Alien vs. Predator (2004) User Reviews

Is this a perfect movie? No, this premise had no chance of that. Is this worth viewing and entertaining? Absolutely

[kevin_robbins · 7/10 · 21 November 2021]

Alien vs. Predator (2004) is a movie in my DVD collection that I recently watched on Amazon Prime. The storyline follows a research expedition that recently was discovered miles under the ice. The research team doesn't know the pyramid was setup as a hunting playground for Predators to test their hunting skills against the ultimate beings...and we aren't talking about humans.

This movie is directed by Paul W. S. Anderson (Event Horizon) and stars Sanaa Lathan (Love & Basketball), Lance Henriksen (Pumpkinhead), Ewen Bremner (Rundown), Tommy Flanagan (Gladiator), Raoul Bova (Under the Tuscan Sun).

The storyline for this picture was actually okay and was a good setup for this premise. I enjoyed the settings and the cast. I'd never complain about Lathan and Henriksen movies. The special effects were awesome and the kill and action scenes were very good, loved the depiction of both the Aliens and Predators. The alien vs predator fights were excellent, including how the face huggers were mixed in.

Overall is this a perfect movie? No, this premise had no chance of that. Is this worth viewing and entertaining? Absolutely. I'd score this a 6.5-7/10 and strongly recommend seeing this.

Good monster action flick.

[Fella_shibby · 7/10 · 31 December 2020]

I first saw in in a theatre in 2004. Revisited the 109 mins unrated version recently.

This is the first film installment of the Alien vs. Predator franchise, bringing together the creatures of the Alien and Predator series. In this one, scientists are caught in the crossfire of an ancient battle between Aliens and Predators as they attempt to escape a bygone pyramid. The film is fast paced with tons of action, aided by top notch special effects n amazing set design. Thankfully it doesnt have any shaky cam stuff, no flickering lights n none if the scene is shot in dark light. We can make out what is going on. Compared to most films where too much darkness takes away the fun, this one doesn't have bad lighting. They have toned down the human body count n reduced the gory moments. Nonetheless, it is a good monster action flick. Gore wise, it is nowhere close to the original Predator.

Not sure why it got such a bad mark from most people

[Valkonian · 7/10 · 2 August 2009]

I went into this expecting a horrible movie. From all the reviews that I read I thought it would be HORRIBLE! I've seen many, many worse movies than this.

A previous comment stated the movie went a bit too fast in explaining things and developing the characters. While I can certainly agree on the former, the latter, well, you just know most of the people are going to get wasted so character development isn't that necessary. We came to see Predators hunt and fight with Aliens.

One thing I didn't like was the movie showed the Aliens more powerful than the Predators. I believe the canon shows the Predators are much more powerful than the Aliens. Regardless, I liked this movie.

This movie surprised me because there were many things I didn't expect. Were some scenes over the top? Absolutely, but this is Hollywood and we're talking Aliens V Predator here :) IF you are a fan of these genres you really should give this movie a chance.

Great set-design and action - terrible dialogue

[gogoschka-1 · 24 October 2013]

Just watched it again yesterday - it's striking how good the action is compared to the ridiculous dialogue. I completely understand why this movie got such terrible reviews; after all, it marked the first "let's make a quick buck" entry in the two beloved Alien and Predator franchises and was done by a director who many felt didn't treat the material with the respect it deserved. When I watched it yesterday I got angry at times because some of the dialogue - well, most of it, actually - is truly awful. It's hard to take characters or a story seriously when nearly every sentence spoken resembles lines from a parody of cheap science-fiction and horror movies from the fifties and sixties. But despite all those flaws I have to admit I enjoyed the movie from start to finish - because of the amazing set- and creature-design and the more than decent action sequences and special effects. Whoever designed those really scored and seems to have a great love for the art of Giger and the previous films. So if you can get past the silly characters and you're able to ignore the more obvious shortcomings (like the idiotic decision to make the film PG-13) you're in for a fun ride. My vote: 6.5 out of 10.

Favorite films: http://www.IMDb.com/list/mkjOKvqlSBs/

Lesser-known Masterpieces: http://www.imdb.com/list/ls070242495/

Favorite Low-Budget and B-Movies: http://www.imdb.com/list/ls054808375/

Favorite TV-Shows reviewed: http://www.imdb.com/list/ls075552387/

Pretty good for what it is

[zumo-16908 · 7/10 · 25 December 2016]

Some say that AVP is silly and that the plot is thin, and they are right, but this movie is not about realism or story depth. Its an action movie where people are hunted by terrifying monsters and get killed without discrimination. This is a slight depart from the original Alien movie and Predator movie which had a more serious tone, so i understand why some may be disappointed by AVP. But if you expect a solid no-brainer action movie that entertains the viewers with suspense and action without taking itself too serious, then you get exactly that. It is a joy to watch all the right people get killed and the right people survive their encounter with the aliens and the predator. The main character is actually quite likable. Its not like in Prometheus, where you'd grow increasingly apathetic with each silly decision made by the characters.

Ahh, it could have been so good

[bowmanblue · 6/10 · 24 July 2014]

The 'Aliens versus Predator' storyline has been with us ever since the 'Predator 2' when Danny Glover huffed and puffed his way across what looked like an alien's skull in the Predator's trophy cabinet. This brief image sparked a storm among fans, whose dreams and wishes were subsequently realised by volumes of comics and graphic novels regarding the subject matter. And they were actually pretty good! Having read a fair few of them, it seemed no end to the possibilities of pitting two of the big screen's most famous monsters against each other. With so many ideas as to what could be done, how could they possibly lose?

The answer: they gave it to Paul W S Anderson. Now, Paul W S Anderson is a very competent director who can stylishly bring action scenes to life. However, his films' major flaws all are that they're 'almost great.' They're not bad. They're watchable. And that is their major crime. They leave you thinking that if you were given $60 million to make a film (in this case one starring the aliens and the Predator) then you could do better than him. And there's a reason for this - you could. And so could I.

