long been a favorite of mine and I have found plenty to love in each of the films. While there isn't a film in the series that I truly despise, I will admit some are better than others and the heights of the original 1987 classic have yet to be equaled. The Predator series veered in a radically different direction almost immediately with Predator 2, placing it in a unique space among franchises. With no recurring cast or storyline, each subsequent Predator film has to build anew with the titular Predator itself being the only constant.
When I first heard about PREY a year or two ago along with the plot synopsis, not only did it sound familiar (because a fan film from years ago basically already told this story), but it also read as though it were playing into all of the Hollywood troupes of the last seven years, troupes which had become tired and obnoxious by this point. Then the first trailer came out and... it did not look good. The marketing for the film leaned into these tired cringe troupes hard, so hard in fact, that I was ready to ignore the film completely.
But then I heard from one friend about how much they liked it. Then I heard a positive review from another friend. And then some more trusted reviewers spoke well of it, saying it wasn't the greatest film in the world, but it was a solid effort and worth my time. So, I recently gave it a watch and you know what? I actually really enjoyed it!
THE SYNOPSIS
The year is 1719 A.D. The setting is the North American Great Plains. A predator lands on Earth for a hunt and stalks a small tribe of Comanche. A young Comanche girl named Naru discovers the predator's tracks and begins stalking it. Naru must convince her tribe of the monster hunting them before everyone lies dead or dying at the predator's feet.
INITIAL IMPRESSIONS
The story is simple and to the point, not trying to be anything more than a solid horror movie. The movie is beautifully shot with some very impressive shots of the landscape. The acting is well executed for the most part and the film feels fairly authentic. The film's pacing is nice, moving along rather quickly yet not spastic and stuffed with action (like many Hollywood movies since 2014). There are some nice set-pieces too, some good ones that barely feature the Predator even. But most importantly, the Predator itself is treated well, menacing, and wicked.
As a Predator fan, I have a strong affinity for Alan Silvestri's original soundtrack. It's iconic to me and instantly recognizable. As I was watching I found that often times the score for Prey kind of faded into the background, dull and nondescript. I said to myself that I wished the film had utilized Silvestri's score. But then I realized that the film had great atmosphere and tension despite the muted generic soundtrack. So, all of that being said, I give this movie a pass on NOT using the iconic Predator music as it managed to create a naturalistic atmosphere and rising tension.
Not to ramble on and on, the filmmakers did an excellent job of crafting a quality frontier horror story. The pacing, the atmosphere, and cinematography are evocative of several esthetics present in westerns, which is perfect. All in all, I liked the story and the filmmaking approach to this movie. The gore was a little tame in comparison to previous Predator movies, better than the PG-13 effort of the first Aliens VS Predator, but nowhere close to the brutality of Predator, Predator 2, and AVP:R. But this was a Disney movie so I guess we're lucky to get any gore at all.
And after watching this movie it really made me long for a whole subgenre of movies like this: period piece films featuring indigenous people battling against monsters. Maintain the wilderness horror elements and then bring in the creature!
Overall Ranking: 7 out of 10
I do love the Predator films, yes, even the negatively received one. I even love the Predator comics (particularly the Dark Horse Comics from the 90s). The Predator is such a cool creature design, one that never seems to grow old. I always hoped the Predator films would rival the Alien franchise, but they always seemed a step or two behind. Hopefully we'll get more quality Predator films to follow this.
Now, I may be in the minority here, but I think the title: PREY is dumb. Yeah, I get it. Predator. Prey. Someone somewhere thinks they're more clever than they really are.
Here's what I thought of the last Predator film and Alien: Covenant too
