Pop Rock not Heavy Metal Rock ....

Rating: 9/10 (23 August 2004)

I saw this last Saturday (Aug 21st)....and this is what stayed with me, starting with the negative - so I can end on a positive note :
n1] If one bothers to make a movie, one should endeavour to remove the most obvious plot-holes as to not "alien-ate" (sorry - couldn't help that one) the movie-goer. On that topic : -> Why did the Preds bother doing so much hand-2-hand combat ? When they picked off several lesser human opponents in P1 and P2, with lasers, heat-sensing, ..etc ?? -> Having used them to {I guess prove the worthiness/courage in combat - don't they already know they likely will not survive with odds of X (read more than 20) to 3. While _NOT_ using their cloaking/armour and technology ??? -> Another thing that also annoyed me was the clothing - although it could be debated that below the surface - some insulation is provided by the snow - like an igloo...still on the surface ?! -> Also, a mission that seemed somewhat risky, would have seen the risk factor go waaay up, after noticing a brand new hole - going straight there and some energy activity... send in the marines (maybe the ancestors of Hicks, Vasquez, and all the other really cool crew). -> Time to throw in some techno-stuff, like a woman - deciphering some scripts, and some binary code on the walls - they could have nicknamed "mother"... etc.
p1] For the all the maligned reviews, the action and cgi - were eye-catching and well done. p2] I enjoyed the combat scenes and the way the lead-lady "be-friended" the Pred#3. p3] I liked the dynamic aspect of the movie.
All in all - I enjoyed it ... especially since my expectations were low and the movie delivered the basics (no storyline, minimal character development) but kick-butt mano-a-mano.
Hope AVP-2 is better defined though - so much more can be done....