Predator (1987)
Directed by John McTiernan
Written by John and Jim Thomas
Starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, Carl Weathers, Elpida Carrillo, Bill Duke, Jesse Ventura.
This begins the leg of Ahnuld flicks. Three in a row on the countdown to basically prove my everlasting love for Arnold Schwarzenegger and everything he has done in the realm of action movies.
If there are only three Arnie movies on here, it's probably fairly obvious what the next two will be, but what's important is you realize the magnitude of what this guy brought to cinema. He is a musclebound mongoloid, or at least he seemed to be, probably why politics ended up being his game later on. It pains me to not include Conan the Barbarian on this list because it is in the same league as Predator, but just not quite up to snuff.
Predator was the first Arnold movie I saw, well the first one that had any lasting impact. Kindergarten Cop was trash and I knew it as a child. True Lies was pretty good, but not great. Predator cut out the crap and sent a troupe of bad asses into the jungle to battle an unstoppable foe. Set it up with a bit of exposition and character development and then hit the audience with everything you've got.
Granted, Arnie wasn't required to do much in the way of acting, but when has he? The Predator is just a cool villain and a fun action flick that requires no thought to watch. Elitists should take a minute and reflect and just try to have a good time at the movies for once. It's all about balance.
The one-liners rule all. Jesse Ventura is actually better than Arnold in that department despite limited screen time.
"I ain't got time to bleed." and "Bunch of slack-jawed faggots in here! This stuff will make you a god-damned sexual Tyrannosaurus, just like me."
The effects aren't quite up to the level of today, but I loved the 80s because filmmakers were forced to use makeup and props and innovation to create their creatures. There is something soulless in CGI monsters. This version of the Predator is the best you'll find.
1 comment:
I haven't seen Predator in more than 10 years, so it's difficult to remember what I thought of it. But I agree wholeheartedly about the 80s being great for the makeup. The visual effects heavy films that come out today just don't have that atmosphere that films like Legend or The Thing had going. Which makes the loss of Stan Winston this year even sadder.
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