Aliens vs Predator sports the tagline 'Whoever wins - we lose.' Isn't that the truth? The film gets its rating taken down from an 18 to a watery 12A, removing all gore and much of the suspense with it. Instead of brutal tough Predators we have a trio of young, inexperienced ones who are - quite frankly - a bit rubbish at killing aliens. Instead of the gun-totting Colonial Marines from Aliens, we have a team of bland, disposable scientists who are there simply to increase the body count. At least the aliens perform on camera, but the battles you may expect between the two races are few and far between. Also, if you saw the trailer and witnessed a million aliens tearing towards some Predators on top of an weird and wonderful pyramid, that's only a flashback. That's about the best bit of the film.

It sort of tries to tie into both the 'Aliens' and 'Predator' mythology, but fans really don't want it to. Like I say, it's not bad. I know I'm making it sound terrible, but it really isn't. It has action, special effects and, um, that's about it. It's perfect for your average sci-fi monster-munching movie. However, when you have either an Aliens film or a Predator film, people expect a little more than something that's 'just okay.'

At least it was more understandable than Prometheus I suppose.

http://thewrongtreemoviereviews.blogspot.co.uk/

With its shameful rating, poor acting, awful writing and mediocre direction, 'AvP' disappoints the fans at every turn, and will probably leave non-fans feeling a little wishy-washy. Fox has taken two of thei

[MovieAddict2016 · 4/10 · 13 August 2004]

We don't go to see movies about dueling alien species for deep themes and intricate character development, but a little sympathy would be nice. I didn't feel any sympathy for the characters in 'Alien vs. Predator' because they were all unlikable clichés: The Heroine, The Hero, The Nerd, The Tomboy, The Gruff Leader, et al. These carbon cut out characters we've seen in hundreds of other films are all assembled together by Charles Bishop Weyland (Lance Henriksen) in 'AvP' to venture into the Antarctic, where they uncover an ancient pyramid recently discovered by Weyland's multi-million dollar satellites hovering about in space.

The movie is based, of course, upon the iconic 'Alien' and 'Predator' films – the rights to which are both owned by Fox Studios. The concept for the project originated with 'Predator 2' (1990), when a cop (played by Danny Glover) ventured into a Predator spaceship. There, in the 'trophy room,' was the distinct skull of an Alien.

This small in-joke reference (similar to that of Freddy Kruger's claw appearing in the 'Evil Dead' sequel) sparked a phenomenon of fans speculating as to the meaning behind the very brief big-screen insinuation. And due to strong requests, the two fictional species were finally united together for a string of comic books, videogames, novels and action figures in the early-'90s. By the year 2002, 'Alien vs. Predator' had become one of Fox's most profitable off-screen franchises. So, it was only reasonable to demand a film be made. By October 2003, production was underway, with sets in Prague being assembled.

And the film's director, Paul W. S. Anderson, has always excelled at set design. In 'Event Horizon' he perfectly captured the dark essence of the 'Alien' series; with 'Resident Evil' he managed to mimic the Gothic structure of all great zombie movies. But, to be honest, that's about it. He's never been any good at three other vital elements of film-making: story, characters and direction. 'Alien vs. Predator' –- a project that took 14 astonishing years to bring to the big screen (longer than 'Freddy vs. Jason') –- doesn't do much to change this.

Yes, his set design here is fantastic (it's no surprise that a great amount of pre-production work went into creating these enormous surroundings). The pyramid is buried deep within the wastelands of the Antarctic (2,000 feet, actually), which provides us with some great cinematography and stages.

The plot could have used extra work, though. After venturing deep into the pyramid, the team of scientists soon realizes that the pyramid is –- surprise, surprise! –- actually the home of an alien hive. And furthermore, a pack of teenaged Predators -- on an annual 'manhood' hunting ritual -- are there, too, and they begin to draw the humans into their fight, using them as bait.

The movie's cast is comprised of many newcomers and they are all unimpressive. Sanaa Lathan ('Out of Time'), as Alexa, the heroine, is rather annoying. Raoul Bova, playing the hero Sebastian, is the most likable of the characters, but even then, he's simply no Arnold.

Furthermore, the dialogue is completely lame. Sure, 'Predator' had lame dialogue too ('Knock, knock!') but at least it was funny and delivered with charisma. This movie unfortunately takes itself way too seriously. I've heard many people quote lines from 'Predator' over the years ('I ain't got time to bleed!' being a popular one). I can't imagine anyone ever *wanting* to quote dialogue from this film.

Even Henriksen seems like he's just in it for the paycheck. (His character, Charles 'Bishop' Weyland, is the billionaire who – according to 'Alien' mythology -- creates the Bishop androids seen in 'Aliens' and 'Alien 3,' which are modeled after his own image.) Is it any coincidence that the only returning cast member from either series of films happens to be the same actor whose career has devolved into straight-to-video duds recently?

However, kudos must be handed to "'AvP's' creature effects artists (mainly Tom Woodruff, Jr.). I had expected lots of CGI, but there are also many close-ups of the Predators and Aliens played by thankless actors in suits (and some good IL'-fashioned animatronics). Kevin Peter Hall (the original Predator) passed away shortly after the release of the film's sequel, but Anderson has comprised an acceptable team of replacements (most of the actors being some seven feet tall!).

That, and the set design, and one or two OK action sequences, makes 'AvP' adequate for 'regular' cinema-goers expecting nothing more. If you're just looking for the average Saturday night blow-'em-up action flick, you could certainly do worse. But, for any true die-hard fans of the films, this movie continually disappoints – and worst of all, due to its restrictive PG-13 rating, the fights (which take place all too often and rapidly become boring) are all over the place. We are not 'allowed' to see anything, which hinders the flow of the film. There was more violence than I had expected, but still not enough. (For the record, 'AvP' is the only film from either of the two series to ever receive an under-R rating.) After negative test screenings, Fox Studios decided to go against the will of the film's own director and brutally chop the movie apart so that it could fit into a more marketable age demographic. (So, the awkward flow in many of the sequences cannot be entirely contributed to Anderson's directing skills.) The day the official rating was released, fans across the world united online to protest it. I can't say I blame them.

