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Predator (1987)

Started by checkoutgirl, September 22, 2017, 10:53:16 PM

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mobias

Quote from: greenman on September 24, 2017, 12:48:42 PM

As far as Arine himself goes I think the old cliché that he's a bad talker and a pretty good physical actor does hold true, in the case of Predator you have some cheesy one liners earlier on but when it gets down to mano a mano at the end he's very effective.

The one Arnie film I want to see again is True Lies. I remember really enjoying it at the cinema when it came out and its the one and only time I've ever seen it. Its probably unique in James Cameron's body of work in that its not a high concept movie, its just a regular high octane Arnie action flick that just happens to have way above average production values. There was a recent interview with Cameron where he said out of all his movies its the one that has aged badly simply because of the subject matter. He feels there's no way he could make it now, understandably I guess.

I'll need to track it down sometime. 

I love Predator and Predator 2 both fantastic and well paced action films. The whole concept of the alien recreational hunting trips really makes a compelling universe of the films.
Reading this thread got me in the mood to watch them again.
Predators was utter gash though.

mothman

True Lies I think stands up quite well, I rewatch it regularly. Cameron's negativity To it largely stems from a feeling he expressed on the subject of a sequel, that terrorism isn't funny anymore after 9/11. I wonder if he ever saw Four Lions?

The Abyss I think is flawed but there's a good movie in there somewhere. It suffers  ecause he's one of those people who can write dialogue that looks good on paper but can't actually be spoken in any realistic fashion. Lucas is another ("You can write this shit George, but you can't say it"). See also: J. Michael Straczynski. But even Whedon gets it wrong sometimes, so..?

mobias

Quote from: mothman on September 24, 2017, 04:12:59 PM
Cameron's negativity To it largely stems from a feeling he expressed on the subject of a sequel, that terrorism isn't funny anymore after 9/11. I wonder if he ever saw Four Lions?


I don't think he was expecting to extract humour from the subject but the premise where all the muslims are terrorists and America always wins clearly doesn't work at all these days. Team America totally nailed it though and in doing so probably killed off anyones attempt at doing something similar, comedic or otherwise.

monolith

I remember watching the cut TV version of Predator when I was about 10 and loved it instantly. When I finally got my hands on the proper version a few years later it was even more incredible, I'd watched the cut version at least a dozen times so I knew exactly when the stuff I hadn't seen started playing and it was as exciting as watching the film for the first time again.

20 odd years later and I still don't know of a more entertaining sci fi action film, the stupid one liners wouldn't work in something like The Terminator but they're perfect for Predator.

As soon as the "duh duh duh da duh duh, duh duh duh da duh duh" music starts I'm smiling for the next hour and three quarters.

I fucking love Predator, me.


greenman

Quote from: mothman on September 24, 2017, 04:12:59 PM
True Lies I think stands up quite well, I rewatch it regularly. Cameron's negativity To it largely stems from a feeling he expressed on the subject of a sequel, that terrorism isn't funny anymore after 9/11. I wonder if he ever saw Four Lions?

The Abyss I think is flawed but there's a good movie in there somewhere. It suffers  ecause he's one of those people who can write dialogue that looks good on paper but can't actually be spoken in any realistic fashion. Lucas is another ("You can write this shit George, but you can't say it"). See also: J. Michael Straczynski. But even Whedon gets it wrong sometimes, so..?

Whedon's dialog is far less realistic than the others you mention(well bar prequel era Lucas) for me with all the meta winking at the audience. The blame always gets shifted to others but honestly I do think he's a good part of why Alien Resurrection fails so badly, the series previously had stayed pretty down to earth(even a character like Hudson is acknowledged as ridiculous in the setting) and suddenly you have a bunch of sci fi action kitsch turn up in his script.

Shit Good Nose

Quote from: mothman on September 24, 2017, 04:12:59 PM
True Lies I think stands up quite well, I rewatch it regularly. Cameron's negativity To it largely stems from a feeling he expressed on the subject of a sequel, that terrorism isn't funny anymore after 9/11. I wonder if he ever saw Four Lions?

I further wonder if the fact it's his only remake (as opposed to rip-off) has got anything to do with it.

checkoutgirl

Quote from: mobias on September 24, 2017, 02:18:52 PM
The one Arnie film I want to see again is True Lies.

I've just finished watching True Lies and Arnie's limitations as an actor come to the fore more readily than with films like Terminator or Predator. At 2hr 20mins True Lies is about a half an hour too long. The actions sequences seem to last forever. If I leave the room during a film I usually pause it but when I went to make bacon and eggs I just left this running. I wasn't going to miss anything.

