It has been a long and tiresome hunting season for the Predator; two films and two rotten-to-the core crossovers later, and the titular alien menace is still being called up by Hollywood to don the ol’ metal faceplate and perm the dreadlocks. The good news for our alien trophy-seekers is that Nimrod Antal’s Predators is as close as they have come to a worthwhile fight since the original. Not as perfectly paced or creatively charged as John McTiernan’s 1987 action classic, Predators is still up for giving die-hard audience members a chase worth getting in line for.

Producer Robert Rodriguez has long talked up his concept for a third Predator film, with the humans being beamed directly to an alien game preserve where they could be hunted at leisure by faster, shinier, more menacing variations of the same sinister species that provoked Schwarzenneger all those years ago. As it turns out, this idea works well for rebooting the franchise and wiping away the sting of Predator 2 and the dual tragedy of Alien Vs. Predator and AVP: Requiem (cue snickering). The script even remembers those events from Predator 87, but mercifully it seems amnesiac on the rest of the lot.

Falling one by one out of the sky, a varied and mysterious team of death-mongers—Yakuza, death-row inmates, mercs, and a wayward scientist—find themselves in a place that looks similar to a jungle on Earth. Adjusting to their surroundings and each other, it isn’t long before the revelation of multiple moons and vicious, other-worldly fauna cause them to question exactly where in the universe they are.

When they start getting gruesomely picked off by shadowy creatures in the dark of the jungle, the movie ramps up and delivers the thrills and kills the faithful have been waiting for. Those looking forward to intergalactic bloodshed won’t be disappointed; spinal cords are ripped, green blood runs as freely as red, and there’s even time for some predator on predator violence. When it comes to full-bore mayhem, the contained hunt of Predators easily bests the near apocalyptic onslaught of other blockbusters.

The cast pulled together here does a commendable job of portraying individual grit and together as a team, begrudging endurance as a fighting unit. Danny Trejo, Alice Braga, and Topher Grace sound like an unlikely group, and that in many ways is the point. With Brody’s loner mercenary at the forefront, this eclectic assembly isn’t by accident.

The predators have rigged the jungle, rallied their alien bloodhounds, and even remembered to internally snag their prey by hand-picking not just for battle aptitude but for disparity that might detonate them from within. When Laurence Fishburne’s crazed survivor, too long hiding out in the jungle shows up, Antal and company explore another dimension to the picture that focuses on the predators themselves and the curious tribalism that defines their species.

As an action director I really dig the style of Nimrod Antal, but I’d much prefer to see him tackling films in his own country again, since his debut, Kontroll, is far more powerful and hard-hitting than anything he’s done over here. Antal is the very definition of a journeyman director, taking big gigs and doing a solid but often unremarkable job of them. He gets the pacing, the special effects, and the character interaction down perfectly, but he’s also not bringing anything extra or inspiring to the table. This is less his fault and more the work of the scripters who came before him and decided to write Predators so closely to the original film that almost any legitimate suspense or ingenuity has been wiped away.

The monsters are well designed, and the alien critters who run down the survivors for their Predator masters are believable and threatening. Breaking the predators into two camps, one an older, more worn down caste (the dude who fought Arnold was one of these) and the other a virile and more aggressive contingent, is pure fan boy pandering all the way. Here’s the thing, though. It works.

Adrien Brody, who seems miscast at first, gives his mercenary a welcome sense of cold humanity. Physically, he’s not as imposing as the big Austrian who tussled with these guys the first go-round, but he’s toned up not just his body but also his adrift nice-guy persona to give a turn as a man who doesn’t need to fight the predators with brawn if he can utilize his wits and the predators own cultural hang-ups against them. It’s never going to come down to a one on one fight this time, so Brody stacks the deck in another way, and it leads to the goofy fun third act that betrays the slow build of the earlier sections at the same time it’s giving us just what we want from a movie about alien game hunters tracking hapless human prey.

Rating: ★★★½☆ 

Last weekend Robert Rodriguez debuted a new poster and footage for his highly anticipated Predators, the latest addition to a sci-fi film franchise that began with Schwarzenegger in 80s.

Today, we have a full blown trailer for the movie, and it looks amazingly faithful to the spirit and sense of adventure of the original. In fact, this looks like the sequel we wanted all along.

