The new Predator: Am I crazy, or is Prey almost a really good movie?

Lots of SPOILERS on topics and storyline below.

The fact that even monster films attract anti-woke culture warriors who see their male image in danger is no longer a secret, not just since the most recent (and failed) film adaptation of Resident Evil. Prey, too, is now getting his share of internet rants because there’s no way “one young woman can defeat the Predator” while the stronger sex provides the cannon fodder.

Of course, this fails to recognize that the first Predator also had the message that all brawn and gruff machismo is sometimes worth nothing. That it is risky to think of yourself as the crown of creation and that blatant aggression often enough means doom. In that regard, Prey is almost congruent with the original. In my opinion, the excitement that seems fragile is not honest and actually comes to nothing.

I have to say that Prey didn’t work consistently for me either. I thought he was nice, he had a good pace and had some wonderful mean kills, but he can’t get beyond just taking a look. Especially the CG of the many animals – and unnecessarily the face of the Predator – destroyed a lot and I wished the film had not been shot in perfect, contemporary English, but in authentic indigenous language. Yes, there is an indigenous cut, but it was “only” dubbed and you can tell that. Above all, however, the finale is not consistently believable and a little anticlimactic. But other than that, the film is pretty OK, and you can’t say that very often in this series.

What is it about? Comanche woman Naru is not taken seriously as a warrior by most of her male tribesmen in the early 18th century. An exception is her brother, chief warrior Taabe, who thinks highly of her. Naru repeatedly warns her fellow tribesmen of the alien presence in the forests, but that falls on deaf ears – until it’s too late. But otherwise we probably wouldn’t have a film.

What particularly irritates me about the anti-woke crowd’s criticism is that they criticize the film conceptually and don’t rate it on its own. If you watch carefully, the image of men of the time is actually not too bad. Naru’s male colleagues smile at her, but only become gruff towards her when she first tries to use force to disregard the orders of the tribal leaders. Almost every man in this film, almost without exception, gives the Predator a better fight than Arnie’s crew in the Central American jungle.

In the best scene of the film, her brother almost single-handedly takes down the alien super killer in open combat with the Invisibility Hack. The fact that the French trappers are portrayed as unwashed primitives is entirely acceptable (the CG smoke on the chief trapper’s cigar bothered me more), so Revenant seven years ago wasn’t any more flattering. And they still land a few hits.

Even before the final battle with the smart Naru, whom we have seen training and learning things about her opponent throughout the film, the monster is no longer at the height of its murderous capabilities. And she doesn’t defeat him in open combat either, but with surprise tactics, traps and ultimately with his own weapons. The choreography of the finale alone didn’t suit me, some moves were unbelievable. But in the course of a film in which the monster doesn’t see the heroine as a threat until the very end – a nice reflection of the men’s behavior towards Naru – victory by action movie rules isn’t so far-fetched now.

As I said, a lot didn’t work: the almost magical properties of the orange blossoms were a very convenient plot element, the accent and the actors’ demeanor are sometimes too urban. It would also have been nice to have been even dirtier and a bit harder, and the effects keep tearing you out of the experience. But you can definitely watch this film without getting angry. Unless you really want to.

Where does he fit in, in the Predator food chain? Let’s start at the bottom: We don’t have to talk about AvP, Upgrade is the layer of sediment over the bad crossover, I had already forgotten Predators after a week. They’re worse than Prey. I felt like I would place the new part just below Predator 2, which I’m not the only one to think is underestimated. But I think that’s only because I haven’t seen him for a good 15 years. And I think it’s better that way. Give it a chance, but don’t expect too much.

Prey can be found in the Stars section of Disney Plus. Directed by Dan Trachtenberg (“10 Cloverfield Lane”)