I adore 1980’s action movies, on the grounds that films such as Die Hard, The Terminator, First Blood, Cobra and Commando established a strong set of genre conventions and requirements. In short, these films laid the groundwork for an entire genre. However, these kind of action movies are simply not being made any more. With this in mind I went into The Expendables with high hopes that I would witness something which would sit proudly alongside its forbears in the action genre, and I did. Sort of. [click to continue…]
Arnold Schwarzenegger
It has been twenty long years since a Predator movie graced the big screen (discounting the Alien VS Predator franchise) which is far, far too long. After innumerable scripts and pitches it is Robert Rodriguez’s vision which has finally made it to the big screen under the direction of Nimrod Antal. The first thing that we need to understand about this film is that it is not a remake or a ‘reimagining’ but a sequel, specifically to the first movie, which is referenced by Isabelle (Alice Braga) in one of Predators exposition sequences. As a fan of the first, and indeed the underrated second movie, I was thrilled at the possibility of the Predator returning to the big screen and the series returning to its roots. [click to continue…]
