Predator films
What the hell are you..
Since there was an alien article I thought I would do one on the Predator films. I love both franchises equally so it will still be interesting talking about the Predator films.
Like everyone I grew up with the predator films and loved watching them both but back then it was still on VHS which my dad taped from the TV.
So Ill start with the first film which is a classic which was made in 1987 directed by John McTiernan. One of the greatest action films of the 80's. Arnie is up against an intergalactic hunter from another planet called the Predator. The predator is defiantly one of the coolest aliens in film because he's so interesting to look at and his weapons are so cool and inventive.
The predator was created by Stan Winston and originally Jean Claude Van Damme was supposed to play the Predator. From info I found Van Damme was unhappy in the costume and found it hard to move and they eventually sacked him and he went onto to make Bloodsport which is a great film, sorry I'm a Van Damme fan. I managed to find some pics of Van Damme and the original look of the Predator.
They eventually found the perfect guy to play the predator who had preformed in costumes all his career Kevin Peter Hall who played Harry and the Henderson's as well. He was a gentle giant and knew how to move perfectly in the new costume. The new costume and look would be iconic with the dreadlocks who James Cameron apparently came up with. The new alien look also had a mask which covers his hideous face underneath maybe to help him breath since there was steam coming out when he removed it and the weapons he hunted with.
Among those weapons were wrist blades, the Shoulder Cannon and a cloaking devise to make him blend in with any background. The most interesting thing is the Predators vision. His vision allows him to track his prey easier by seeing the heat of there bodies. You also see him using a Medi-Kit halfway through the film which is quite interesting for when he gets badly wounded. Just something else as well, the noises that the Predator made like the gurgling were done by Peter Cullen who voiced Optimus Prime in Transformers. I read this in a DVD magazine.
The film starts off brilliantly with the Predators spaceship flying by Earth and then a pod dispatches from the ship sending the Predator down into the Earth's atmosphere.
Then the film introduces the characters. Dutch played by Arnold leads a group of marines who have been sent into rescue a presidential cabinet minister kidnapped by guerrilla forces in Val Verde. Along with Arnold are some hard-nailed fighter including Jesse Ventura, Carl weathers, Sonny Landham,Bill Duke,Richard Chaves and Shane Black. The basic idea was the Predator was a hunter and he came to earth to hunt the most dangerous thing which was man.
Along the way they find a helicopter with Hoppers men who were skinned alive hung upside down. This was the first clue to the Predator and how he kills his victims. They eventually come to the guerrilla's base and take it out in style. One of the best action sequences your ever see and most memorable was Jesse Ventura Minigun.
They find a girl in the camp and the only female in the film Anna played Elpidia Carrillo.
After they've taken out the guerrilla soldiers the survival of the fittest begins as the Predator takes them out one by one.They eventually relies that the predator is killing them off and that he uses the trees so they make a stand to try and kill it.
This part shows the typical action films of the 80's as they build a trap for predator flexing their muscles. If you looked like Arnie back then who could blame him.
One thing that always stuck out in my mind when I watched it as a kid was Billy's death. The way he cut himself and stood up to the Predator it always seemed like a really dramatic scene and you knew he wasn't going to survive. I also used to wonder how he actually died as well since you don't see it.
The film is full of memorable lines and Arnie would say one of them next telling Anna "get to the chopper". This was a brilliant film for Arnie and his catchphrases and for the other actors not forgetting "stick around" my favourite. the memorable line would appear near the end of the film when Dutch must square off against the Predator using mud to camouflage himself so the Predator cannot see him.
Eventually Dutch gets stuck between the Predators wrist blades and held up against a rock with one hand. This is when your thinking hell the hell is Arnie gonna get out of this one. The Predator removes his helmet and you see his face for the first time in the film and Arnies greatest line "your one ugly motherfucker". But the Predator doesn't use weapons on him he wants to do it the old fashioned way fist to fist, just a question of who has the harder punch. Dutch uses a stick to hit the Predator but finds it has no effect and gets hit half way across the screen.
