Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem

I honestly thought that this could've been a great movie, but all of it was shot in the dark! I want to enjoy the kills and the alien and predator costumes, but I couldn't see crap, so I had to Lower the rating. If I could see what was happening, this movie would get a 9.

But that's what I love about it. The Predator is the most bada** representation I've seen and the Predalien was bada** as well. (Skip the Human parts though, just watch the Predator/Alien story. It's not that bad)

Gleefully silly continuation of the events in "Alien vs. Predator" shows what happens as the truly monstrous "PredAlien" (veteran effects expert and creature performer Tom Woodruff Jr.) and numerous other Xenomorphs run amok in a remote Colorado town. While a great many of the local citizens are victimized, a select few come together and struggle to make it to safety. Meanwhile, a solitary Predator (Ian Whyte) comes to town to handle the infestation in its own way.

This movie is basically to its predecessor what "Aliens" was to "Alien", as it concentrates first and foremost on action and pace. Most of the human characters are not worth your time, although it's wonderful to see '24' babe Reiko Aylesworth as an ass kicking Ripley type character, a soldier just returned from Iraq. A fair amount of the dialogue is pretty bad, as well. But there is entertainment value for some viewers, provided that they can just put their brains in neutral. There's tons of violence - granted, there's the expected use of modern digital gore. The most interesting aspect for some in the audience will be the take no prisoners approach utilized by screenwriter Shane Salerno and directors Colin & Greg Strause. They pretty much treat the scenario as open season on many of the characters - including children. This will either delight or disgust viewers. The unqualified highlight - or absolute low point, depending on ones' sensibilities - is the ultra creepy maternity ward sequence.

This viewer's not ashamed to admit that he digs this entry a fair bit, although he can understand why people would be inclined to dislike it. Certainly, the major bone of contention for a lot of people is cinematographer Daniel Pearls' (the original "Texas Chain Saw Massacre") very minimalist lighting.

Six out of 10.

What will it take to convince the idiots running the major Hollywood studios when to push the stop button? It's a strange time we're living in where even critically panned films are being warranted sequels now as the aim definitely seems to be making more franchises than stand- alone films & grab as much cash as possible by building on the (financial) success of the original.

Continuing the crossover of Alien & Predator series, Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem (also known as AVP:R) begins right where the first film of this newly established franchise signed off. Set in Gunnison Country where a Predator spaceship carrying a hybrid alien crashes, the film continues the war between the two iconic-but-now-turned-idiotic species with stupid humans caught in between.

Terribly directed by Brothers Strause, the movie marks a new low for any cinema that has featured either creatures so far and is an absolute trash from start to finish. Horribly written, badly photographed, tediously edited & full of dull characters (this time including the two creatures as well), there isn't one thing worth liking in this garbage throughout its runtime.

On an overall scale, continuing the recent tradition of making a mockery of all cinema classics by sequels, prequels, remakes, reboots or spin-offs, Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem is one of the most boring orgy of mindless violence whose only improvement over its already pathetic predecessor comes in its upgrade from PG-13 to R-Rated. Needs to be buried alive with whoever green- lighted it.

Well either way I sure am not staring at this atrocious film. Or am I? Well, being a fanboy of the original films and seeing the trailer for this flick thinking, "Is this for real? Am I actually seeing an Alien Vs. Predator film that takes it to the streets. The answer is yes. But these would be the streets of the most run down ghetto slum that exists. The film has some decent acting from the cop and the army chick but beside that wow... the younger brother was trying to be a stud but failed miserably. The "hot chick" says about 2 lines that aren't very convincing and trust me... she gets what she deserves. The bully is just a dumb brute. And the older brother, don't get me started on that guy. He was like a fonz-meets Easy Rider type guy and he was just junk. My favorite character would have to be the pizza hut guy who says "screw saving the women and children this isn't titanic" That is absolutely hilarious. The fight scenes are good between the monsters but the build up is way too long. The movie in a nutshell is basically... oh someone dies, lets check it out... oh someone dies, lets check it out. It's monotonous to say the least. During the final chaos scenes in the city the film does get better and some of the scenery is fantastic. Because I am easily amused, I'll give a 6 out of 10. Well, I take that back. That Titanic line was pretty funny. I'll give it a 7 out of 10. But to an average viewer, I suggest putting some thought into your moral standards before seeing this flick. Acting -5/10 Story 4/10 Action 7/10 Titanic Line and Swimming Scene 10/10 Overall 7/10