Adrien Brody, Laurence Fishburne and Topher Grace may not initially sound like they belong in the arena with the galaxy’s most fearsome hunters, but once you get a look at Brody, grime-covered and sweat stained, battling it out with the titular beasties, any thought of improper casting goes out the window. Throw in the always welcome Danny Trejo as a gnarly warrior and it’s gonna be a good time for sure.

I’m personally digging Fishburne in the hardened survivor role. The plot isn’t anything amazing, and the Predator home world looks surprisingly like the jungles of the first film, but there’s an old school feel to the fx, the cinematography and even the acting style that suggests a return to the basics.

I’m guessing Nimrod Antal, the director, is more responsible for this than Rodriquez. Antal, the foreign filmmaker who gave us the exquisite Kontrol, and the serviceable American thrillers Armored and Vacancy, has an artist’s touch for gritty and believable settings.

Personally, this has just jumped to the very top of my summer must-see list.

What do you think? Adding an s  to the title worked wonders for Alien back in 79. What will it do here?

Atomic Popcorn brings you yet another Top 10 Tuesday! This time we are bring you a list of some of the best chase scenes around. While most of us think about chase scenes involving cars, I have added a few to my list of chases without cars. While this list begs for more attention, I think i have highlighted some of the best there is, and I ask for your additions to this list.

I am aiming to have this column be something in which we can talk about and struggle with coming up with the best of the best for that Tuesday’s topic.

If you all have ideas for a top 10 list or want to see something specific send us an email at top10@atomicpopcorn.net and we will try and get it up here for you!

Without further ado – here is our Top 10 Chase Scenes. Enjoy!

10. Mad Max -What more can you say about this one, a true Gibson classic.

9. Matrix Reloaded – I can only find half of it online, but only half of it still garners a top 10 spot!

8. Gone in 60 seconds – This is the ORIGINAL baby!

7. Tranporter 3 Bike Chase – Yes I am well aware that this is on a bike and can’t possibly happen, but it’s fun as hell to watch.

6. Bullitt – Featuring Steve “badass” McQueen.

5. James Bond The Spy Who Loved Me – Skiing anyone? The Winter Olympics should be proud!

4. Enemy of the State – this still holds up as a great flick along with some great chase scenes. If you can find the full chase scene let me know -

3. Casino Royale – Madagascar in HD! Enjoy it.

2. Italian Job – chase scene -The Original !

1. Ronin – watch and have fun!

Nimrod Antal’s Armored feels like a film from a different time; specifically, an action thriller from the late 1990s. It’s the kind of second tier B movie that might have starred Cuba Gooding Jr. in the lead, Michael Keaton in the Dillon role, and Laurence Fishburne in the same role he’s got here.  Due to the shrieking chaos of most modern action films, this fact actually proves to be a good thing.

Under the skilled direction of Antal, Armored trades up shaky cam and overcooked editing for expertly shot and nerve-jangling chase sequences that feel inspired by 1970′s crime thrillers. The second string cast, including Dillon, Fishburn, Ulrich and the always dependable Ward, all deliver down-to-earth performances that fit the characters.

Unfortunately, a predictable plot rife with holes and inconsistencies and a script banged together from old heist clichés shoots the movie in the foot before it can pull off the big caper.

The basic set-up has been highlighted in the film’s far too revealing trailer; a group of blue collar armored-car guards decide to rob their own vehicle and abscond with the money. Ty Hackett (Columbus Short) is the rookie who has taken the job because he needs the money to take care of his adolescent brother after the death of their parents. Dillon plays Hackett’s godfather Michael, and the leader of the gang. Fishburne is Baines, the boozy loudmouth; Reno the tough and shady Frenchman (what else?); Ulrich the flunkie; Nolasco the born-again Christian who carries a bible but who isn’t above stealing if they can get away with it. The timing is perfect, the haul is an obscene amount of cash, and Hackett is about to be foreclosed on and his little brother taken away to foster care. There it is then. In a time of economic hardship it’s a dream plan that doesn’t involve a single fired shot or anyone being harmed.

If you have seen enough movies—probably two—then you will know that things don’t go as planned, and after a too long set-up that gets the pair of armored cars to an abandoned warehouse everything falls apart. What happens next is described in explicit detail in the film’s promotional materials, but I’m not going through it here. Armored has so few secrets and surprises that far be it from me to take them from you. Columbus Short, as Hackett, comes into his own during the second half and he has enough charisma and presence that he distracts from the silliness that follows.

