AVP: Alien vs. Predator (2004)

The idea of crossing over two popular stories really can work if in the right hands. It's been done before, like in some of Universal's monster movies, which were successful. Other cases like 'King King vs. Godzilla' and 'Puppet Master vs. Demonic Toys' didn't fare nearly as well. This is a difficult task because you're trying please fans of both series and characters. One of the most talked about of these is 'Alien vs. Predator,' which started as a successful comic book series that lead to a series of video games that also have done well. Naturally talks of a feature film based on this idea were happening and rightfully so. Both 'Alien' and 'Predator' franchises achieved great success, which also helped in getting the project off the ground. And who'd they hired to do the job? 'Mortal Kombat' and 'Resident Evil' director Paul Anderson, someone a lot of fans didn't want to see do it. However, Anderson did show a lot of enthusiasm and both the pictures and previews for the film looked promising. This was a dynamite idea that needed the right people involved, and was that what happened?

Pros: Visually stunning. Cinematography is crisp and pleasing to the eyes. Fantastic production design. Great special effects. A decent score. Performances are solid. Moves at a good pace, especially after the first half hour. Amazing direction by Anderson, but maybe he should have let someone else write this. Plenty of action-packed sequences.

Cons: A lot of disposable characters we could care less about. It's not so much that the script is badly written, it's just not a very good one. Not too much will stay with you when this over, so the film is ultimately forgettable. Lacks the smarts and suspense of the 'Alien' series. The action scenes come and go too quickly.

Final thoughts: This was one of the most anticipated movies of the last couple decades and though it made a nice chunk of money a lot of people were letdown. It's certainly not up to the standards to either of the franchises it's spinning off from, but overall it's pretty good for what it is. So was Anderson the wrong person for this? In terms of directing I'd say he does a fine job there, but again he really should have let someone else tackle the script. Maybe then we would have gotten the AVP film we've been waiting for. Oh well, it could have been much worse.

My rating: 3.5/5