Having read all the reviews on AvP I decided to watch it... (some spoilers)

Rating: 7/10 (16 August 2004)

I love the Aliens and Predator series, I am a big fan in all things Aliens and Predator and the sci-fi backdrop it takes place in. I went to watch AvP with full knowledge of what was going to happen and some bias having read the reviews.
I felt robbed in what has to be most castrated appearance of both Alien and Predator species. The PG-13 style death scenes were very disappointing. I believe with all the advances in cgi and special effects we should be treated to more visceral content in regards to how the Alien and Predator dispatch each other as well as the pesky human species. I was hoping to see a Predator cut a person in half with its Combistick or at least cut an arm off. And the Alien's secondary jaw attack in all its glory is only evident through some splotches of green Predator blood, a waste indeed.
The plot was cohesive, enough to provide a reason for the urgency of expediency required in such an operation. The characters were all very much forgettable stock characters. Hudson from Aliens had more character than all the characters in AvP combined. I didn't really care about any of the characters myself and were wishing that they had all died a horrible painful death by the Aliens.
Things that bugged me, in the sacrificial chamber scene, the blond woman asks the nerdy guy again what the room is called in a vain attempt to add suspense. Lex is hanging onto a ledge and the Italian helps her up and is taken by an Alien, what bothers me is that the Alien could have easily taken Lex with it as well but didn't, why? When Lex was running with the Predator as the ice was crumbling under their feet the Alien head shield kept changing arms and she wasn't even carrying the Alien spear... then the spear magically appears in her hand while fighting the queen, nice. The Predator fighting the Alien with its claw was swinging and dodging in such a non-agile manner, looking as it if was stiff or had problems being limber. The alien lifecycle being accelerated pissed me off too, whats with that? The 20ft retractable Alien tail also bothered me and struck me as uber lame.
Lastly, it was so difficult for the team to get out, yet beyond all odds and the 10 minute timer, Lex and the Predator make it out of the pyramid effortlessly, nice way to rush the film. We don't all have ADD and would like to see a quality R rated flick with less childish dialogue, "WHat is this room called again?" "Sacrificial charmer."
What they should do is make direct transitions from comic books, the entire Alien story is available in comic book form and would provide MANY quality movies... the Predator comics aren't bad either. Ah well one can only dream. btw, Herk Mondo is one bad mofo.