AVPR: Aliens vs Predator - Requiem (2007) Reviews

• Brilliant, Mind-Bending Storytelling

  call_me_grudge2007-12-31

  From what I understand, Fox was embarrassed they released a PG-13 Alien/Predator movie not so long ago. It was not well received by any means. Not exactly sure where to go next, seeing as they thought Anderson was the best director for the franchise and they had produced a true sci-fi gem, Fox turned to it's small, but knowledgeable group of monkeys for answers. These monkeys were by no means veterans of writing sci-fi flicks, but had seen Burton's Planet of the Apes remake and House of the Dead. Their first task: hire actors. Fox gave them a reasonable budget but the monkeys wanted to save the money. They hired fifteen TV actors shortly after. Now, the script. The monkeys wanted to save more of the budget so they wrote the movie themselves. Leaving out important aspects of the two franchises was the easy part. Thinking of great new lines for the general audience to remember years down the line - that was more difficult. They butted heads awhile and came up with a truly award-winning screenplay equipped with cliché characters, idiotic decisions an gaping plot holes. Fox was pleased thus far with the results but wanted to see what was to become of the centerpieces to the film - the aliens and predators. The monkeys again wanted to save money in the budget so they decided to trash the great robotics used in the otherwise terrible AvP original and go with the man-in-the-suit Alien seen in the old films. The actors playing the aliens had trouble fitting into the suits as they weren't properly sized by the monkeys so they jiggled their plastic heads throughout the film with honor. As for the predators, the monkeys decided one predator was enough this time around (again, saving budget) to fight the hordes of aliens that seemingly come out of nowhere. But what about the effects, you ask? Come on now, people. They may be monkeys but they clearly knew CGI would play a key role in the film. Without diving into the budget, the monkeys used a standard Final Cut program and cut and pasted some very nice fire and spark effects throughout. Putting red and green filters over the camera lens provided some excellent Predator visions. The setting was something the monkeys thought long and hard about. If this was to be on Earth, in Colorado of all places, they needed to make it realistic. This was where they admitted they might have made a mistake. See, the monkeys didn't have proper training in this department so they thought turning the lights off in the city and having the movie play out in the dead of night and in the rain was the right thing to do. They simply forgot people like to see the creatures instead of looking at shadows and rain the whole film. To add insult to injury, the monkeys accidentally filmed all the fight scenes incredibly close so no one could see what was fighting or who it was. But again, rookie mistake. The rating. Fox told the monkeys to make the movie R-rated. That was easy. Without showing how many of the injuries or deaths actually happened, the monkeys made a habit of showing the carnage after the fact. It was simple: the viewers got the gore they desired and the monkeys didn't have to film the majority of action shots involving that violence. Some of the actors originally had questions concerning the screenplay. Why does a blue liquid the Predator has endless amounts of magically disintegrate whatever he wants it to and nothing more than that? Why is an ex-convict driving around in a police car the entire movie? Why did the monkeys forget to show a full body shot of the Aliens? Why does a clock play a more memorable role than any of the main characters? The list of questions just kept growing but the monkeys ignored them and finished their masterpiece. Fox was thrilled with their work. So thrilled that they opened the movie nationwide on Christmas Day and even spent a few bucks advertising it the week before it came out. The monkeys had successfully made another installment in these cherished franchises. But some ask, what ever happened to the budget the monkeys forgot to use? They put it towards their next film: Aliens vs. Predator vs. Hulk Hogan. They knew the general public would be upset with the title but they have since released this statement: "To the people- do not worry about our upcoming film. It will be rated R and will have violence." And everyone lived happily ever after. The end.

• B movie

  nadjadiamond2008-01-10

  I love B movies, but I like to be aware from the beginning that I'm watching one. I can't believe someone could mess up a movie about aliens and predators so bad. Aliens and Predator are AWESOME. This movie made a big joke out of them. The creators didn't take this movie seriously at all. I am throughly disappointed in how the Strauss jerks handled this film. They made a mockery of amazing characters. It's like they were trying to be serious in the beginning, then their writers got high and gave up. Almost nothing was continuous, the main characters were awful and were NOT Aliens or Predators. I am so ridiculously sad that no one takes Alien and Predators seriously anymore. These characters are icons of American pop culture and the creators of this movie showed no respect to the original films. They should not be allowed to cash in on the names of the previous films and they should be ashamed of themselves

