A couple thoughts on Prey the new Predator movie, because back in the day cafe is too tempting to miss out on. Yesterday, I spent a few hours loading thousands of video games onto my computer. I think the total file size of all thousand video games was no more than 7 megs. You know, megabytes? As in, a sum total of 7,168 kilobytes? How? It was all the Atari 2600 video games ever released for the system. Adventure, Galaga, Frogger, Barnstorming, Chopper Command, Tank, just one epic low-fi game after another. And then, after I loaded those? I loaded all the Intellivision games ever created. Then Nintendo, Sega, and Sony Playstation. I had so much extraordinary 8-bit fun the next adventure I had to under take? Prey, the latest Predator prequel.
And you know what? I loved it. Why? Because it got the heart of the series… it got the larger point and did something new and interesting with it. Was it worth $15 in the theaters? Oh, no no. For sure not. Heck, it was barely worth the Hulu subscription I had already paid for for the month. But it was still a good time all the same.
But why? Why did it work when the most recent Predator movie, The Predator which came out back in 2018. (Woah, was that movie horrifically bad.) Well, for one, the environment and setup was a win. Going back to a Native American America was a great world to set this movie up in. Then, to take it a step forward, and to make the heroine of the movie a female, was an even better twist.
Another key detail to the movies, is that there is always a trick. In the original Predator movie, it was the fact that the Predator had heat vision and couldn’t see people covered in cold mud. And – sorry for the spoilers – in Prey there were a couple tricks that Naru exploited to undermine the Predator. The first was that she wasn’t seen as a threat. You know, turned the tables on the unsuspecting thick-neck. Even her own tribe didn’t see her as a threat. The second? She used the Predator’s own tracking helmet on him to finish him off. I still remember to this day, those three dots showing up on that guy’s arm back in Predator 1… and then his head exploding. But this time, Naru stole his helmet and tracking laser, and blew his brains out as a result. Clever.
But the main reason that it worked was because the audience realized that Naru didn’t stand a chance. Just like back in Predator 1 when Arnold and all his friends didn’t stand a chance. Prey took us back to that sense of helplessness that is seminal to the franchise and its success. I literally just re-watched Predator 1 again, and man, is that a horribly cheesy movie. But as I watched the movie come to its climax, I had to give the movie props. It really knew how to extend a movie ending over and over again! hahaha. But regardless, if you are looking for brainless fun… definitely the opposite of a THiNC. movie, then you definitely ought to consider checking out Prey over on Hulu.
Interested in other movies like Prey? Maybe check out Live Die Repeat? Actually. Too much thinking happening there. Forget that one. Um. Life! Yeah, there you go. That’s the sort of movie we are looking for here. Possibly, Prospect? Probably an Indie movie with way more smarts in it’s little toe than all the Predator movies combined, but you might find it a fun watch after Prey.
Edited by: CY