I had personally been looking forward to seeing this movie for quite some time now, being a fan of both 'Alien' (1979) and 'Predator' (1987). Yet I tried to view 'AvP' unbiased, and judge it on its own terms, as a movie, and not particularly a sequel. It was a difficult task, but the truth of the matter is that the film – as a stand-alone project – is still not particularly enthralling. With its shameful rating, poor acting, awful writing and mediocre direction, 'AvP' disappoints the fans at every turn, and will probably leave non-fans feeling a little wishy-washy. Fox has taken two of their greatest franchises and turned them into a joke. 'AvP' is nothing more than typical action fare which, all considered, isn't much of a compliment at all.

2.5/5

Not as bad as some people make out

[shakermakerman · 6/10 · 9 September 2007]

Reading some of the harsh reviews I thought I would comment. The big disappointment for me in the movie was the lack of gore , fox did get it wrong to make it a pg13 even though they tried to substitute it with monster gore. All that being said this movie is a visual master-peace, the effects are top notch with very good fight scenes and creature effects with the best looking Alien Queen to hit the screens, The story is pretty cool and it gives more insight of the Predators, It takes a while for the introduction of the creatures but once the ball is rolling its none stop action. Not the horror feast we all wanted but fun.

It's been two years, and I still can't forgive the unscrupulousness of this POS.

[littlejimmy835 · 1/10 · 23 April 2006]

Paul W. S. Anderson, the man who has directed previous travesties as "Mortal Kombat" and "Resident Evil" doesn't fail to live up to his standards which consist of a horrible script, cheesy "2 kewl 4 skool" directing styles, weak cast, and every other weakness in a film you can think of. The only person who rivals his ineptness is none other than Uwe Boll. He has already ruined other franchises with his previous films, and now by directing and writing Alien vs. Predator, he has managed to ruin two movie series at the same time.

The story of this film is bay far the weakest aspect of this derision of a movie. All the previous Alien/Predator films had simple plots with good dialogue. Just simply there was a monster trying to kill the good guys, and they had to survive it. The stories were so uncomplicated yet incredibly well written that the viewer could not possibly complain that the story was bad. Alien vs. Predator however attempts to be a big, complex story with deep meaning to it, but it just comes off as being stupid and try hard. Paul, a complex story is good, only if you know how to write that is.

It's about a pyramid that is discovered on Earth in Antarctica. It turns out that this pyramid was part of the first human civilisation ever, that the Predators built it for the humans long ago, and in return, the humans worshiped the Predators as gods and acted as hosts for the captive alien Queens eggs that are in the pyramid, to make Aliens for the predators to hunt, not for sport like in the previous Predator films, but to prove that they are men. When modern day people go to investigate this pyramid, they become the new hosts for the Aliens that they Predators are going to hunt.

Not only is this completely unbelievable, (a pyramid in Antarctica? Come on) but it totally contradicts the previous Alien and Predator movies. In each Alien movie the point of the film was, "Don't let the Aliens get to Earth or they will kill everything!" Yet in this movie it was like, "Oh the Aliens have been on Earth the entire time and it wasn't really that bad now that we think about it." The previous Predator films are contradicted as well because the Predators are portrayed as creatures who are noble warriors, who actually respect humans and will help them if need be, rather than the ruthless merciless hunters who killed for sport and would kill a human just out of spite if he looked at him funny. Having Predators help humans build societies contradicts their nature, and takes away the mysteriousness and awesomeness of the Predator character.

But the thing is even as a stand alone film it's a very weak story. It can be compared to the later Jaws movies where you saw too much of the shark. Both extraterrestrial species are too in your face and have no mystery; leaving them just look like guys in rubber suits running around punching each other. Human characters have so little character development that often you don't even get to learn their names before they are killed, and so much more makes you feel like the script was made from a tipped over box of alphabet cereal.

Here's a perfect example of how bad the dialogue is in AVP.

FemaleTechnician: What is it?

Male Technician: It's a data stream from PS12.

Female Technician: Where is she?

Male Technician: Right above sector 14.

Female Technician: There isn't anything in sector 14.

Male Technician: The is now.

It is obvious in that piece of dialogue that Paul W. S. Anderson doesn't know anything about mapping or geography. Look moron, there is no such thing as this elusive "sector 14", things are mapped using latitude and longitude, bearings and such. Secondly for this Female Technician to have said on the spot, "There's nothing in sector 14" implies that she has memorised the presumably thousands of sectors all over the world and what is in each and every one of them so she can recall instantly off the top of her head that the isn't anything in sector 14. This is just one example of how cheesy and full of holes the very dialogue in Alien vs. Predator can be.

It is clear that a movie this bad was made only for the action, not the story. The thing is, in this whole move THERE ARE ONLY TWO FIGHT SCENES! If you are going to make a movie that has no good script which is only about the action, put in a decent amount of fighting at least!

AND THE PG-13 RATING?! Every other Alien/Predator film released before this one had and R rating. This film has been dumbed down for kids so much, that about 95% of the movies deaths or other injuries were off screen. You would see an Alien just getting near a guy before the camera would cut away, leaving you thinking, "So not only do we have no story but we have no gore?! I want my money back!" The line "You are one ugly mother f—er" which is the trademark line of each other Predator film had the last word of it not filmed to keep the low rating! Yet earlier in the film they said, "I hope it kills every f—ing one of them!". Why did they decide to put the F word in earlier when it wasn't necessary, yet cut it out later when it was?! If they had of just shifted the F word to the ugly mother part then there could have been just as many F words yet still kept the trademark line!

It's a POS movie. The 1000 word limit has stopped me from going on.

Has its moments........

[owenpont-70803 · 6/10 · 30 June 2022]

I am a big Alien and Predator fan. So I was excited to watch this, but wow this was disappointing. First off, why would you make an Alien Vs Predator movie PG-13? Secondly there were way to many plots. And the character development was very poor. Even then, I wish they wouldn't make the human characters a main part of the film. You spend to much time with them before you even see the Alien or Predator start attacking anyone. I will say though, the film was not boring. There is lots of shut your brain off entertainment in this film. I thought the lore of it was neat. And the Alien and Predator action was fun. Overall its a film that is entertaining but has very clear faults and for a film like this, it shouldn't have to many faults.

Try filming a decent movie to go with the marketing...

