Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem Blu-ray Review

April 24, 2008

The initial draw to a second Alien vs. Predator film was to discover what the PredAlien, born in the final shot of the first Alien vs. Predator, would look like in its adult stage. Then effects wizards The Brothers Strause signed on as a directing duo, an odd move by Fox to entrust a beloved franchise in the hands of first-time feature-length film directors. Expectations immediately hit rock bottom for improvement from the first AvP chapter, save for the extensive special effects experience The Brothers Strause brought to the table.

Then the infamous unrated "Red Band" trailer for Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem hit the Internet that showcases the majority of major death scenes shot with gruesome details unlike seen in an Alien or Predator movie before. Expectations shot up exponentially, albeit cautiously given the unknown cast and horror staple "small town USA" setting. But as many fans predicted, AvP:R was ultimately panned by critics, fans, and even those who never saw the film.

It’s easy to see where AvP:R went wrong within the first three minutes. Picking up where AvP left off, the PredAlien is born and within seconds grows to full size, slaughters a handful of armed Predators, and causes the Predator ship to crash back on Earth. All the expectations of seeing the series jump away from Earth are squashed in a few clumsily rushed moments. The unexplainable plot holes only grow bigger as the story advances.

For example, a pizza delivery boy male lead (no kidding) and his ex-con brother climb down a sewer to look for pizza boy’s keys a jock threw down it. Upon reaching the bottom, they point their flashlights straight ahead and begin walking away from the logical spot the keys would have landed. I’m all for creating tension, but never at the expense of "common sense."

Even if trying to forgive the plethora of basic storytelling faux pas, a common theme of paying homage to the previous Alien and Predator films drowns out what little originality was built in. Every other shot involving an Alien or Predator is heavily influenced by previous films. A nod to predecessors here and there is admirable, but forcing copied shots, characters and situations only cheapens the overall experience.

The closing shots of AvP:R set up an intriguing sequel possibility which, if put in the right creative hands, could turn into something special. At the same time, this shot could have existed without the events of AvP:R taking place at all, a testament to the recycled "run of the mill" B-grade horror plot Hollywood has a decidedly hard time deviating from. This series and its characters' legacy deserves better. Thank goodness for stellar set design, atmosphere and a few clever kills, else AvP:R would be a complete pass – even for the curious.

Some of AvP:R’s script inadequacies are addressed in the alternate "Unrated" cut available via seamless branching on Blu-ray that includes several scenes finished specifically for the home video release. The most notable tweaks are all-new shots of a second Predator ship added to the opening sequence that establishes a timeframe for how long the PredAlien had to grow. The addition of these shots help fill in the gaps of how only a small number of Predators perished on the way back to Earth, though still leave gaps in logic on why the second ship was headed that direction to begin with. Other added shots are a mix of additional relevant dialogue, a slaughter of National Guardsmen by Aliens, an envelope-pushing slaughter of pregnant women, and other deadly encounters with gory results.

Although the Brothers Strause intentionally filmed AvP:R in dimly lit conditions with a layer of pouring rain to hide costume and effects flaws resulting from limited funds, the 1080p AVC-encoded transfer running at average around 30 mbps successfully holds onto detail – even in the darkest of scenes. Only a brief scene involving the use of night vision goggles produces noticeable image degradation in handling the gradation of green hues. The only other oddity, overly saturated exterior daytime scenes, is a result of creative choice and not complications during encoding.

The 5.1 DTS-HD Master Lossless Audio track is, as expected, a real aural treat. Aliens and Predators each have their own distinctive eerie sounds which come at you from every direction imaginable. Though traditional gunfire is limited, there are several large-scale explosions and Predator plasma-cannon rounds fired off to make up for it. Never is the action drowned out by the instantly forgettable score that only seems to hit the right note when cribbing from previous Alien and Predator chord staples.