When I was nine-years old, my uncle took me to see my first horror film, "Predator." I fondly remember sitting in the theaters and clenching the armrest afraid to take my eyes off the screen. Never before had I ever experienced a film that physically affected me. Every time I heard the now familiar “clicking” of the Predator, my pulse quickened. That night after the movie, my family ate steamed crabs; I wouldn’t eat them for fear that the Predator would come a get me for eating his cousin. That film mentally scarred me to the point where I won't eat shellfish to this day, and needless to say, I was hooked on horror films.
A few weeks later, the same uncle let me watch "Alien" on video. Once again, my eyes where glued to screen as I watched the masterful execution of horror unfold. That night, I didn’t sleep; I couldn’t get out of my mind the serpent like killing machine that massacred the crew of Nostromo. It was during that long summer night my first fanboy fantasy came upon me: What would happen if the Predator and the Alien where to duke it out? I didn’t have to wait long to find out.
In 1990, Dark Horse comics released the comic book "Alien Versus Predator" (AVP). An immediate hit, AVP would go on to spawn several more comic books pitting these two monsters against each other, and the battle eventually spilled over onto the small screen in the form of video games. The release of Predator 2 where the skull of the “alien” was clearly seen in the Predator's trophy room had long fueled rumors of an "Alien Versus Predator" feature film. On August 13, 2004, the fantasy of every fanboy came to fruition; the awesome battle of Aliens Versus Predator had spilled over to the big screen.
When watching AVP on DVD, don’t waste your time with the theatrical release of the film. The extended edition is approximately two minutes longer than the theatrical release and provides a much better lead-in for the entire movie.
The Film
Weyland Industries, the “company” from the Alien franchise, detects an unexpected heat bloom in a remote region of Antarctica. Further analysis of the bloom reveals an ancient pyramid buried over 2,000 feet below the icy tundra. This pyramid, possibly the first in human history, represents a chance for aging industrialist Charles Bishop Weyland (Lance Henriksen) to make his mark on history. Assembling a team of adventurers including artic guide Alexa Woods (Sanaa Lathan), world renowned archeologist Sebastian de Rosa (Raoul Bova), chemical engineer Graeme Miller (Ewen Bremner), and several other “red shirt” security and drilling specialists, the race is on to claim the greatest archeological find in human history.
The mystery of the pyramid begins to unravel
The mystery of the pyramid begins to unravel once the team gets inside and finds the remains of humans who had the distinct pleasure of “birthing” aliens. Unwilling to turn back, the team ventures deeper into the pyramid when in a very Indiana Jones-like moment the pyramid begins to reconfigure itself, bringing humans and aliens closer together. Unbeknownst to any of the pyramid’s explorers, their support team plays warm up act for a hunting party of Predators. The board is set, and the pieces are moving towards the clash of the titans, the inevitable battle of the Aliens versus the Predators.
When AVP was first released in theaters, I read an interview with Paul W.S. Anderson where he explained that film was originally meant to be rated R. However, the powers-that-be over at 20th Century Fox decided to make the film more accessible to younger audiences and demanded that the film be re-cut to a more palatable PG-13 rating. I’m not sure why studio execs would decide that conglomeration of two widely successful rated R franchises needed to be watered down. With three weeks to go before release, I feel that Paul and his editors did the best that they could with the time restraints placed upon them. Ultimately, I’ve decided not to criticize the director for the many faults of this film because of the studio’s interference. I will however encourage anyone who loves the
Concept art work from the movie
Overall, this film as it currently stands is purely a summer popcorn action flick. Although it was nice to see my old friends (Aliens and Predators) on screen again, I didn’t find this film to be worthy of its respective parent franchises. While watching this film, my pulse never quickened; my breath never caught, and my wife never dug her fingernails into the flesh of my forearm. All the tension and terror I felt from Alien and Predator where sorely lacking, and I, for one, miss it. That being said, this film remains highly watchable as long as you accept it for what it is: a summer action movie. One last thing: When watching the film, there is a nice little homage to Bishop in Aliens. Watch Weyland carefully in his office aboard the ship, and you’ll catch him playing with his pen just like Bishop played with the knife in Aliens.The DVD
Video:
Sound:
Special Features:
The DVD features two commentary tracks. The first commentary featured Paul W.S. Anderson, Lance Henriksen, and Sanaa Lathan. I want my 101 minutes back; this commentary track basically boils down to a love fest over how amazing the film is and how it works on every level. I don’t know why I bother listening to commentary tracks with actors and directors anymore; they are rarely introspective and critical of the work presented. The second commentary track is a lot more interesting, as it features members of the effects team (Alec Gillis, Tom Woodruff Jr., and John Bruno) and offers a lot of insight into how the film was created.
My favorite piece of bonus material was the gallery of Aliens Vs. Predator comic book covers. It was nice to reminisce about comic books that held a special place in my heart during my childhood. The gallery is also a nice lead-in to the DVD-ROM features which includes the very first AVP comic book, details about how it came into being, and previews for the upcoming AVP graphic novel.
AVP also offers a behind-the-scenes look of the film from concept to creation title AVP Promo. I found this featurette to be both interesting and aggravating; with a running time of just over 25 minutes, it is just long enough to build your interest before abruptly ending.
The DVD is rounded out with a misleading “Inside Look” into the film Elektra. A preview for a new Fox animated series American Dad, which looks like it might be worth valuable space on my TiVo when it premiers. Last but not least, in the "WTF" category, there is a preview for Super Bowl XXXIX. At the time of this printing, no one even knew who was going to be in the next Super Bowl. I mean: What was the point?
For the UK audience this is released as either a 2 disc extreme edition as per the US release or as a single extras free disc.
Final Thoughts: The "Alien Versus Predator" DVD was a pleasurable experience worth renting, especially if you like the previous series or just a good sci-fi action yarn. The special features, with the exception of the comic book-related material, just didn’t hold my attention. By far the film's biggest selling points are the visual effect and Angelina Jolie's cleavage in the "Mr. and Mrs. Smith " trailer included on the disk. I give this film a 3 out of 5.
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