Films like Terminator and Predator play to Arnie's strengths, in the Terminator he barely says a word. In Predator he's mainly pointing at things, shooting his gun, doing cheesy one-liners and flexing his muscles. There's also a McGyver sequence where he covers himself in mud and wordlessly goes about fashioning his home made weapons for the ultimate battle. The final quarter has him squaring up against a 7 foot man in a suit who doesn't speak, perfect.

Put him in real acting style situations like the missile reveal in True Lies and you can seem him struggle to act convincingly.

Shit Good Nose

Quote from: checkoutgirl on September 25, 2017, 12:27:09 PM
Put him in real acting style situations like the missile reveal in True Lies and you can seem him struggle to act convincingly.

You say that, but to this day I enjoy his ever increasing frustration and weariness, and eventual beating at the hands of those little bastards in Kindergarten Cop.  "IT'S NAAAAHT A TOOMAHHHHH!!"

When he collapses on the bed at the end of day 1 or 2, with that exasperated "dey're horr-i-bolllllll", it's gold.

'Course, he unrealistically turns it all around soon after that and becomes the best teacher ever, but up until that point...

Panbaams

The secret to Predator's success: the monster looks cool when it's invisible, and it still looks cool when it stops being invisible.

Bazooka





https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=42LWD25z9bI

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b786ORsWX54 Check out the finishing move the guy pulls off at the end of this clip.

Film fact: Predator was actually based on the popcorn classic DNA (1997) starring Mark Dacascos, despite it being filmed 10 years later!

Replies From View


Shit Good Nose

Quote from: Bazooka on September 25, 2017, 12:51:36 PM
Film fact: Predator was actually based on the popcorn classic DNA (1997) starring Mark Dacascos, despite it being filmed 10 years later!

DNA film fact 2 - Wolfgang Petersen cast Jurgen Prochnow as the lead in Das Boot purely on the strength of his performance in DNA, despite it being filmed 15 years later!

Replies From View

Further Fun Fact:  Doug Naylor and Robert Grant originally named their Red Dwarf series 4 episode 'Do Not Alter' as a stark warning to everyone not to fix the confusing chronology spiralling from the classic 1997 popcorn blockbuster flick 'DNA'.

Dr Rock

I love most of Arnie's 80s action films (except Red Heat and Raw Deal, which are flat and not much fun) but I've somehow only managed to see Predator once, when it came out. Is it never on telly much? I liked it, although not as much as Terminator, T2, Total Recall, The Running Man or of course Commando. Probably need to rewatch it.

I never saw True Lies either, something about it put me off.

Shit Good Nose

Quote from: Dr Rock on September 25, 2017, 01:23:20 PM
I love most of Arnie's 80s action films (except Red Heat and Raw Deal, which are flat and not much fun) but I've somehow only managed to see Predator once, when it came out. Is it never on telly much? I liked it, although not as much as Terminator, T2, Total Recall, The Running Man or of course Commando. Probably need to rewatch it.

I never saw True Lies either, something about it put me off.

Predator has been on Film4 in the last 6 months.


I used to LOVE Red Heat as a young teen - it was a regular video rental for me from the local Threshers in the early 90s, cos it was the only half decent film in the 25p section.  Price brackets for 2 nights' rental were:
25p - typically yer real shitters like the Meatballs sequels and sewer-end Cannon releases, and also stuff that didn't get rented very often;
50p - most of what was available in the shop, except for new releases;
75p - "special interest" (not porn - music, documentaries, TV shows etc);
£1 - porn (early 90s, so obvs softcore)
£1.50 - all new releases

Anyway, after that Threshers closed in the mid to late 90s, I never saw Red Heat again until very recently (this year, in fact - it was on one of the 5 channels that wasn't 5).  Jesus, I didn't realise how fucking boring it is!  And I generally like Walter Hill's films.

Honestly couldn't fathom what I liked so much about it when I was younger.

...oiled up naked muscly asses at the beginning, I guess...


Quote from: Dr Rock on September 25, 2017, 01:23:20 PM
I never saw True Lies either, something about it put me off.

It's worth watching for one scene, AMIRIGHTLADZ!!?!?!!?!

Bazooka

Quote from: Dr Rock on September 25, 2017, 01:23:20 PM
I love most of Arnie's 80s action films (except Red Heat and Raw Deal, which are flat and not much fun) but I've somehow only managed to see Predator once, when it came out. Is it never on telly much? I liked it, although not as much as Terminator, T2, Total Recall, The Running Man or of course Commando. Probably need to rewatch it.

I never saw True Lies either, something about it put me off.

Watched it once? What a disgrace, sort it out. It used to be on ITV nearly every Saturday night, but now ITV only show the Harry Potter Omnibus every day. Its on Netflix if you have that.