[sixtwentysix · 2/10 · 17 August 2004]

This movie is the perfect epitome of Hollywood taking something beloved, running it straight to hell (Predator 2, Alien 4) and then taking it even one step further by completely disjointing the stories and continuity, *ahem* alienating the fans and basically wasting everyone's time while marring the original (Caddyshack 2 anyone??) all in the name of the mighty dollar bill. Seeing this movie only eggs them on people! This is a movie that you immediately wish you could UNWATCH and erase from your memory banks.

I would be highly surprised if more time went into the script of this film than the actual marketing. I'm not even going to complain about the PG-13 rating because it is what it is.... just a bad movie.

Horrible acting. Pointless plodding sub-plots. Decent action sequences and a precious few cool moments in what should have been a fan-boy's wet dream. The lead in this movie is a demographic friendly woman with barely enough acting ability to make a shampoo ad believable. Any mildly entertaining characters were immediately destroyed in the first twenty minutes of the film with zero payout. Even the marquee monsters end up looking bored as the audience is lead along in a by numbers popcorn sales ploy.

Such an underrated movie

[derek-a-charette100 · 8/10 · 22 August 2021]

I don't understand the low rating. I see a review complaining about dialogue... considering the second half of the movie has nearly zero dialogue in it, I wonder if this person actually watched the whole movie, or maybe watched a different movie altogether... HOW MUCH ECCENTRIC AND INTELLECTUAL DIALOGUE SHOULD AN ACTION MOVIE HAVE? Looking back at the classic action movies, AVP is right on par with the dialogue of the others, and actually above average.

Everything about this movie is better than or far above the usual in every manner. The visuals are great, and in fact, being from 2004, the visuals are better than most action movies that have come out in the past decade.

The acting is great, the cast is great, the storyline is fantastic and actually makes sense and has substance to it.

Once the action starts, the rest of the movie is nonstop action and one really cool scene after another. There were actually some moments with the predator acting that were genius and so well done.

Such a good movie. Easily in the top 100 all time action movies.

Combining two classic movie monsters into one dynamic showdown!

[kclipper · 7/10 · 3 July 2015]

25 years ago Ridley Scott scared us with his terror in space original "Alien" in which technically adept director, James Cameron elaborated on successfully in "Aliens". Then came the concept of an advanced race of aliens that hunt for sport using state-of-the-art technology in the box office smash, "Predator". The 1991 sequel, "Predator 2" featured an in-joke at the film's climax where Ridley Scott's "Alien" skull is observed as being a trophy inside the "Predator's" spaceship, and that idea launched the 1993 Super Nintendo video game, the Stephen Perry book and not to mention various graphic novels that pitted the two species against each-other in a mega-war between the races.

Now its 2004, and director, Paul W.S. Anderson (producer of Resident Evil) finally decides to bring the idea to the big screen in a slam-bang action showdown. Beautiful survivalist, Sanaa Lathan is recruited along with a group of scientists by Weyland Industries' Charles "Bishop" Weyland (Lance Henrickson) to journey to Antarctica where a satellite observed the ancient ruins of a pyramid under the ice that dates back before the Egyptians. It turns out the the "Predator" race designed the structure in order to breed the parasitic "Alien" creatures in order to hunt for sport, and human beings were the unfortunate hosts. Now as the body count piles up, resourceful female hero must combine wits with the hunters in order to defeat the enemy. Sound familiar? This is hardly new terrain, but the action is exciting enough, the special FX top notch, and fans of "Alien/Predator" films will appreciate the effort. Lance Henrickson is the perfect candidate for Weyland, and Lathan shines through as the tough but gorgeous female lead. This has plenty of thrills, homages to the original films and the combination of the treacherous Arctic landscape and Egyptian archetypal symbolism is very unique. The unrated version is the way to go of course, and provides a bit more action, but either way this is good stuff for fans of these films. Behold, the sequel, AVP: Requiem comes next!!

An utter work of genius

[eboxtree · 1/10 · 2 July 2006]

Many people castigate Paul Anderson for destroying both the Alien and Predator franchises. I must say that they have no clue and the director/writer is a true genius for having pulled this movie off. Notice that I did'nt say that this movie itself was great but it was a work of genius. So what is the movie like? It is by far one of the worst and most disgusting pieces of crap that will kill your interest in both the Alien and predator. But don't you get it? That's the point.

Paul Anderson obviously hates the fans of the franchises and has been hating them for a while now. He hates them beyond anything and they must be made to pay dearly and suffer. So in a brilliant plan, he manages to fraud the fools at Fox to give him the project. He did that despite the fact that his previous movies were laughable. Now isn't that just genius? Anderson has made a joke out of every single thing that made the concepts stand out. Your innocent curiosity will make you sit through his parody in hopes of some big twist but it never happens. Scene after Scene is one joke after another. How can anyone possibly imagine a bullet-time mode for an Alien attack? All this has been done very intentionally and nobody realises that. Once you've watched this movie, there's nothing you can do about it. You've lost and Anderson has won. His revenge on fans is complete. Hes also left room for a sequel by including a predalien birth at the end, further putting a big hole in future stories. He makes a ton of money too. Genius.

Oh, I should have said EVIL genius.

UNLESS YOU WANT YOUR INTEREST IN ALIENS AND PREDATORS KILLED OFF, DO NOT WATCH THIS MOVIE. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED.

Unjustly panned by critics and fans

[amesmonde · 9 March 2010]

A team assembled by a billionaire investigate a heat signal that reveals a pyramid below the surface of a whaling station in Antarctic. However, the pyramid is a hunting ground for Predators who kill Aliens as a rite of passage and the team find themselves caught in the middle of their hunt.

It shouldn't have been mixed, Paul W.S. Anderson's AVP: Alien vs. Predator was more so unjustly panned by critics and fans due to the hype and anticipation. It has the feeling of an Alien film, a great premise, good cinematography, some amazing effects and a fine score.

Paul W.S. Anderson is successful in bringing the franchises together, respecting ideas from both Alien and Predator movies. I haven't seen a bad film that he's made and I'm not sure why there is such a geek gang hatred against the mans work. The ever-improving Uwe Boll he is not! The strong leads include Sanaa Lathan as the heroine and Raoul Bova. However, unfortunately actors Carsten Norgaard as Rusten Quinn and Tommy Flanagan as Mark Verheiden disappear far too early. Overall the acting is good, Lance Henrikson shows up as the 'real' Bishop but some of the characters lack development and the editing feels choppy in places.

