Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem, and the state of the Alien franchise in general

I finally got around to Aliens vs. Predator:  Requiem last night.  I was in possession of two stern warnings from two trusted film buffs—Tommy calling it “godawful,” and Dave calling it “a 2 out of 10.”

I’m not going to defend it much.  However, with all due respect to my esteemed friends, I think they are forgetting that there are really only two exceptional movies in the series—Alien and Aliens.  Each is a tour de force, with one of our generation’s finest directors at the helm.  The former is the finest haunted house movie ever made; the latter, an outstanding action picture.  Each constructs a gritty, blue collar universe that is eminently believable.  Each is perfectly written, cast, acted, and produced.  Neither wastes even 1% of itself on extraneity.

If you’ve missed either of both of them, shame on you, and make haste.  Any fan of film who hasn’t seen them should.  For any fan of science fiction, horror, and/or action film who hasn’t seen them, their absences are inexcusably egregious holes.

The others are, well, less than exceptional.

The framework of an excellent movie is present in Alien³, but its production was far too haphazard to deliver.  In the end, David Fincher did the best he could, and turned in a decent effort but no more.  It’s a shame, really.  The setting and lighting were spectacular, as was a lot of the casting.  Call the whole appreciable but flawed—a textbook case of failed potential.

You have to step down, and hold your nose to varying degrees, for the rest.  Alien:  Resurrection, Alien vs. Predator, and now, Aliens vs. Predator:  Requiem are all B movies.  With that understanding, they’re not completely terrible.  Man, there’s a ringing endorsement.  Heh.

(Incidentally, I’ve always considered the AVP movies Alien movies first and Predator movies second, I think both because of the excellence of the first two and the fact that the Alien universe is so much more fleshed out.)

Resurrection had darkly comic moments, despite its ludicrous premise and over-the-top gore.  AVP exceeded my expectations, with a fabulous heroine and breathtaking sets almost compensating for the thin plot.  It was better than it had any right to be.

AVP:R gets a workable plot down, and then does itself in with poorly executed details.  It couldn’t have been lit worse; whatever they were going for, they missed.  There are twice as many characters as are needed.  It’s at least 15 minutes too long.

I did enjoy the deeper look into the Predators’ technology and society very much, and the effects (when they are visible) are quite good.  The plot, while hardly revolutionary stuff, wasn’t a liability either.

The sad truth is that the series is much too far gone for lofty expectations.  I’m not saying a big budget, A-list effort couldn’t bring it back, but as of today, there is no reason to expect anything but a little shallow fun from an Alien picture.  On that count, Aliens vs. Predator:  Requiem delivers well enough, just as its two immediate predecessors do.  I don’t regret purchasing it in the interest of completism.

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