What did you expect?

Rating: Null/10 (23 August 2004)

Even after I had read the negative reviews about this film, I still went with a buddy of mine to check it out. He and I are big Predator fans (yes, even Predator 2 is a movie I like), and I also enjoy the Alien series (Aliens being my favorite). So, as a fan, I really wasn't bothered by the PG-13 rating, but I found it odd that FOX was willing to sacrifice product over profitability. But, with AVP, FOX has managed to put out three box office successes (the other two being I, Robot and The Day After Tomorrow). So, I guess the gamble has paid off.
(SPOILERS AHEAD)!!!!!!!!!!!
Okay, so now to the movie. Well, you all know the plot, so i will skip that much a hit some other things. First is the cast. Besides our lead heroine, we get to know them very little. In a way this is good because we all paid to see the Aliens battle the Predators. I'll hit the latter part in a second. As for the cast, you really do not care about them. Heck even when the two guys are talking about getting home to there kids, you know they are gonna die. So, the dialogue between the two seems rather pointless. Then, there is our lead heroine (Sanaa Lathan) and the pyramid expert Sebastian. Sebastian is a know-it-all and he is the one who figures out the backstory of the Predators and Aliens. The backstory is neat, but it really could have used more thought to it to make it seem more logical. In any case, the Predators come back to Earth every hundred years and hunt the Aliens, and the Humans are used as hosts to breed the Aliens. Which is why the satellites found the temple in the arctic. Yep, the Predators set it up because they needed our team of expert scientists and such as hosts for there hunt. Sound silly? Well, it is, but I was willing to look past all that. In any case, the cast is expendable and as a result.........they die.
Now, on to the fight scenes. There is very little action between the Predators and Aliens, but what little we get looks very good. This alone saved the movie for me. My only beef here is that two of the Predators die very quickly once they get into the temple, leaving the one main Predator to do battle with all the Aliens. Lucky for him, our lead star is willing to team up with him to fight the beasts. Look, we wanted the Aliens fighting the Predators, and I feel that killing two Predators off like they did was just too damn silly. In any case, the effects and such are very good and should salvage some of the movie for you.
As for the Aliens? I felt they looked good (what little we do see because they mostly come out in the dark), and they have no alterations to them (at least they didn't try to put that stupid Alien from Resurrection in the film). The Aliens we get are what we saw in Aliens. Now, the tail is used quite often, and it looks good too when it is used. As for the queen? Okay, she has been locked down by the Predators and is awakened by one of our cast members stepping on a floor piece. Yes, it does look like Frankenstein's monster when she awakens as the electric current flows through her body. Here is my problem with this. She finally figures out how to get loose, as she sacrifices her young and there acid breaks the chains! Okay, me thinks if she is this smart that she would have figured this out many, many years ago. But, for the sake of the film, she just now figures it out and she gets loose. Obviously, she has her big scene in the final battle with the Predator and our wonder woman. Was it just me, or did anyone else think of Jurassic Park when the Queen Alien is chasing the woman? I laughed my ass off at that.
The Predators look good. I like how Anderson used there camouflage, especially when one Predator jumps from one side to the other during a battle with the humans in the temple. I liked the new throwing star (I guess that is what you would call it) the Predators had. There really wasn't anything cheesy about them.
Overall, the film is what it is. I have read that Anderson was unhappy with it because he didn't get to make the film he wanted to. If that is the case, then I hope once the DVD is out that FOX will release his cut of the film (which was R-rated). I don't think the film is as horrible as some have called it. It is a "popcorn flick" and to take it seriously is the wrong approach. If you like Sci-Fi and action, then this film will give you that.