The Predator franchise has always been a strange beast. In 1987, it split the difference between muscle-bound action and creature-feature horror. So, you’ve got the near-perfect original, a decent sequel, a couple of garbage crossovers with Alien, and a string of forgettable reboots that keep trying to MPGA — Make Predator Great Again. Along came Dan Trachtenberg in 2022 with Prey, a back-to-basics approach that reminded everyone the concept still had teeth. Then, earlier this year, he made the animated Predator: Killer of Killers. Now, Trachtenberg returns to the universe with Predator: Badlands, a film that doubles down on the weirdness, cranks up the violence, and somehow makes you want to have a beer with a Predator.
Dek is a Predator (a Jautja!) who is considered the weak runt of the litter. Lest he further shame the family with his puniness, his own father wants him killed instead of allowing Dek the chance to become a warrior by doing the traditional Jautja walkabout (huntabout?). To prove his worth and seek vengeance, Dek escapes to a hostile alien planet to hunt a monster that has killed every other Predator who has tried to kill it. Along the way, Dek makes uneasy alliances with others, including a synthetic (um…a robot), played by Elle Fanning. (Side note: I love the Alien franchise references in this movie).
First of all, I have to mention how revolting the face of a Predator is. Like a crab and a spider and a human had a messed up nightmare baby. Usually you see them with a mask on and they pull it off at some point in the movie so the audience can be all, “Ew! Gross face! Horrifying!” But Dek’s ugly face is front and centre almost the entire movie. At first I wasn’t sure I could even look at that for an hour and 47 minutes. But I will say, you get used to it. In fact, you get invested enough that you come to root for him and his gross head.
In fact, the characters are well fleshed out for this kind of movie, which is usually more concerned with decapitations and thermal vision. It doesn’t go incredibly deep, but it gives you enough to bring stakes to the action. They’re a group of disparate beings, living out their Enemy Mine experience, with echoes of a buddy comedy thrown in. Or maybe one of those 90s indie films where a ragtag group of misfits bond and learn something about themselves and other people in the process. There’s a surprising amount of humor here too, perhaps even veering into silliness occasionally. That pulpy fun mostly works, because the movie isn’t taking itself so seriously. It knows it wants to be a good time and sell some popcorn.
The planet itself echoes that of the alien world from the brilliant animated show, Scavengers Reign. The world-building and creature design of the flora and fauna of the planet create a place that is beautiful, dangerous, but most of all, alien. It’s a perfect milieu for a story like this, especially when you consider that there are no actual human beings anywhere in the film.
This means that Badlands is charting a new course in Predator lore. It also has been getting some flack online for having a PG-13 rating, implying that the once R-rated franchise is being watered down to become young adult fiction. Hard disagree. The movie is still incredibly violent, cartoonish, even. But all the violence is done to robots or creatures, so they didn’t get spanked by the ratings police.
It’s not deep. It’s not profound. The CGI wobbles at times, and the logic doesn’t always hold up to scrutiny. But Badlands moves like a rocket, embraces its own absurdity, and has enough charm and humour to win you over. It’s not brilliant, thought-provoking sci-fi. But it’s pure popcorn, in all the best ways.