The Predators and Aliens look great apart from some badly executed CGI. It not Ridley Scott or John McTiernan, but Paul Anderson pulls off the almost impossible task of putting these to aliens together on screen.

If there was not an Alien or Predator film prior to this it may have been haled as a science fiction adventure classic, but alas that's not the case.

It's well worth watching!

[ricardodeforce-72353 · 7/10 · 21 June 2022]

If you're a massive fan of the first four "canon" films (like me) the best way to approach this film is to say to yourself this is a separate thing. It's easy to do so, as apart from a few nods to previous events, this film has sod all to connect it to the canon. The script is dreadful, and the cast make a game attempt to do their best with it, but this isn't what most people come to this film for. The action sequences are excellent, especially the first fight between Xeno and Predator which is pretty jaw dropping, and the plot (what there is of it) is silly and enjoyable - there's plenty of decent stuff going on, right up to the incredibly violent climax, and you can always play "Spot The Plot Hole" if you DO get a bit bored. That will keep you busy.

You can see why people who love the canon films hate this so much - it's pretty brainless, and it lacks so many of the things the other four have. There's too little of the bone-freezing horror of "Alien", none of the superb character development that made "Aliens" such a huge hit with audiences, not enough of the chilling echoey industrial art-terror of "Alien 3", and none of the gorehouse comedy and atavistic dread from "Resurrection". Give your brain the night off, and you'll really enjoy this.

Doesn't deserve the bad reviews.

[robertmaybeth-159-426447 · 7/10 · 28 November 2023]

Is this the greatest film with Predators and Aliens ever made? No, of course not. But is it the worst along with "Alien Resurrection" or "Predator: Requiem"? No, I don't think this film falls into that category either. Despite not exactly being a masterpiece, what "AVP" is, is a good solid base film for an essentially new franchise. And given the popularity of storylines about Aliens and Predators in general (Alien Vs. Predator comic books have been Dark Horse comics number one seller since the 1990's) there was reason to think there might be fandom in significant numbers for a feature film. And this film is an admirable, if imperfect, comic-to-film transition.

The actors all fill their roles realistically and are convincing as a team of various experts sent by the wealthy Mr Weyland (Lance Henrikson) to investigate a mysterious heat bloom caught on satellite imagery at the top of the world in Antarctica. So Weyland throws together a team of various specialists and experts and has to do it in a big hurry - all because Weyland doesn't want somebody else to discover what it is that made the mysterious heat bloom before he does.

After making their way their via an Icebreaker ship, what Weyland's team discovers is a disused underground complex beneath the ice. The complex is full of statues, structures and artifacts (including a queen Alien frozen in the ice) and other weird things that indicate no humans were involved in making any of this. The team is amazed by what they find, and at first can't understand who built all of it, and why. And unfortunately for the humans, the bizarre complex turns out to be an elaborate hunting range for an extra-terrestrial race of Predators, who have somehow placed a Queen Alien (i.e. The same species as the so-called "Xenomorphs" from Alien and Aliens) in the complex, to provide the hunter's prey. And along come the humans, who eventually realize they are now trapped in the middle of a battle between alien Predators (who created it all as a sort of game preserve to allow them to hunt Aliens for sport} and Alien "xenomorphs" who do what they do in all Alien films, kill every other living creature in sight.

As the Predator race has already planted a queen Alien (restrained only by chains), the newly thawed queen Xenomorph begins laying Alien eggs in great numbers; which then hatch a so-called "face hugger" who immediately latches onto the face of the nearest creature it can find, lays some kind of larva inside its unfortunate host, and then rips its way out of their chest later, all toothy and ready to kill any other being within reach.

Maybe the least enjoyable part of the film is how obvious it is, that no human in this movie stands a chance to survive. The Predators and Aliens seem a good match for each other in a fight: the Alien has raw power, extreme aggression, and incredible speed to go along with its lethal teeth, claws and tail. Whereas the Predators, while slightly humanoid in appearance, are all much bigger, stronger, and have far more advanced weapons and technology than the humans do, and come to the underground city well equipped to fight the Xenomorphs. Moreover the Predators have a cloaking ability to turn themselves virtually invisible (they know how to bend light),although this would seem to be little advantage when fighting Aliens, (who have no eyes, and take in their world in a way that somehow doesn't require vision).

And once the two alien species begin to fight in earnest, no human, armed or not, stands a chance in a battle against either species, let alone both together. So it soon becomes obvious that every human there is now trapped in a situation where they are doomed and there's literally nothing they can do about it, except try to fight back with weapons that are wholly inadequate and have little effect on either Predator or Xenomorph.

The rest of the movie is just watching the people of Weyland's Expedition team be killed off one by one, along with countless Predators and Aliens. And the absence of anything that might give the humans a fighting chance is glaring - the closest they ever get to anything that might even the odds a little, is after one of the humans finds a Predator gun. But even that ultimately comes to nothing.

There were lots of things I liked about this movie. It was fast-paced with little screen time going to backstory. Since everyone is in a big hurry to join Weyland's hastily organized expedition, it lends real urgency. Despite the relative lack of dialogue, the adding of which would have added much to the character development, I actually cared what happened to the characters right up to the point where they are killed. And the cast is first-rate, but all have such limited screen time no one is really allowed to shine.

I felt the movie would have been much better if it had been at least half an hour longer (and that's not something I'd recommend for most movies being made either); if only to give more depth to the characters and to introduce additional plot elements.

There are lots of things to like about this movie: the POV Predator view (they see using thermal technology in their masks), the cool Predator weapons, the ferocious battles between the Aliens and Predators (which are very well done in my opinion).

But all in all, something seems to be missing from this movie and I'm not sure what it is. Maybe it's the lack of character development especially compared to the original "Predator". But while the movie seems to tick all the boxes on the sci-fi action film list right up to the final "boss battle" (which despite being made using miniatures still comes across as impressively brutal). But I guess none of those elements are enough to really elevate it to any kind of fan-favorite film.

