Paul W.S. Anderson's Alien vs. Predator is a first rate monster movie that succeeds because the creatures take a back seat to drama and a spirited cast. It's the difference between a classic baseball pitching duel and a slugfest. And surprisingly it's the film critic elite - those making the unspoken claim they would rather the "pitching duel" - who are up in arms that this intriguing motion picture isn't Independence Day (1996) or even King Kong Vs. Godzilla (1963) - who are bashing it the way the new Predator -Ian White (replacing the late Kevin Peter Hall in the role) slaps around the "Alien" Tom Woodruff, Jr.. That these two actors won't find the kind of noteriety that Bela Lugosi and Boris Karloff enjoyed after Dracula (1931) and Frankenstein (1931)
is a given - thespian skill is not challenged by the athletics necessary to play these roles - and that's something Anderson realizes from the outset. As The Thing (Thing, The (1951)) by virtue of his mostly unseen presence created terror in the Arctic (and Sci-Fi cache for future Gunsmoker James Arness), the screenwriter/director takes this all the way to the Antarctica. "The Thing From Another World" was at a research station, while Alien fights Predator far below an abandoned 1904 Whaling Station. Antartica is far more remote to movie goers than the Arctic - and putting the pyramid below the ice is a clever setting. The rapidity with which the cast is dispensed also makes it clear that this is all about mood and anticipation, not character development, though the winner here is the rugged Italian actor Raoul Bova who finds himself way Under the Tuscan Sun - deep inside a cold vault at the bottom of planet Earth. Bova is a real find - and though this won't be his break-through film, it will definitely put him on the map. Anderson sets a great mood with a cast that ranges from the relatively unknown to possible future household names - specifically Sanaa Lathan ( following Bova) as someone who has upped her marquee value. Keep in mind that - arguably - the best known "name" here, Lance Henriksen , got his sea legs in James Cameron 's The Terminator in 1984 and Aliens in 1986 (as did Bill Paxton , not in this flick). Henriksen also showed up as "Bishop II" in 1992's Alien ³ - so there's some kind of thread for the fans to latch onto.
There are holes in the plot. Megalomaniac Charles Weyland (Henriksen) is hell bent on preserving his legacy - yet there are no cameras sending his "find" up to the surface - even if privately documenting the discovery of a monstrous pyramid on company computers and video. The icebreaker that helped deliver the crew could have been better in touch with all involved and would have added to the drama - and possibly sent reinforcements down. With Lathan's character, Lex Kline, warning that this group of explorers are not ready for such a monumental task, one would think Weyland would have hired two hundred extra hands to sit on the icebreaker just in case. The employees need not be told the nature of the exploration - but none of these logical elements are in the film - the focus is on the breeding of the Alien, the Predator looking for prey, and
humans trapped like rats in a maze 20,000 leagues under the sea, or something like that.
But despite the flaws, this is not what critic Jack Matthews of the NY Daily News calls "...if not the worst, sci-fi movie since Battlefield Earth (2000)". And while it isn't Terminator 2: Judgment Day - another flick where two pretty equal forces duke it out - there is a wonderful The Thing (from Another World) meets The Mummy
vibe going on, and it is that level of seriousness (harpooned when Lathan gets buddy buddy with the Alien)
which makes this ride much more satisfying than Brendan Fraser's Mummy, The (1999) Mummy series.
From 1942's Frankenstein Meets the Wolfman up to 2003's Freddy Vs. Jason sixty-one years later, with the Vampire vs. Werewolf flick - also from 2003 - Underworld - thrown in for good measure - pairing up evil with evil is potential good box office. The good news about AVP - Alien vs. Predator - is that Screenwriter/Director Paul W.S. Anderson opts to create a Mummy film with the 20th Century Fox franchises "Alien" and "Predator" as side dishes. In doing so he's developed a marvelous suspense film at the risk of alienating (no pun intended) fans of the Arnold Schwarzeneggar and Sigourney Weaver originals.
Chris Reeves emerged from Superman while Jack Nicholson overtook the role of the Joker in Batman.
Having actors who are not going to upstage the plot is something Hollywood needs more of. Anderson has
done a commendable job with the evolution of both series. The chatter outside the theater after the flick
seems to indicate that those bashing the flick simply didn't get it. I was quite happy to see this great and suspensful movie coming in at #1 for the weekend of August 13-15 - there is less slashing and more drama, something needed these days.
Check out the box office:
http://movies.yahoo.com/boxoffice/latest/rank.html
Recommended movie sites:
http://www.fast-rewind.com/
Jack Matthew's 1 Star Review August 14, 2004 P. 17 NY Daily News jmath30031@aol.com
http://www.nydailynews.com/08-14-2004/entertainment/story/221804p-190617c.html
Rebecca Louie's 8/15/04 article Slithering To A Theater Near You
http://www.nydailynews.com/08-15-2004/entertainment/movies/story/221968p-190758c.html
Collateral A Review by Joe Viglione (coming soon)
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