The only way Dutch can kill the Predator is not with strength but brains and crawls back to the trap. The Predator being clever doesn't fall for it but Arnie kicks the stub holding the trap with the trunk crashing onto the Predator defeating him once and for all. The Predator realising its defeat uses his self destruct as Dutch legs it to safety.
Predator is a classic film for its brilliant action, intense scenes an the fact that the predator is so original which the audience has never seen before. All the actors gave great performances to make this one of the greatest action films of the 80's.
Now to the sequel made in 1900 directed by Stephen Hopkins. I remember being disappointed with this film as a kid because Arnold wasn't in it but now I appreciate the film much more. Instead of the jungle the Predators has come to the city of L.A to hunt. Its in a time when violence is really bad with gangs and there's a really bad heat wave.
The film had a pretty decent cast including Danny Glover and Bill Paxton, Rubén Blades and Maria Conchita Alonso . I think Danny Glover did a good job replacing Arnold he didn't try to play him too macho and if you want you could look at Predator 2 as being another Lethal Weapon film since it was a about detectives just with the Predator in there.
Kevin Peter Hall reprises his role as the Predator again and did a great job He uses some really cool new weapons in this film. There's smart disc which he uses towards the end and my favorite the net gun.
Peter keyes is played by Gary Busey is a federal is agent is after the Predator and his technology with the help of Garber played by Adam Baldwin. They mention about the survivors of the first film but not the names.
I find this film so enjoyable to watch now. In the first film you hardly got to see the Predator only towards the end which worked great for that film but in Predator 2 you saw allot more of him. This wasn't a problem since we learned more about him and his new weapons he brought along with him. He also uses a cool medi-kit in this film using blue liquid to resolve parts of a wall to heal his wounds. You also see an old lady which I found so funny and say to Danny Glover "I don't think he gives shit". I know some people thought that was to silly but I thought it was great humour.
One of the highlight of the film was seeing the Predator ship and the trophy cabinet where they keep all the skulls when Danny Glover has the last fight with the Predator. You get to see some wicked skulls in there and the most exciting one was the Alien skull which sets up for the AVP films. The interior was really unique to look at which gave you an idea of what their homeplanet looks like. Then you see all the other Praetors appear and their elder. The elder give Danny Glover 17th century gun which tells you how long they've been hunting on earth for.
Predator 2 is defiantly a great sequel and one of the most underrated films apart from Alien 3 which I find great as well now. Sadly after this film was made Kevin Peter Hall died. In 1990 he had started filming the television series of Harry and the Henderson's. In April of 1991 he succumbed to AIDS which he had contracted via a blood transfusion some years before.
If you have facebook there is fan pages for Predator, Predator 2 and a page for Kevin Peter Hall.
Predator
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Predator/17225381337
Predator 2
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Predator-2/53764474383?ref=ts
Kevin Peter Hall
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Kevin-Peter-Hall/52945747078
I think when I was a kid I would have loved to have seen another Predator film but now I'm not bothered. I think mainly because Kevin peter Hall passed away and he is the only person to really bring the predator to life even though the guy from the AVP films did an ok job. Also I'm not really sure what else they could do with the Predator. I wouldn't want them to ruin the first two by making a crappy sequel like AVP R.
There were three scripts for Predator 3.
The first, written by Sam Park, is called Predator 3: The Deadlier of the Species and features Arnold Schwarzenegger's character, Dutch, in New York during a blizzard. A Predator comes to New York and tracks down Dutch to try and kill him.
The second script, written by Robert Rodriguez, is called Predators and is set on a 17th century ship where a Predator stalks the crewman who have to fight with inferior weaponry. The writer did speak about his script during an interview at the beginning of 2004 and said it was rejected because the budget would have been too big - about $150m. The third and final script is called The Zoo which brings back both Dutch from Predator and Harrigan from Predator 2 and they are captured and brought back to the Predator homeworld because they were the only two people to have ever killed a Predator.
I liked the 17th century ship one and the Predator homewolrd idea. Mainly because you would get see what it looks like and have Arnie and Danny Glover in the same film together but I think there a bit too old for that now.
