Rating: 7.5/10
Review date: September 21, 2003
A team of commandos led by Major Dutch (Arnold Schwarzenegger) is hired by the CIA to rescue some captured officials in the middle of Central American jungle. The mission soon takes a turn for the worse when they realize that they are not alone. There is something else; something not human that is stalking their every step, hunting them down one by one�
I would recommend lots of kudos to director John McTiernan for directing this flick which really engages me through its effective directing. The scenes where the commandos are being stalked by the Predator are just excellent. There is the excitement of not knowing what is there and the creature is not fully revealed until at least halfway in the movie thus making the audience feels more suspenseful.
The Predator�s design by Stan Winston looks great and it has become one of the most remembered creatures in movie history (alongside Alien) with a strong fan base, me being one of them.
The movie mostly took place in the jungle and McTiernan did an excellent job of transporting the feel of the environment onto the big screen. The large amount of greens are not distracting to the action at all, it even helps to enhance the excitement that danger may lurks anywhere. The music was also used to perfection with some eerie score complementing some of the scenes.
This movie has great cast; the best simply being Arnold Schwarzenegger as Major Dutch who kicks major Predator�s ass along with some cool one-liners. Carl Weathers as Dillon will have to come alongside Dutch as the tough guy. Jesse Ventura as Blain follows suit with his rail gun while Sonny Landham as Billy simply looks great.
Shane Black as Hawkins provide the comic relief with some �pussy� jokes while Bill Duke as Sergeant Mac manage to bring some emotional moment into the movie. Richard Chaves as Poncho Ramirez is another tough dude with grenade launcher. Elpidia Carrillo as Anna is the only woman and she did her job well.
Director John McTiernan shows that he has the substance to direct a great action movie with muscular casts and a big, bad-ass monster on their tail. If you�re looking for a great time, you would love watching this flick which features Arnold Schwarzenegger in one of his most memorable roles/movies as well as one of the coolest creatures ever to grace the silver screen. Let�s pack up our bags and go hunt some Predators!
Memorable quote: �You�re one ugly motherfucker.�
-Arnold Schwarzenegger as Major Dutch-
(c) Martin Taidy 2003