• Slasher flick: a breakdown of AVP-R

  LordBlacklist2007-12-30

  With this movie I was really hoping that the idea was to make up for the hashed together ineptitude of the first AVP, and yet to my horror: Requiem is far worse than I could have imagined. My hopes were up in the opening moments of the film inside the Predator ship, and I almost breathed a sigh of relief when we finally saw the Predator home world (a throwaway digital matte painting, but still nice to finally see it) and then of course, the humans (if such poorly written characters can be referred to as such) are introduced... One must wonder why it seems to be impossible for Fox to make a good film out of Aliens and Predators. At the very least the supposed filmmakers could have done their homework. Characters are set up in the same manner in which we would expect from the worst Friday the 13th Sequel. The pizza delivery scene was cringe inducing as was every other scene of character interaction that followed it. Bimbos and teen non actors do not make for a REAL film, they make for a cheap flick, and Alien 1-3 and the Predator movies were good because they were produced above the concept (remember that the 1st Alien is a "B" movie done as an "A" movie) The Strause brothers really missed an opportunity, that could have been rectified by simply knowing their Alien+Predator roots: In both the Alien and Predator films we are introduced to characters that are part of a larger group (Alien: Refinery workers, Aliens: Marines, Alien 3: Convicts and in the Predator films we generally follow a main hero part of a unit; Predator, Arnold--Special forces, Predator 2: Danny Glover, Police) and it's easy to see where the filmmakers of both franchises started to go wrong: in Alien Ressurrection we have pirates...or something, AVP we have...explorers?...with guns?? and of course in AVP-R we have teen slasher clichés. What is there to identify with here? In concept the idea of a convict returning to a small town and a war vet returning seemed a set up for a First Blood type of action hero, but like many things it was never paid off. The Film-making is equally devoid of rhyme of reason. There is no sense of forward momentum to the action, just small sequences that build the most minuscule levels of tension or interest only to cut away just when they're getting interesting...taking the audience out of the movie at every turn. The action scenes themselves, though much ballyhooed in the trailers, are so darkly lit, it is literally impossible to tell what is going on during the fight scenes when they finally occur. Basically, the movie is hindered from many levels. Bad actors combined with poor direction and an atrocious screenplay (which as a screenwriter myself I noticed, seemed to hit every wrong note and cliché that only the most untalented writer devoid of ideas could have hashed together) The WRITING, if it can be called that, is not even direct to video quality, nor does it demonstrate a shred of respect for the established lore of the previous entries in the series. Why does the Predalien all the sudden have the ability to shoot alien embryos down a pregnant woman's throat to use her as an incubator for chestbursters? More than likely because the brain dead screenwriter needed a way to have more aliens for the predator to fight (and given the accelerated growth time even more so than the first AVP: as quickly as possible. Why must meaningless small talk between cardboard cutouts on sticks (meaning the supposed characters)substitute for real character development? (Remember a character is defined by what they DO, not SAY). Why is the Sheriff leading civilians to a cache of guns? (isn't he an officer of the law?) How does the bimbo of all people know where they are? Why does the Predalien wait for the Predator to VERY SLOWLY remove his mask before it attacks? Why are the aliens still falling into that nasty series-post-Alien 3 habit of hissing all the time to let their prey know to run? How on Earth did this series devolve to a character saying "People are dying...we need guns!" (how this writer even works is beyond me, and reflects badly on Fox's already destroyed artistic reputation. It's like everyone involved in the making of this film suffered from a mental impairment or really are that inept at every level of the film-making process. The EFFECTS are pretty lousy this time around. The Aliens look like men in suits and ADI is just getting lazy with their creature design. The Aliens look like modified leftovers from Alien Resurrection, with that same bulky musculature around the arms as if they did not learn from that movie that it was not a good design, nor a good one to recycle. Again, everything is shrouded in such a state of darkness not to create mystery or atmosphere, but simply to hide how bad the creatures look. And just like in AVP, Stan Winston is sorely missed when the fake looking Predator face is revealed. There are too many faults to list so I will just say this: Do not waste your money on this movie. Fox is beyond caring about the fans, as this cheap and trashy film is clearly evidence of. I felt bad having taken my girlfriend to see it (though it was free) and apologized to her profusely after. This is one die-hard fan who is done with the franchise. Note to Fox: What we really wanted wasn't a mindless slasher flick, it was a film adaptation of the original Darkhorse Comicbook, which was better than anything you've produced for this franchise post 1993. Signing off.