When this film came out I really hated it my expectations were really high and I found so many annoying things about it. I disliked the cast the way the predators looked and the lack of violence. I watched AVP on film 4 again and I have to say its much more easier to watch than AVP R. Its better directed the actors aren't as annoying as the AVP R ones. It was quite cool that lance Hendrickson was in it and showed the creator or one of them as Bishop. He even does the pencil thing on his hand as little homage.
When ever its on Ill probably watch it and I just see it as bit fun. I can understand where James Cameron was coming from now its not as bad as I thought.
Like everyone I grew up with the predator films and loved watching them both but back then it was still on VHS which my dad taped from the TV.
So Ill start with the first film which is a classic which was made in 1987 directed by John McTiernan. One of the greatest action films of the 80's. Arnie is up against an intergalactic hunter from another planet called the Predator. The predator is defiantly one of the coolest aliens in film because he's so interesting to look at and his weapons are so cool and inventive.
The predator was created by Stan Winston and originally Jean Claude Van Damme was supposed to play the Predator. From info I found Van Damme was unhappy in the costume and found it hard to move and they eventually sacked him and he went onto to make Bloodsport which is a great film, sorry I'm a Van Damme fan. I managed to find some pics of Van Damme and the original look of the Predator.
They eventually found the perfect guy to play the predator who had preformed in costumes all his career Kevin Peter Hall who played Harry and the Henderson's as well. He was a gentle giant and knew how to move perfectly in the new costume. The new costume and look would be iconic with the dreadlocks who James Cameron apparently came up with. The new alien look also had a mask which covers his hideous face underneath maybe to help him breath since there was steam coming out when he removed it and the weapons he hunted with.
Among those weapons were wrist blades, the Shoulder Cannon and a cloaking devise to make him blend in with any background. The most interesting thing is the Predators vision. His vision allows him to track his prey easier by seeing the heat of there bodies. You also see him using a Medi-Kit halfway through the film which is quite interesting for when he gets badly wounded. Just something else as well, the noises that the Predator made like the gurgling were done by Peter Cullen who voiced Optimus Prime in Transformers. I read this in a DVD magazine.
The film starts off brilliantly with the Predators spaceship flying by Earth and then a pod dispatches from the ship sending the Predator down into the Earth's atmosphere.
Then the film introduces the characters. Dutch played by Arnold leads a group of marines who have been sent into rescue a presidential cabinet minister kidnapped by guerrilla forces in Val Verde. Along with Arnold are some hard-nailed fighter including Jesse Ventura, Carl weathers, Sonny Landham,Bill Duke,Richard Chaves and Shane Black. The basic idea was the Predator was a hunter and he came to earth to hunt the most dangerous thing which was man.
Along the way they find a helicopter with Hoppers men who were skinned alive hung upside down. This was the first clue to the Predator and how he kills his victims. They eventually come to the guerrilla's base and take it out in style. One of the best action sequences your ever see and most memorable was Jesse Ventura Minigun.
They find a girl in the camp and the only female in the film Anna played Elpidia Carrillo.
After they've taken out the guerrilla soldiers the survival of the fittest begins as the Predator takes them out one by one.They eventually relies that the predator is killing them off and that he uses the trees so they make a stand to try and kill it.
This part shows the typical action films of the 80's as they build a trap for predator flexing their muscles. If you looked like Arnie back then who could blame him.
One thing that always stuck out in my mind when I watched it as a kid was Billy's death. The way he cut himself and stood up to the Predator it always seemed like a really dramatic scene and you knew he wasn't going to survive. I also used to wonder how he actually died as well since you don't see it.
The film is full of memorable lines and Arnie would say one of them next telling Anna "get to the chopper". This was a brilliant film for Arnie and his catchphrases and for the other actors not forgetting "stick around" my favourite. the memorable line would appear near the end of the film when Dutch must square off against the Predator using mud to camouflage himself so the Predator cannot see him.
