If only every movie could be a Schwarzenegger 80s movie...

Rating: 8/10 (29 March 2011)

There's something to be said about Schwarzenegger movies from the 80s and 90s. They all have that little hint of awesome that's nestled deep in the centre of a colossal, rolling snowball of awesome (yes, that's awesome nestled in awesome... awesome enough for you?) that just make you love them. And Predator is no exception.
The dated special effects (not terrible, but certainly don't hold up to today), the campy acting, the cheesy one-liners, the whole 'bro' mentality behind the characters, and the general ridiculousness behind the whole situation just makes movies like Predator worth watching and extremely easy to enjoy. The characters don't have, nor do they need much character development at all. They serve the purpose of acting bad-ass, spewing one-liners, shooting stuff and being hunted and killed. But they're not stupid, in fact they actually behave quite tactically effectively. The squad of men sent into this situation are presented as no-nonsense, professional mercenaries who are the best at what they do, they fulfill that role, and they all have distinctive personalities despite that very overbearing common element.
As a pure movie experience, Predator did a great job of giving us these guys, demonstrating why they themselves are a force to be reckoned with, and then completely shattering that when the Predator itself starts hunting and killing them one by one. Even then, these guys can strategize, take ground, and defend themselves - despite the bloodbath, not one of the Predator's victims in the film is simply fodder.
I have one criticism of the movie, and that is namely the special effects of Predator-vision. Yes, this was made in the 80s and there are technical limitations to what can be accomplished, but most of the time you couldn't make out a thing that the Predator was 'seeing' - if you watch the trailer, they actually present a much clearer version of the thermal vision that I think would have helped greatly if used in the actual movie.
I give it an overall rating of 8/10, and recommend that anybody who hasn't seen this movie yet go out, pick up the DVD for $5 (that's what I paid for it) and watch it right now.