Did both franchises justice

Rating: Null/10 (12 August 2004)

Okay, I read the first review on here and unfortunately it is going to ruin the image of a very entertaining movie. So in a few words, I will say the first reviewer has no idea what he's talking especially since he admitted he hasn't seen any of the Alien movies. He just wanted his poor little precious Predator to just bogard through everything. So let's address his issues to give you a BETTER and more THOROUGH review from someone who is a fan of BOTH franchises.
First off, the human element is TOTALLY necessary. We're not talking elitist inclusion like in LXG where they just HAD to have an American character. But think about it, Predators can't talk! Neither can Aliens so how in the world did you expect to understand what was going on. If you want blood and gore and endless fighting, go play an Alien Vs. Predator video game! I'm sorry but I just can't stand when people trash a good story just because they wanted mindless action. Why not just enjoy the action there was and let people who know how to appreciate a story enjoy it.
I thought the story was very well crafted and ALMOST made total sense. Really the only problem I had with it was the character Charles Bishop Weland was of course the model for the Bishop android in Aliens. If I remember correctly, and I could be wrong, they said that the Bishop android was modeled after it's creator. I guess it could be Weyland's grandson or something as Aliens took place AT LEAST 75 years after AVP. But that was pretty much it as far as complaints.
If you're such a big fan of Predator, wouldn't you know that the Predators as hunters show respect for anyone who can take one of them down? It's part of their culture. Call it the code of the hunters. (SPOILER IF YOU HAVEN'T SEEN PREDATOR) In the first Predator, it was obvious the he respected Arnold's character but he was all beat up and his only choice was to blow himself up. Had he been bested without being fatally injured, I'm sure he would have shown the same respect they showed in Predator 2 and AVP. Also, Mr. Predator fan, Predators only hunt and kill something that is a threat to them. (SPOILER FOR AVP) Sanaa Lathan's character was not threatening him AND he respected her for killing the Alien right in front of him.
No one can expect the Predators to just kick the crap out of the Aliens, especially in hand to hand combat. The Aliens are savage and savie and have many built-in weapons and just live to kill so they can breed. You take the best game hunter in the world and arm him some blades and a Glave (ala Krull) and put him up against a lion. He might win, he might not, probably not, but if he won it certainly wouldn't be easy at all!
This was a very solid and entertaining movie with great action and a pretty good story to explain why all of this was happening. There were elements of humor, terror, suspense and some great fight scenes. I think I would have wanted to see a little more fighting but overall I thought it was a solid effort and this is coming from someone who has watched all 6 Alien and Predator movies over and over and knows what's what with their respective universes. So over all I would give it maybe an A-/B+. I thought it was a little short and I wouldn't have minded seeing a little more gore but it really wasn't necessary. The whole point of a movie is to be entertained and this one did it very well. Go see it yourself and judge, don't the word of a biased teenager or even a fan of both. Judge for yourself.