Bazooka

I wish I found Jamie Lee Curtis attractive, I just don't so the scene is too long.

Shit Good Nose

Quote from: Bazooka on September 25, 2017, 01:43:38 PM
I wish I found Jamie Lee Curtis attractive, I just don't so the scene is too long.

Whereas I do, so only my cock is too long(*) when I watch that scene.

(* - it's not, it's still short)

checkoutgirl

Quote from: Shit Good Nose on September 25, 2017, 01:36:29 PM
It's worth watching for one scene, AMIRIGHTLADZ!!?!?!!?!

There is a scene where Arnie strips down to his undies and writhes around doing a pole dancing routine. Presumably that's the one you're talking about.

Bogbrainedmurphy

Quote from: Pinckle Wicker on September 24, 2017, 03:45:16 PM
I love Predator and Predator 2 both fantastic and well paced action films. The whole concept of the alien recreational hunting trips really makes a compelling universe of the films.
Reading this thread got me in the mood to watch them again.
Predators was utter gash though.

Same, think I'll revisit too. Always frustrating how there's a huge wealth of potential stories they could make with that extended universe (explored in the books, too) but how the recent additions to the film series have been so poor. Even Alien vs Predator *could* have been superb but now it's probably a ruined concept now to anyone but diehard fans of the "franchise" after those two shockers.

Have you heard much about the plot for Predator 4 due out next year? Sounds absolutely awful and could be a final nail in the coffin, which is a shame considering it's being made by Hawkins from the original who describes himself as a huge fan of the Predator world. Script was leaked a few months ago and it's so daft that it looked like a piss take at first. Seeing Predators driving tanks and wearing camo gear in some leaked shots of filming confirmed the worst fears, for me!


Shit Good Nose

Well, it could go either way with Shane Black.  My main concern with it is that it will go the way of the Terminator sequels and err too much on the side of humour.

We shall see.


Quote from: checkoutgirl on September 25, 2017, 01:56:22 PM
There is a scene where Arnie strips down to his undies and writhes around doing a pole dancing routine. Presumably that's the one you're talking about.

PHWOOOOOOAAAARRRRRRR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


popcorn

Can everyone stop mentioning "popcorn classics" and "popcorn flicks", please, it's playing havoc with my ctrl+f.

Quote from: Glebe on September 23, 2017, 02:02:56 PM
Mate, if you want a boring Arnie movie try Conan the Barbarian.

You're not wrong there. Predator's a 3/5, watchable, got some fun bits, but I couldn't finish Conan.

popcorn

True Lies is one of the oddest films ever made. I really, truly believe that. It has the scale and production values of a Cameron action flick, but it's also a James Bond spoof, and... and I can't really understand it any further than that. And it has that absolutely bizarre scene in which Jamie Lee Curtis thinks she's being abducted and made to strip at gunpoint, but because it's Arnie it's meant to be funny but it's just horrible, and what? What? whaat?

Shit Good Nose

Quote from: popcorn on September 25, 2017, 02:26:54 PM
True Lies is one of the oddest films ever made. I really, truly believe that. It has the scale and production values of a Cameron action flick, but it's also a James Bond spoof, and... and I can't really understand it any further than that. And it has that absolutely bizarre scene in which Jamie Lee Curtis thinks she's being abducted and made to strip at gunpoint, but because it's Arnie it's meant to be funny but it's just horrible, and what? What? whaat?

All makes a bit more sense if you see the original.  At least in the context of it being a remake.

checkoutgirl

Quote from: popcorn on September 25, 2017, 02:26:54 PM
it has that absolutely bizarre scene in which Jamie Lee Curtis thinks she's being abducted and made to strip at gunpoint

I just watched it and she's not doing it at gunpoint. Arnie anonymously blackmails her into doing a mission where she poses as a prostitute which she agrees to. When she shows up Arnie sits there and tells her to strip using a tape recorder and his face is laughably obscured by a shadow even though he's sitting only a few feet away from her. It is a joke of a scene with all sorts of confused moral implications although you do get to see Jamie Lee's killer body.

It's not a good film for me, hugely boring, over long and completely stupid from start to finish. I can't think of any redeeming features other than ogling Curtis.

popcorn

Quote from: checkoutgirl on September 25, 2017, 02:42:21 PM
I just watched it and she's not doing it at gunpoint.

Must have mixed it up in me bonce. I just remember it being threatening and weird.

popcorn

Quote from: checkoutgirl on September 25, 2017, 02:42:21 PM

It's not a good film for me, hugely boring, over long and completely stupid from start to finish.

I recall a bit in the action finale where Arnie takes some baddies out with a grenade and I thought "thank fuck, there'll be fewer to kill now", as if it were going to affect the running time.