And I can't help wondering how the movie might be different if the movie had been cast just a bit differently... what if director WS Anderson's lovely wife, who happened to be Milla Jovovitch could have played the lead role of Alexa Woods (instead of the lovely/talented Sanaa Lathan)? We'll never know, of course, but it's intriguing to imagine. And while I'm at it, it's also intriguing to imagine that perhaps someday a really good movie in the AVP franchise instead of the under-realized movies they've made since this film came out in 2004.

And I am the Queen of Sheba.

It amazes me so much on how the film lacks on what the title promises.

[criehle · 1/10 · 12 February 2005]

Many fans want different things from this film. Many fans, including myself, were hoping to see lots and lots of action. One Alien & Predator battle after another. Some fans were hoping for a edge of your seat, truly terrifying horror movie much like the original Alien. No matter what you want, hope, or expect from this film you will be disappointed.

The direction this film takes is a horror route. It tries to be like the original Alien movie in the sense that the horror has to come more from the characters and their fear than from the monsters themselves. Paul Anderson tries to show as little Alien & Predator as possible without being ridiculous and let the actors & characters sell us the fear. Now this sounds like a good approach to a film and normally it would be. Here however it is the reason the films fall flat on its face. The problem being is that the characters aren't interesting and their actually paper thin cut outs. And after a short while the characters become boring and un-interesting and then u begin to long for either an Alien or a Predator to show up and start killing people.

But as I said, Paul Anderson tries to hide the monsters and show as little as possible much like the formula Ridley Scott & James Cameron used for their films. And thats where the film fails. Fans come to see this movie to see Aliens & Predators fighting. They don't come to see Sanna Lathan and the other people run around a dark pyramid. Fans didn't wait 14 years to see paper thin characters run around all over the place. They go to see Aliens & Predators.

The film should have taken the action route and gives us large amounts of AVP battles. However Paul Anderson only gives us ONE, count them One, true fight scene between an ALien & predator. And that fight scene doesn't occur until half-way through the film and it only lasts 2 minutes. 2 minutes. As a fan I did not wait this long to see a AVP movie only to have one battle that lasts 2 minutes.

Above I said "true battle" because there is technically another battle. It is between a Predator, Lex, and an Alien Queen. Much like the first AVP battle it is disappointingly short and 90% of the battle focuses on lex fighting the queen than it does focus on the Predator. After a while you begin to think the title "Alien vs. Predator" is inappropriate and instead should be called "The Adventures of Lex". Paul Andersons direction leaves out the two title characters.

The idea of hiding your monsters appearance till half way through the film and rely more on your characters is a formula that has worked in the past. It even potentially could have worked here but in order for that to happen you need to do one thing. Make the characters more interesting. If your characters are paper thin then the audience aren't going to care about them and then they quickly become bored. The film should have done is focus less on characters and more on the monsters. It amazes me so much on how the film lacks on what the title promises.

Highly underrated

[drummerman92 · 7/10 · 18 March 2010]

Sure this movie might not have that good of a plot or characters but it had good action sequences and effects. I liked how this film revealed a little of the back story of the predators (since they have always been a big mystery) and it tells about how the aliens are the predators ultimate prey. Sure the plot had a few holes like how did the alien queen stay alive when frozen for that long? Or why the aliens acid blood dissolves the claws but not the spears or the bladed disc. But that is made up for with the fight scenes which i personally thought were exiting and very well done. And i thought it was interesting how the aliens used their own queens acid blood the burn through the chains and free her. My opinion on this movie is this Allot of people say it sucked but i think it was alright (partially because I'm a big fan of both series ans I saw AVP:R first) but if you don't have an open mind about this movie don't watch it, if you are a fan of the alien and predator franchises I would highly suggest this movie.

Alien and Predator for Barney's primary audience...

[mentalcritic · 2/10 · 12 December 2004]

If you give a toss about the story, stop reading. But believe me, this comment couldn't possibly ruin the film for you any more than Fox has. Spare a thought for Paul Anderson as he struggles to make a film that hasn't been neutered by the MPAA or a cowardly studio. Once Paul Verhoeven left America to resume his stellar work in Europe, I guess the MPAA had to have someone to pound upon. After moronic parents who took their single-digit-age children to see Resident Evil complained, I guess it was inevitable that future Anderson projects face an even bigger butcher's knife.

But I am getting ahead of myself here. There are two things that made the Alien and Predator franchises work. The first was human interaction. In essence, the films were about humans trying to screw each other over for power, with the titular enemy there to deliver the consequences of not working together. A non-subtle and somewhat shallow social statement, in other words. Then there's the gore factor. Once the human drama is set up, who cannot help but feel for the survivors as a marine's face is melted by Alien blood, or when a train full of commuters are torn to pieces by a Predator who doesn't fully understand what is going on around him?

AVP tries to set up the former factor with Lance Henriksen's character anxious to find the strange artefact under the polar cap before he dies. Unfortunately, where Aliens in particular excelled was that it managed to give every character a third dimension. Here, only Henriksen's character gets such effort. So every act of violence or mayhem is given a feeling of absolutely no consequence. It's almost like a video game.

Paul Anderson is on record as saying that he made the film with every intention of it being screened with the MPAA's R rating. Apparently, Fox, fearing it will alienate children, decided otherwise. Never mind that the audience which kept both franchises in the black are now either in their mid-twenties or middle-aged. Forget creativity or making something that people might enjoy. The lowest common denominator rules here. Those parents who complained when the studio didn't accommodate them because they were too stupid to realize a film based on a video game which is in turn based on Night Of The Living Dead might not be a good babysitter, I hope you are proud of yourselves. Meanwhile, if any studio wants to let Anderson make a film without tying his hands over his audience's eyes, I will gladly pay to see it multiple times. Trust me, you will make more money this way once backlash is accounted for.

AVP also marks the first Anderson film I have seen in which the shaky-cam technique is used. Here, they don't even bother to try and make their excuse that it puts the audience more into the action seem plausible. Every shaky-cam frame might as well have the phrase "we are shaking this camera to preserve our PG-13 rating" stamped across it in big, bold letters.

