 STAR RATINGS EXPLAINED |
 Classic
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 Excellent
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 Good
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 Fair
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 Tragic
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| FILM DETAILS | Certificate
15 | | Cast
John Ortiz
Steven Pasquale
Johnny Lewis
Reiko Aylesworth
David Paetkau
Chelah Horsdal
Shareeka Epps. | | Directors
Colin Strause
Greg Strause. | | Screenwriters
Shane Salerno
Dan O'Bannon. | | Running Time
93 minutes |
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Aliens Vs Predator: Requiem (15) Plot
Five minutes after the events of Alien vs Predator, a newly-born PredAlien hybrid causes a Predator ship to crash near a small American town. Aliens run rampant, forcing the town’s populace – including an ex-con, his pizza boy brother and an army mom – to fight back, with a little help from a new arrival: a vengeful Predator…Review
As anyone who’s suffered through the horror of Police Academy: Mission To Moscow knows, it’s not uncommon for movie franchises to lurch downhill. But the Alien – and to a much lesser extent, the Predator – franchise has really pulled off a trick. From the majesty of Ridley Scott and James Cameron’s episodes, each entry has been almost exponentially worse than the last, to the point where this witless, joyless, pointless mash-up makes its predecessor, Paul W.S.Anderson’s Alien Vs Predator, look Oscar-worthy. And that’s not so much lurching downhill as it is plummeting off a cliff.
Anyone who watched Cameron’s Aliens might feel that there is a terrifying movie to be made about what happens in between the first facehugger attack and the point where aliens overrun the town, but AVP:R sure isn’t it. Instead, what we get is Hollyoaks vs Predator, as a group of annoying, one-dimensional teens spend almost as time moping about love and, ludicrously, lost keys as they do getting their heads punched through by snapping xenomorph jaws.
Directors The Brothers Strause – Colin and Greg – apparently got the gig, their first, because they’re such huge Alien and Predator fanboys. AVP:R would indicate that they’re fanboys of the Ain't It Cool talkback variety, guileless goons crowbarring in lame references (the hero is called Dallas; someone actually says ‘Get to the chopper!’) while emphasising splatter and swearing over the suspenseful slow burn.
Of course, both Alien and Predator were stalk’n’slash pictures disguised as sci-fi movies, but AVP:R comes on like a Friday The 13th sequel, where the emphasis is placed squarely on spectacular kills, including a nasty and distasteful sequence set in a maternity ward that may just be the nadir of both franchises to date.
Apart from a frustratingly brief glimpse of the Predator homeworld and one cool AvP face-off in a sewer, the creatures remain resoundingly undeveloped. In fact, this Predator is so astoundingly stupid – it covers up all traces of Aliens with a bright blue liquid that disintegrates everything, yet never uses it as a weapon; then draws attention to itself by skinning humans – that it seems there might be a purpose after all for the high-falutin’ title, and that this film is a requiem after all, a requiem for two once-great movie monsters, now defanged, neutered and buried by a couple of hacks named Colin and Greg. Verdict
An early but strong contender for worst movie of 2008.
Reviewer: Chris Hewitt
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Average user rating for Aliens Vs Predator: Requiem
| Apalling | | | This is by far the worst film I've ever seen. And I never thought I'd say that again after seeing Batman & Robin, but this is much much worse. No characters, no story, disjointed action scenes where it's impossible to tell what's going on, and the actors seem to have wandered in out of failed soap auditions. Possibly bringing the soap scripts with them. ... Read More
| | | Spacegoat About me | | 10:36, 22 October 2009 | Report This Post | |
| | | | Alien vs Predator: Requiem | | | There is great fun to be had with this better than than the first sequel, which does not have a bad narrative, though simplistic. However if you want this to rank up to Alien or Predator films of old, you'll be dissapointed because in the past the human cast have been accessable and interesting and have some draw-droppingly bad dialogue. Whereas in this film you will undoubtably only give adamn about the warring alien species because the human characters are so cardboard cut out that you're near... Read More
| | | JJB888 About me | | 00:17, 16 May 2009 | Report This Post | |
| | | | RE: Actually brilliant | | L: Alien Hunter
I saw this in the cinema and walked out saying: "Wow, It's so true to the franchise." I love everything about this movie. From the kick-ass fight scenes, to the soundtrack. The only thing I didn't like was the fact that at times the lighting wasn't great (but thats why its cool to watch in the dark) and they could've made a story out of the national guards. Other then that, its a great movie and can't wait for the next one!!!
But if they had made a story out of the nation... Read More
| | | jobloffski About me | | 23:02, 22 April 2009 | Report This Post | |
| | | | RE: Masterpiece | | Alien v Predator 90210
The ONLY potential future crossover between the A and the P I will EVER be prepared to subject myself to. ... Read More
| | | jobloffski About me | | 21:38, 21 April 2009 | Report This Post | |
| | | | RE: Masterpiece | | L: Predalien
I think this is easlily the best comedy film ever. Its so funny. Oh, sry , i didnt realise this was an alien movie
enius post. Nicely written Predalien!
... Read More
| | | carlosantos About me | | 14:19, 20 April 2009 | Report This Post | |
| | | | RE: Masterpiece | | I liked the first one, sure it was shite and overall a bit of a mess, but if you ignored the plot and switched your brain into neutral it was a fun movie. Thats all I wanted from the sequel. Man was I dissapointed. I was prepared to ignore stuff like the fact that the Aliens are fully grown in about ten seconds, I could live with the fact that they saved on the FX budget by turning out all the lights. But why did they have to make the Predator so rubbish at hunting...he couldn't shoot straight ... Read More
| | | blackduck About me | | 14:07, 20 April 2009 | Report This Post | |
| | | | Masterpiece | | | I think this is easlily the best comedy film ever. Its so funny. Oh, sry , i didnt realise this was an alien movie
... Read More
| | | Predalien About me | | 20:05, 20 February 2009 | Report This Post | |
| | | | Run away ! | | | This film is so crap, it's just incledible ! Lets not even talk about the story. A typical scene in this film goes somthing like this : Some guy you have never seen before in the film is walking along. Then a alien falls on him and kills him. Then you'll probably get sparks and bangs in front of the screen. And then a slightly modified but basicly the same scene happens straight after. For the whole film. It's either that or some mentaly challenged teenagers bouncing around seeing who can be the... Read More
| | | Thefilmcritic About me | | 18:23, 12 January 2009 | Report This Post | |
| | | | Pretty bad | | | Not as completely awful as you'd expect mind you. Some of the Predator/alien work is great. But the lame characters, borderline underlit look of the film and confused introduction of new weapons amid continuity flaws galore render it a so-bad-it's good horror at best. Trying to make the Predator an interstellar cop is just stupid and you're glad when he kills the cliched teens. ... Read More
| | | Caster About me | | 15:42, 27 December 2008 | Report This Post | |
| | | | | | Hilariously bad. Really good special effects, violent and I kinda liked the use of the old music and alien sound effects. But like the review says, the Hollyoaks setting is beyond belief! Acting, storyline and lack of hero abysmal. ... Read More
| | | Pat Roach About me | | 02:34, 14 November 2008 | Report This Post | |
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