Today’s quick review: Alien vs. Predator. When a Weyland Industries satellite picks up an inexplicable heat signature in Antarctica, Charles Bishop Weyland (Lance Henriksen) assembles a team of experts guided by Alexa Woods (Sanaa Lathan) to investigate. What they find beneath the ice is an ancient temple where sacrifices were once offered to otherworldly visitors. But as the team explores deeper, they run the risk of becoming the latest sacrifices.
Alien vs. Predator is a sci-fi action horror movie that, as the title suggests, is a crossover between the Alien and Predator franchises. The Predators are a race of bipedal hunters with access to advanced technology who have come to Earth to hunt Xenomorphs, a deadly alien species with unique biology, in a pyramid designed for the purpose. Caught between them are a team of human explorers who have no idea what they’re in for.
Alien vs. Predator tries to combine the best of both series but gets mixed results. The movie’s best features are its setup, which does a passable job of justifying the three-way conflict, and its action, which shows how the Predator toolkit fares against the Xenomorphs’ natural weapons. But beyond the basics, Alien vs. Predator doesn’t have much to offer. Neither the story nor the action has the heft needed to match either series at its best.
Alien vs. Predator suffers from a few key flaws. The human cast isn’t nearly as interesting as the casts from the original Alien or Predator movies, making it hard to invest in their fate. The lore that the movie adds fits well enough with both series, but there isn’t much of it. Once the nature of the temple has been explained, there’s very little left to the story. That just leaves the action to carry the movie, and it isn’t quite up to the task.
Give Alien vs. Predator a shot if you’re a casual fan of the survival horror side of the sci-fi genre. Hardcore fans of Alien or Predator will be disappointed by the sharp step down in storytelling, atmosphere, and action. Those willing to take Alien vs. Predator on its own terms will find it to be a modestly entertaining watch. The movie won’t impress many viewers, but a few decent ideas and its iconic creatures are enough to let it coast by.
For a more iconic take on the same characters, try Alien or Predator. For a sci-fi action movie with a similar premise, try Predators, Doom, or The Thing.
5.6 out of 10 on IMDB. I give it a 6.0 for thin but adequate sci-fi action.