You may have noticed that I haven't said anything about the actual characters yet, apart from mentioning Lance Henriksen by his own name rather than that of the character. There is a reason for this. If a group of film characters became any more generic, they could all be played by the same actor. The Aliens and Predators do not fare any better. Seriously, why on Earth didn't they just base the script upon the first comic book series? These comic books showed more for the audience to get interested in with one issue than this film shows in its entire running length.

The story also shows every conceivable sign of not being thought through. The humans discover an alien temple a couple of thousand feet below the surface of a polar cap. Great, but wouldn't that mean it is basically submerged in the ocean? So when the intrepid humans decide to go and check it out, the Predators oblige them by firing a beam from Earth's orbit into said polar cap, tunneling the thousands of feet needed to find the entrance. I guess the budget cuts at NASA meant that nobody could notice the massive hulking ship above the Earth. I'm also guessing that Alien blood and armour made from Alien parts gives one special powers, such as the ability to stand below a spacecraft as it takes off without being burned by the thrust. Or did they just not see Danny Glover's race to get away from the Predators' ship at the end of Predator 2?

In short, this film insults the fans of both franchises, sci-fi action fans in general, as well as the basic principle of adults being able to watch and hear what they choose to. I strongly urge the viewing, DVD-buying public to give this film the butt, lest more be made in this kindergarten-oriented fashion. Fox, you ought to be ashamed of yourselves.

It took 14 years...

[dee.reid · 7/10 · 14 August 2004]

...Before a possible showdown between the iconic monsters of "Alien" and "Predator" would occur, when they would cross paths on screen and battle to the death. There's a scene in "Predator 2" that occurs towards the end of the film, where Lt. Mike Harrigan (Danny Glover) ventures into the Predator spaceship and accidentally stumbles onto the alien hunter's trophy room, and neatly placed towards the back amongst the various awards, was an alien skull. Those 10 seconds of film spawned over a decade's worth of rumors that one day these titans were going to go at it head-to-head, and that whoever won, we'd lose.

As a fan of both the "Alien" and "Predator" franchises, I've been looking forward to "Alien Vs. Predator" for a long time, since that historic scene. I've admired the two monsters for years, collecting all kinds of memorabilia, including books and action figures; you name it, I've probably seen it.

With "Alien Vs. Predator," director Paul W.S. Anderson has achieved something of a mixed bag. Undoubtedly critics will balk early into the film. They'll pick apart its MTV-style editing, bad pacing, and lack of spirit of a genuine "Alien" or "Predator" film. Die-hards will balk at Anderson's direction and the fact that he was even allowed near the film.

I had fun watching it, despite some inconsistencies regarding our two iconic monsters who like to either use humans as hosts for more of their hideous offspring, or trophies which can be displayed in their intergalactic showroom of skulls.

The story is that a massive, ancient Aztec/Egyptian/Mayan temple has been discovered deep below the surface of the Antarctic, and Charles Bishop Weyland (Lance Henriksen of "Aliens") has assembled a team of the world's best archaeologists, which includes Alexa "Lex" Woods (Sanaa Lathan, who convincingly fills in the tough female role), Sebastian de Rosa (Raoul Bova) and Graeme Miller (Ewen Bremner) to accompany him in investigating it. But wouldn't you know it? They're not alone in this gargantuan maze of dark tunnels and ever-changing structures, and that a trio of Predators have come there to hunt rapidly reproducing Xenomorphs.

Well, I can tell anyone that the powers-that-be in Hollywood and at Twentieth Century Fox played heavily into the film's mixed bag treatment. If the movie fails, I'd blame constant executive and studio interference - the b*****ds in suits who decide they want to cater to teenage fanboys instead of the largely adult fan base that this film was originally built on. In doing so, they opt for action over story, more importantly, $$$ over artistic vision.

Anderson has remained faithful in preserving the essence of both the "Alien" and "Predator" franchises by casting no-name performers to combat the extraterrestrial foes, and by emphasizing ideas over action and special effects. On a sour, angrier note, the gorehounds will be sorely disappointed, since executives at Fox toned down the violence considerably as to release it with a "PG-13" rating, as to rake in every penny. Of course, that "PG-13" rating doesn't stop us from getting quick edits (read: no gore) of chestbursting sequences, facehuggings, and people being mercilessly slaughtered by the Predators.

I had faith that Paul W.S. Anderson wouldn't let me down long before I even saw the film; he doesn't, but I have a feeling that his film is destined for the same fate as David Fincher and his film "Alien 3" - that it will go down in infamy and only years after the director has disowned the film and controversy is still brewing, that the true vision of "Alien Vs. Predator" will surface and will finally earn the respect owed to it.

7/10

well

[rudagar666 · 1/10 · 2 July 2006]

well mainly that out of the 3 predators, two of them are killed easily, i mean watching them fight that one alien was like watching a 2 old child fight a lion. however the one "main" predator who is the biggest wuss ever to come from the predator home world because he has a soft spot for humans, well human, kills dozens with relative ease also, in aliens the acid burns through a lot of METAL floors, however this woman's face has developed the ability to with stand this potent acid? i therefore deduce that the woman is in fact a terminator, sent back in time for a completely irrelevant mission....at least my explanation makes more sense then the movie!

The Most Underrated Alien Film (And My Personal Favorite)

[TheMovieDoctorful · 9/10 · 29 December 2018]

The original Alien vs. Predator film is my favorite Alien movie. Note that I didn't say it was the best Alien movie (Even I wouldn't dare call this a better film than Alien or Aliens), but it is easily, without a doubt, my personal favorite entry in the franchise. It's easily its most underrated entry, far exceeding the expectations of a PG-13 crossover film with much more to offer than the intriguing premise of a fight between 80s monster icons. AvP: Alien vs. Predator is a film made with surprising levels of care in its characterizations, acting performances, themes and visual direction and it's a far better film than it has any right to be.

Of course, that PG-13 rating will always be a nuisance when dealing with a crossover between 2 legendarily brutal and violent film franchises. You can tell the film is significantly holding back on its violence, and while AvP is still able to retain a surprising sense of dread and suspense despite this, I can't help but feel that there is a truly scary movie underneath all the heavy censorship. The action scenes, while impressive, do tend to get somewhat ridiculous and nonsensical at times. Not Kong: Skull Island nonsensical, nowhere near that level, but still somewhat silly.