Eventually Dutch gets stuck between the Predators wrist blades and held up against a rock with one hand. This is when your thinking hell the hell is Arnie gonna get out of this one. The Predator removes his helmet and you see his face for the first time in the film and Arnies greatest line "your one ugly motherfucker". But the Predator doesn't use weapons on him he wants to do it the old fashioned way fist to fist, just a question of who has the harder punch. Dutch uses a stick to hit the Predator but finds it has no effect and gets hit half way across the screen.
The only way Dutch can kill the Predator is not with strength but brains and crawls back to the trap. The Predator being clever doesn't fall for it but Arnie kicks the stub holding the trap with the trunk crashing onto the Predator defeating him once and for all. The Predator realising its defeat uses his self destruct as Dutch legs it to safety.
Predator is a classic film for its brilliant action, intense scenes an the fact that the predator is so original which the audience has never seen before. All the actors gave great performances to make this one of the greatest action films of the 80's.
Now to the sequel made in 1900 directed by Stephen Hopkins. I remember being disappointed with this film as a kid because Arnold wasn't in it but now I appreciate the film much more. Instead of the jungle the Predators has come to the city of L.A to hunt. Its in a time when violence is really bad with gangs and there's a really bad heat wave.
The film had a pretty decent cast including Danny Glover and Bill Paxton, Rubén Blades and Maria Conchita Alonso . I think Danny Glover did a good job replacing Arnold he didn't try to play him too macho and if you want you could look at Predator 2 as being another Lethal Weapon film since it was a about detectives just with the Predator in there.
Kevin Peter Hall reprises his role as the Predator again and did a great job He uses some really cool new weapons in this film. There's smart disc which he uses towards the end and my favorite the net gun.
Peter keyes is played by Gary Busey is a federal is agent is after the Predator and his technology with the help of Garber played by Adam Baldwin. They mention about the survivors of the first film but not the names.
I find this film so enjoyable to watch now. In the first film you hardly got to see the Predator only towards the end which worked great for that film but in Predator 2 you saw allot more of him. This wasn't a problem since we learned more about him and his new weapons he brought along with him. He also uses a cool medi-kit in this film using blue liquid to resolve parts of a wall to heal his wounds. You also see an old lady which I found so funny and say to Danny Glover "I don't think he gives shit". I know some people thought that was to silly but I thought it was great humour.
One of the highlight of the film was seeing the Predator ship and the trophy cabinet where they keep all the skulls when Danny Glover has the last fight with the Predator. You get to see some wicked skulls in there and the most exciting one was the Alien skull which sets up for the AVP films. The interior was really unique to look at which gave you an idea of what their homeplanet looks like. Then you see all the other Praetors appear and their elder. The elder give Danny Glover 17th century gun which tells you how long they've been hunting on earth for.
Predator 2 is defiantly a great sequel and one of the most underrated films apart from Alien 3 which I find great as well now. Sadly after this film was made Kevin Peter Hall died. In 1990 he had started filming the television series of Harry and the Henderson's. In April of 1991 he succumbed to AIDS which he had contracted via a blood transfusion some years before.
If you have facebook there is fan pages for Predator, Predator 2 and a page for Kevin Peter Hall.
Predator
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Predator/17225381337
Predator 2
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Predator-2/53764474383?ref=ts
Kevin Peter Hall
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Kevin-Peter-Hall/52945747078
I think when I was a kid I would have loved to have seen another Predator film but now I'm not bothered. I think mainly because Kevin peter Hall passed away and he is the only person to really bring the predator to life even though the guy from the AVP films did an ok job. Also I'm not really sure what else they could do with the Predator. I wouldn't want them to ruin the first two by making a crappy sequel like AVP R.
There were three scripts for Predator 3.
The first, written by Sam Park, is called Predator 3: The Deadlier of the Species and features Arnold Schwarzenegger's character, Dutch, in New York during a blizzard. A Predator comes to New York and tracks down Dutch to try and kill him.