Antal retraces similar steps he made with 2007’s Vacancy, which found Luke Wilson and Kate Beckinsale at the mercy of a gang of snuff filmmakers at a remote hotel. Both movies work just fine as cracker-jack thrillers, and Armored does its job with considerable less nastiness than its predecessor. Action fans who have recently been fed an over-abundance of flashy, loud chaos might be rightfully pleased with this one. Just don’t go in expecting it to fulfill many of its promises outside an hour and a half of decent thrills.

I actually wish that Armored had gone a little more in the direction of an over-the-top B movie instead of the grungy working-class realism it settles for. Once things go wrong for these  guys, the plot stops operating in the real world and starts flying free of plausibility. A little crazy might have helped it, but it never wants to commit. There is a superb battle between two armored cars in the midsection and the clanging, smashing vehicles careen through the dusty warehouse yard as if they were on their way to Thunderdome. Fred Ward plays the manager of the security guards and his team tells stories about the time he wasted six men. But we never get to see him do anything besides sit behind a desk, and after that first chase scene, the armored cars are pretty much stationary. All of the pieces are here and Antal does what he can with them, but Armored makes the mistake of aiming for too small a piece of the haul.

Movie rating:

Winner Winner, Chicken Dinner!

If you ever walk through a casino or sit at a blackjack table, you may just want to be hearing those four strange, yet exciting words. It just maybe your lucky night to win at a hand of blackjack.

21 boasts a cast with the likes of Kevin Spacey playing Mickey Rosa, the ex-player turned teacher/mentor. The new up and comer of Jim Sturgess (from Across the Universe fame). The ever so gorgeous Kate Bosworth who brings to life a girl you want to root for in Jill Taylor. And how can you forget the casino security, Cole Williams, played by Morpheus or better known as Laurence Fishburne.

This film delivers!

In 21, a team of card counters from MIT, whose weekend romps to Vegas to make money at blackjack, begins to attract a little attention after a new addition to the team.  Surrounded by big money, melodrama, some punch lines and of course the all to flashy lights of Vegas, what more can you ask for in a movie?

The film follows Ben Campbell who goes from being a nobody in Boston, to a somebody in Vegas over night. The high roller story of many a Hollywood story has been sprinkled throughout the film. Ben is a young naive student who needs cash to go to Harvard Med and doesn’t think he will win the once in a lifetime scholarship. With the always beautiful girl in pursuit we are along for the ride in a rags to riches and back to rags story.

Ben is the stereotypical shy, geeky kid with loser friends who happens to be one of the brightest minds in MIT unbeknown to him. In a everyday class at MIT of “Linear something or other”, Mickey Rosa comes face to face with the brilliant mind of Ben. The in class example of a game show was given of the host asking which of the three doors has the new car behind it. Ben promptly picks door number 1, as Mickey points to the chalk board and pulls down door number three to show nothing, Campbell’s mind kicks into high gear. Rosa takes notice visibly and the movie takes shape.

This classroom encounter eventually leads to a late night invite to a room in the back halls of MIT. Once in the room Ben is met with a familiar face in Mickey and Jill Taylor (the girl who is just out of reach of his secret crush) along with a few fresh faces. They are sitting at a mock blackjack table learning the simple math behind counting cards. The conversation ensues and Ben leaves with a fear of whats to come.

We are led through a myriad of scenes where Ben accepts, earns and then is tested in his new found skill of counting cards. All leading up to his first visit to Vegas. And what a trip it was.

The Cinematography was excellent in this film. The film captures the energy and excitement of Vegas all the while bringing us back to the snowy campus of MIT in Boston to ruin the fun. The lights and action are captured well in the faces of the actors along with a great soundtrack to lead us from place to place.

The writing team of Peter Steinfield and Allan Loeb have brought the adaptation of Ben Mezrich’s top selling book “Bringing Down the House: The Inside Story of Six M.I.T. Students Who Took Vegas for Millions” to the big screen. And they have done a pretty solid job.

On the whole, the film is a crowd pleaser with a great cast,  solid performances and believable characters. My only complaint was the length of the film. It was just under two hours and seemed to drag towards the end. The ups and downs of the film really made for slow transitions towards the end leading up to the climax.

I would recommend this film to friends without a doubt.

Rating: ☆☆☆☆☆