The beautiful Sanaa Lathan's performance as Lex Woods is absolutely incredible. In fact, I may actually prefer her performance and character to Ripley of the original series. She commands such a powerful screen presence and authority on her vocal delivery and her facial acting is beyond exceptional. Lathan is an incredibly convincing crier and scenes that require her to be emotionally tormented or horrified are some of the best performed in the entire franchise. Lathan's arc from cautious bystander, helpless to save her teammates from violent death, to strong warrior couldn't be written better and Lathan's switch in the 3rd act into a more angry, fearless character is performed with such passion and conviction. I fully believe that this is the kind of battle-tested fighter who could take on an Alien Queen with nothing but a spear and a chain by the end of the film. AvP is noticeably interested in the concept of how leaders watch from the sideline, while heroes out their lives on the line against even the most insurmountable odds of failure. Lex begins a leader and ends a hero, largely through witnessing the strength of her employer, Weyland.

Speaking of, Lance Henrikson (Recently discussed in my review of Pumpkinhead) is almost as excellent as the aging industrialist Charles Weyland. He subverts much of the expectations one would have for this kind of character; a billionaire industrialist, and descendant of the notoriously ruthless Michael Weyland. Bishop is fearless, proactive, bold and motivating and Henrikson does a wonderful job capturing the aging Weyland's strength, humanity and "never say die" spirit. His noble sacrifice to help Lex and Sebastian escape was a genuinely saddening moment, but no other end would seem more appropriate for such a hero.

A big reason why I love AvP so much is its themes of sacrifice and just how selfless and sacrificing these characters are. Lex, Weyland and Sebastian, all seemingly ordinary people, are fully ready to give their lives for one another on the expectation that the same would be done for them. There's a real camaraderie to them, a sense of heroism that's not only lacking in most casts of the Alien films, but in the casts of most team ensembles in general. Even the seemingly ruthless Predator Scar goes through a rather satisfying arc from lone wolf to loyal and sacrificing hero through his time spent witnessing Alex's heroism. Odd as it sounds, his borderline romantic interactions with Lex are genuinely satisfying. There's a weird chemistry there in a sort of "Beauty & the Beast" kind of way and both Sanna Lathan and Ian Whyte play it surprisingly well in their body acting. Also, kudos to AvP for being the first Predator film to actually give us a Predator with a personality in the oddly comedic Scar, small character moments like his prank on Lex or his cocky scoff at a ferocious chestburster are rather charming.

The special effects work is still stunning to this day. Those who watch the film now may be surprised at just how much practical effects work was done on this project rather than CGI and it certainly pays off. The Predators and Aliens hardly ever look fake, yet the film never has to sacrifice much in the way of speed to make their fights look natural. It gets to the point where I almost have to look for shots of them that look bad.

I'm no Paul W.S Anderson fan, but his visual direction here is absolutely incredible. The dusty, shadowy halls of the ancient temple maze work much in the same manner as an especially effective Haunted House; Gothic, claustrophobic and with the added danger of constantly shifting surroundings making escape almost impossible. The very limited use of music and nail biting sense of tension and pacing that Anderson stages his kills with are as chilling and creepy as those of any R-rated Alien film. Anderson's shots of the majestic, seemingly endless expanse of Antarctica have such a beauty, even an artistry, to them. They almost feel more out of a Discovery nature documentary than an Alien or Predator film.

AvP: Alien vs. Predator is nowhere near the disaster it's made out to be, nor is it the brainless, soulless video game it's been unfairly maligned as. It's well acted, has strong characters and themes, gorgeous direction and excellent cinematography. For my money, it's the 3rd best Alien film. It's certainly 100 times better than either of the pretentious, nonsensical Alien prequels that Ridley Scott cranked out. (I'm picking Paul W.S Anderson over Ridley Scott. Hell is having a snow day.)

I guess we're all winners here.

[GiraffeDoor · 7/10 · 4 September 2022]

I saw this before any other movie in either franchise and I thought it was a fun little actiony yarn. It's all kind of serious but not austere, being more of a movie you could make fun of in a group if you wanted to. And I like the protagonist. "BS! That's BS!". She had quite the mouth on her! So cool...

Special effects look good, it's not heavy on plot but I wouldn't want that anyway. In its own way it was weirdly touching.

It wasn't as scary as the marketing suggested but it makes a good more casual bit of viewing.

Not really made for the fans as indeed it shouldn't have been. Again, it's just a bit of fun.

Bad, really bad

[davidandradeneto · 1/10 · 5 June 2006]

Okay, I'll confess that the only reason I registered at this site is to tell people how bad this movie really is.

AVP is embarrassing, the whole thing gives you the impression of an empty commercial exploitation on the well-known monsters images.

Anyone who comes to this kinda of review sites and gives this movie a 10 out of 10 is either a Fox films employee or related to the film crew somehow. Don't fall for it.

The whole idea of teen Predators hunting Aliens to become "real warriors" is idiotic. How can you compare a high tech civilization that is able to travel space to Indians? Okay, maybe It is possible they would have the same kind of ritual, after all why can't highly developed species have their rituals...

I was intrigued about how the first time a Predator blew itself up on top of the Pyramid it did not damage the construction at all.... Of course, the second time that another Predator did that, the whole thing fell apart.

It is laughable the friendship among the hero-chick and the teen Predator. I could almost see them holding hands and running away in the end of the movie. It turns out that the Predator developed feelings for her. I wonder why the Predators first came down from the sky shooting the hell out of the other guys who stayed in the abandoned whailing facility, no questions asked. Still wondering...

I didn't like the "new" Alien life cycle. The face-hugger burst out as an alien in 40 seconds. This is truly ridiculous. Anderson did not even take the time to watch the original Alien movie.

On top of that, the cast is composed by a bunch obscure nobodies in shallow roles. Even if they were any good, the lines they received would just have made them look as bad as they did.

As an Alien and Predator fan I felt I was disrespected. If you are too, you will know what I am talking about