The franchise of
the human-hunting alien was kicked off in the capable hands of Arnold
Schwarzenegger. Predator is one of Arnold’s best films, and no
reputable site will list his top three movies without including it—usually
right behind his best film, Terminator
2: Judgment Day (1991).
This science
fiction movie has the drama and intensity of a war film, but without an actual
war or a ton of bad guys being killed everywhere. Yes, there’s an ambush scene
where Arnold’s character, Dutch, and his group of mercenaries take out some
enemies, but after that, we see a sort of revenge-driven elimination of his
team.
The movie’s
depiction and character design of the Predator are something I fully enjoyed.
Considering the time the movie was made, I have to applaud the excellent
costume design.
Interestingly,
the movie’s script was inspired by a joke. After Rocky IV was
released, and Stallone once again defeated a badass, reviews joked that the
next thing Rocky should face is an alien. The Thomas brothers ran with that
idea and wrote this movie’s script.
With Apollo
Creed (real name Carl Weathers) cast as Dillon and Arnold as the lead, there
was no stopping this movie from being a blockbuster hit. I strongly believe
casting Carl was a tribute to where the writers got their inspiration.
The movie’s plot
revolves around a lie—yes, “fake news.” Arnold’s character, Dutch, is told he’s
going to the jungle to rescue captured hostages. But when they reach the camp,
Dutch discovers the lie. They also find the remains of the first crew sent on the
same mission—most of them dead, hanging from trees with their skin missing.
Heading back to
their chopper with a hostage they captured, they realize they’re being
followed. To make matters worse, whatever is following them is doing an
excellent job of staying hidden, even in broad daylight.
One by one, the
team is killed, and their bodies are dragged away by something in the jungle.
At first, Arnold and his team try to fight it, but upon realizing they’re no
match for the creature, they decide to run.
Even that
decision is hard to execute, as the creature loves the chase and sees their
escape as a challenge to take them down.
This is a movie
that’s just too good to have been made in 1987.
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