The second script, written by Robert Rodriguez, is called Predators and is set on a 17th century ship where a Predator stalks the crewman who have to fight with inferior weaponry. The writer did speak about his script during an interview at the beginning of 2004 and said it was rejected because the budget would have been too big - about $150m. The third and final script is called The Zoo which brings back both Dutch from Predator and Harrigan from Predator 2 and they are captured and brought back to the Predator homeworld because they were the only two people to have ever killed a Predator.
I liked the 17th century ship one and the Predator homewolrd idea. Mainly because you would get see what it looks like and have Arnie and Danny Glover in the same film together but I think there a bit too old for that now.
When this film came out I really hated it my expectations were really high and I found so many annoying things about it. I disliked the cast the way the predators looked and the lack of violence. I watched AVP on film 4 again and I have to say its much more easier to watch than AVP R. Its better directed the actors aren't as annoying as the AVP R ones. It was quite cool that lance Hendrickson was in it and showed the creator or one of them as Bishop. He even does the pencil thing on his hand as little homage.
When ever its on Ill probably watch it and I just see it as bit fun. I can understand where James Cameron was coming from now its not as bad as I thought.
Obviously I still have a problem with the 12 rating and the Predators looking to fat and the fact the two predators got taken out to easily. I don't mind them dying but atleast put up more of a fight not as soon as you see them on the screen fighting they die straight away. So they could have handled all the fights better.
And I still cringed when Lex runs off with the predator to the nest and when they escape. I didn't mind the Predator giving her a weapon but once that was done he should have told her to go and get out or something. The alien queen was pretty cool and the end fight but it still could have been better.
I don't necessarily hate Paul W.S Anderson he's not an awful director he does have a nice visual style to his films. Its when he puts too many of his own ideas into his films which don't really work. I hate the Resident Evil film he made with a passion but George A. Romero should have made his script anyway which would have been more faithful to the game. But at the end the film sets up for a
sequel as a Pred-alien comes through the Predators chest.
From the trailers it looked wicked but the film turned out awful and the worst in the franchise by far. It had more gore and had the old style predator back but that wasn't enough to make this a memorable film. The cast was so annoying and the acting was again awful. I think the directors had some good ideas for this but weren't experienced enough to make it great.
The Predator had some wicked weapons in it.The battles between the predator and aliens seemed more enjoyable although allot of fans complained that he killed all the aliens too easily and maybe they had a point. All the Predator stuff was wicked and you got to see their Planet which looked impressive but apart form that it was crap.
Now everyone knows they put allot of gore in it but I'm sure I'm not the only one I found it too much especially with the pregnant ladies. It just seemed too grotecst at times. It just seemed a very cheap film as well with the cg blood and the fact it was like a Dawson's creek cast. I carnt really say there was any highlights of the film apart from the end credits when it finished. The Pred-alien looked a bit shit and the last fight was ok but where everything was so dark in the film you couldn't really see it clearly.
The directors had the right intension's but weren't experienced to tackle a film like this when there were so many expectations riding on it to deliver after the first film. They didn't know how to execute the film atoll. Ill never know why Fox hired them when they should have got a better and more experienced director.
Before I move onto AVP 3 I just wondered and allot of other fans why didn't they base these AVP films out in space where they belong in the first place. They were influenced from the AVP comics and the second AVP game on the pc Alien Vs Predator 2: Primal Hunt so why didn't they base the film on them or atleast some of it.
They would have made a far better film if they did, so it just makes you wonder.
AVP 3
Well I know people will never want to see another AVP film after AVP R and its understandable but there were rumours that allot of fans wanted David Twohy to direct the next one. Maybe as a reboot I'm not sure but he's made some good sc-fi films and for him to make an AVP out in space which they should have been based in the first place would be pretty good. Someone also set up a petition for him and there is a little fan vid for it on YouTube somewhere. There were some fan made AVP pics right at the beginning of the AVP films so maybe any director can get some inspiration from them that fans liked. I think they were for cards or something but they were good none the less and gave you an idea of what they could have been like if a film was set out in space somewhere.
Alien vs. Predator 3 - David Twohy for director petition Petition
http://www.petitiononline.com/avp3/petition.html
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