• Aliens battle Predators on Earth where unsuspecting residents realize that something horrible is stalking their little town

  ma-cortes2015-02-13

  Spectacular but mediocre Aliens/Predators movie set in a little town where a motley group takes on extraterrestrial monsters . As warring alien and predator races descend on a small town, where unsuspecting residents must band together for any chance of survival and they find themselves caught up in a battle between the two legend beings . Stirring but inferior sequel with plenty of thrills , chills , suspense , disgusting special effects and lots of blood and gore . In fact , this is the second Alien film, and also the first Predator film, to get a rating other than R . It was decided at an early stage that this movie would be R-rated as "it is what the fans want from the series". Moving and thrilling screenplay by Shane Salerno based on "Alien" characters created by Ronald Shusett and Dan O'Bannon as well as ¨Predator" characters created by Jim Thomas and John Thomas . This is the first movie in both the Predator and the AVP-based movies that actually feature scenes of the Predators' home planet. It was at one time hoped to include scenes of the Aliens' home world ; conceptual art was created and it was even storyboarded to be used as the closing shot of the movie, but ultimately the idea was dropped in favor of using it in a potential third film . ¨Aliens versus predators¨ I and II were a project that had floated around for about 10 years , it was only when director Paul W.S. Anderson and Strause Brothers did his verbal pitch to the suits at 20th Century Fox that anyone showed any real interest . This horrifying as well as heart-pounding movie contains shocks , stomach-churning violence , filled with action , thrills and results to be pretty entertaining . This nail-biting picture contains tension from start to finish , gory scenes aplenty , thrills , some strong scares , slime , emotion , entertainment and so-so acting . It is an acceptable though middling cinematic combination of Sci-Fi , monster movie and terror . This is a brutal , considerable violent and exciting sci-fi thriller that scales new heights of savagery even by the standards of the 70s , 80s , 90s and 2000s . The result is a throughly violent but undeniably thrilling action movie with an unknown though passable cast giving sweatily good value to their abrasive characters . Based on the comic books by writer Mark Verheiden, creator of the first Alien vs Predator comic series and the first story involving both species , contrary to popular belief, the comic was released prior to the infamous shot of the alien "skull" in Predator 2 (1990) . The Alien vs. Predator story crossed over virtually all forms of media before becoming a feature film . There was a successful comic book series, toy line, multiple video games, soundtrack of the PC game and even a trading card series . Breathtaking as well as bloody slaughter sequences took long time to shoot and were extremely difficult to make . Magnificently designed creatures , originally created by the artist HR Giger . Top-notch special effects by SFX designer Alec Gillis and Tom Woodruff Jr ; the latter has a brief cameo , in fact this is special effects maestro Tom Woodruff's fourth time in the alien costume . The Animatronics were controlled by a motion-control rig which could save her movements digitally . The ending part is particularly exciting with our protagonists battling the malicious aliens as well as brutal predators and with impressive scenes that took various weeks to film . ¨Aliens vs. Predator 2¨ (2007) by Strause Brothers has a decent but little known cast such as Steven Pasquale , Reiko Aylesworth , John Ortiz , Johnny Lewis , Kristen Hager , Ariel Gade , Sam Trammell , Gina Holden , Ty Olsson and Robert Joy . The picture packs an original music by Brian Tyler , plenty of frightening and stirring sounds . However ,some score and sound effects from previous films in both franchises were used in this film . Colorful but dark cinematography by Daniel Pearl with several scenes filmed at night . The motion picture was regularly directed by Colin Strause and Greg Strause both wanted the film to be 3-D, however the idea was dropped, because it would be too expensive. Being shot in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada ; according to directors , if they'd filmed in Hollywood, the sets would have cost them $20 million . There was seven years between the release of Alien (1979) and Aliens (1986), six between Aliens and Alien 3 (1992), and five between Alien³ and Alien resurrection (1997). The original and the best was ¨Alien¨ by Ridley Scott , it was starred by Sigourney Weaver as a great action woman similarly to Sanaa Lathan ; it is followed by ¨Aliens ¨, also visually astounding by James Cameron with Paul Reiser , Jenette Goldstein , Lance Henriksen ; and this Alien . All of them starred by the great Sigourney Weaver who performed one of the best female leads created in years followed by Sanaa Lathan . Furthermore, ¨Alien vs. Predator¨ (2004) that was first film in the "Alien" franchise to not feature Sigourney Weaver, who has said in interviews the idea of the crossover "sounded awful and ¨Aliens vs. Predator ¨ (2007) by Paul W.S. Anderson with Sanaa Lathan , Raoul Bova , Ewen Bremner , Tommy Flanagan , Joseph Rye . The original and the best ¨Predator¨ (1987) by John McTiernan in which Arnold leads a team of CIA-hired mercenaries into the Central American jungles with Jesse Ventura , Bill Duke , R.G. Armstrong , Carl Weathers , Elpidia Carrillo who appears briefly in ¨Predators II¨ with Bill Paxton , Danny Glover , Ruben Blades and ¨Predators¨ (2010) by Nimród Antal with Adrien Brody , Topher Grace , Alice Braga and Walton Goggins

