Saturday Morning Cartoon

I was fully prepared to enjoy Dan Trachtenberg's Predator: Badlands, but I'm happy to say I was totally blow away by this A+ piece of action adventure Saturday morning cartoon splattery. Going in I was happy to see that the film came in at about an hour and forty five minutes, but for some reason it feels like there's a lot more in here than those minutes could allot for. It felt like a nice tight movie where nothing was wasted and the jam packed percussion of the plot delivered at every turn. It does not reinvent the wheel, it gives you a very well designed wheel.

Like many I was introduced to the Predator franchise in my pre-teens with John McTiernan's early masterpiece starring Arnold Schwarzenegger and Carl Weathers. I liked Predator more than Aliens because I found the Xenomorphs terrifying and the Predators, Yutja (apparently), have one of the best designs and weapon setups out of any of the monster movies of the era. Predators travel to other world's to hunt the most dangerous creatures there and take their sculls as trophies - how is this not cool as fuck? There's also Predator 2 which follows multiple Yutja as they steal spines and sculls from a variety of gang members in a dystopian LA, while Danny Glover's detective character follows in their wake. I was there for the Dark Horse comic's Alien vs Predator series, and eventually SNES and arcade video game that followed. I was there on opening night for AVP (Whoever wins, we lose), and then after that I slowly drifted away from the franchise seeking more serious sci-fi content.

I did not watch Trachtenberg's wildly successful 2022 release: Prey, which I understand reclaimed some originality and seriousness for the premise and landed him this job. I didn't watch his animated anthology Predator: Killer of Killers, though I understand it rounds out some of the lore that's presented here in Badlands. Lore? Ugh - as a friend of mine would say: I don't give a fuck about lore. And although Badlands is filled with contextual information, deep characteristics of design and a story that is very much rooted in Yutja culture, as well as the corporate interests in the Alien films - this movie felt fresh, easy to understand, and fun; despite being couched in what I think is the most asked for but most unlikely franchise: the marriage of the Aliens, Predator and Blade Runner franchises into a singular universe. Although there is no direct connection to Blade Runner, the aesthetics of Ridley Scott and James Cameron are so pervasive through the film that it feels like this Saturday Morning cartoon is seeking a deeper unification of these brands. And it actually makes sense, it doesn't feel forced.

The premise is pretty simple: Dak, played Dimitrius Schuster-Koloamatangi, is a runt Yutja outcast from his clan and spared from being culled, by his brother, who meets his demise at the hand of their father for sparing Dak. Dak is exiled to a planet where he must defeat it's most fearsome creature to define his worth if he is ever to return home and re-join the clan and avenge his brother. On the planet he runs into a halved replicant/synthetic, from the Weyland Yutani Corp, Theia, played by Elle Fanning. I like Elle Fanning quite a bit, she takes daring roles and isn't afraid to play against her obvious beauty, but I've never seen her deliver something so charming as her portrayal of the uber friendly replicant who takes all the mayhem in such stride in this movie. Where all the grit and uber macho of Predator exists completely, she fills the void of levity and dare I say: humanity in the movie. None of this is overwrought. It's played with a sincerity and simplicity that is what brings it to that cartoon level - it's not that it's not adult it just doesn't need to over explain it to you. It is a level of simple visual storytelling brilliance and authentic but simple characterization that I would associate with Batman: The Animated Series.

The film's real stars are the locations and the creatures. Trachtenberg uses the natural exotic beauty of New Zealand in conjunction with CGI backgrounds and details in a way that few directors of action-y fare have the capability for. The movie looks fantastic because they shot in so many real locations, and then plussed them up digitally ala David Fincher in recreating 60's San Fran in Zodiac. This goes doubly for the presentation of Dak, in full body makeup where only the facial features are rendered in CGI-although clearly they captured the actor's eye patterns and it's through these windows to the soul that he sells his performance, although much credit must be given to the physicality of on display. There is such a fun array of fauna and flora in this movie and it's what drives the set pieces and the action. The designs of these creatures, and plants, are also top notch; original, gross, dangerous, cute, fun - and they're all executed in a way that holds a delightful world logic that pays off in the long run . And then there's the Yutja themselves - given distinctive features, armor and personalities that hold up - and although one of the plot points is that Dak is stripped of all his cool gear; the design elements that come out of impromptu weapons and armor are worth it. I haven't seen such an original usage of monsters and environmental mayhem in such a long time. I can't even think of an example to compare it to. It elevates this from being just a Predator Hunts movie into more of a survival experience for the protagonist in a way we haven't seen. 

I've seen criticisms of this movie being “disney-a-fied” and I guess you can feel that way, but having experienced a lot of different Predator stuff over the years; there was no part of the presentation of this that took away from the mayhem and violence that makes this stuff fun. Oh yeah there's some silly jokes in it, but they didn't hurt the experience. It just didn't have humans getting mowed down without prejudice and in fact, there isn't a human character in the movie. It's certainly smarter than AVP 1 or 2. 

Is this a perfect movie? For what it's trying to do? Yeah I think it is. The original Predator is a thrill ride of action and terror culminating in one of Arnold's best showdowns but it's one of those taboo things I got to experience as a kid: an R rated movie with lots of brutal violence, crazy stunts and a badass monster. And all that still stands. However Badlands makes this much more accessible to a lot of people and, I would argue, makes the original film a treat to return to. I imagine that if I was ten right now and my Dad took me to see this? It would be one of my favorite movies of all time. I would have a crush on Elle Fanning. I would want to fight monsters with a sword and I would have realized the importance of fighting generational dogma to define myself beyond what is expected of me. And then I would have gotten to go home and watch Predator and Predator 2 and AVP 1 & 2 (Not to mention the Alien movies), then 2010's Predators, and then Shane Black's movie jail worthy The Predator (2018), and then around to Prey and Killer of Killers. As a lifelong fan of the essence of what “Predator” is, this movie was a pure delight and if I had a 10 year old son; I could see it being on repeat in my house.