• Stop! Stop! Stop! Stop making anymore now!!!

  luke-3462008-02-13

  There was a time when the Alien series was a success with even the third installment, Alien 3, showing promise under the guild of a fresh and young David Fincher. The first Predator was a box office hit mainly due to its story, "in peak" star Arnold Schwarzenegger and director John McTiernan (Die Hard). The films Alien, Aliens, Alien 3 and Predator were all highly successful and created massive followings among general film fans and science fiction fans alike. Arguably Predator 2 and Alien Resurrection should have signaled the end for both franchises, but studios were undeterred and saw the opportunity to pander to the rumours among fans and combine the two. Step in Paul W.S Anderson, Alien Vs Predator, and now the Brothers Strauss (visual effects graduates, not even directors or writers). The problem was that by allowing such profound and revolutionary creations of the Sci-Fi genre to fall into the hands of firstly a mediocre director and now directorial newbie's has led to nothing more than profanity, epitomised by incompetence. Upon witnessing Alien Vs Predator Requiem (AVPR) die-hard fans will feel sick to their stomachs that this series could have got any worse. One example of the cinematic deterioration of this franchise is in the opening scene and is likely to cause nausea among fans. The film begins with an Alien making its way onto the Predator ship, spurting from the predators chest, growing in to a full grown Predalien and bringing down the Predator craft (which now seems to have far less Predators on it than it did at the end of Alien Vs Predator) and all this occurs with the ship still in Earths atmosphere. Once the ship has crashed AVPR quickly resorts to cheap plot methods and basic narrative conventions, it makes no venture at utilizing any of the twists or subversions served up in the two original films. The wearisome plot progresses with tedious pace, punctuated only by the near rousing conflicts of Alien and Predator and when that runs the risk of boring us we are treated to either an alluring blonde in a bikini or rapid gunfire. AVPR is plagued by an endless array of continuity errors and plot holes with little or no narrative elucidation i.e. members of the public outwitting an elite military unit or the Predator not adhering to laws established in previous editions. This is a film that has a complete disregard for its predecessors, it breaks some of the most fundamental rules of a sequel and in doing so one gets the feeling that it is trying to set itself up as a stand alone feature. Independently the film has no heart, no conviction and no soul and with reference to the other films lacks even the most basic continuity. This is exemplified by the over arching narrative of the film as it undermines the basic premise of the first Alien. Because if the species had been encountered before then those in the first Alien film would have been more proficient and not so ill prepared when encountering them. On a cinematic note the film is close to being dire, I felt urged at some points to shine a torch at the screen, the lighting was so bad. Through utilizing such gloomy and dark effects the audience may feel as though they are being cheated out of some the action – which is ironically its purpose and also indicates the films lack of budget. As with all science fiction one scene normally surfaces as being the most memorable, in this instance it is probably the hospital impregnation scene as it ever so tenuously draws on the themes of the original Alien by literalizing it. The directing is poor, performances weak and the script rotten. AVPR is the product of a conveyor belt system of film-making in which ideas and techniques are assembled by ineffective people and then the finished product distributed among cinemas. This is personified by the absence of gory death scenes and drawn out blood battles because the certification will not allow it – a lower certification achieving a larger target audience. AVPR was purely a business venture and nothing more.