January Movie Pick: 'Prey'

 

The trend of me watching Native American stories this month continues, this time with the Comanche warrior tribe fighting the Predator. The potential this film has left me craving for more, which is always good when you try to sell a product. But this craving could have been satisfied yesterday with a small adjustment in the way the story was told. I think this is my favorite Predator movie, and I am a fan of the franchise and the crossovers with the Alien from forever. I love that they are going back in time to tell this incredible story of one of the earlier hunts. With this incarnation, they opened a path forward that could explore many period pieces and legendary stories. I really liked the direction of this movie, and you know what would have helped it become the best of the best? Accuracy. If only the Natives spoke their language instead of English, I feel a lot could have been done with that. Also, why do they have to speak so much about modern stuff? You know what would have been nice, for example? The story could have been told silently through images and some sounds. After all, we are exploring a hunting tribe, and I doubt that the hunters were screaming in English about their problems. This part just felt modern and out of place. Reflecting on the missed potential for excellence in this movie is disappointing, especially considering I might have been here celebrating its remarkable vision. Can you imagine the main characters not having this modern look and posture that screamed "21st-century kid" and not speaking about how women are also capable, but instead of just proving herself with a show, don't tell? She really grew on me, especially throughout the third act action-wise and when she screamed for the last time. Can you imagine the entire movie, with the natives and our main protagonist mostly quiet, hunting, and her scream at the end being the first sound you hear from her? The impact of that decision could have been so powerful! I know what I wrote could be understood wrongly, but no, when you make period pieces, let's make it accurate. Let the scenes in her tribe be in their language. I want to soak in this culture and forget that I am watching a movie. This, by the way, is my only complaint about the movie. It is a huge one because it stands in the way of the path to perfection, but the movie is still able to deliver an incredible new take on these stories. The action here is unbelievably good, helped by the CGI. The location is beautiful, and some of the shots are National Geographic. If only the film took itself more seriously and went full-on period piece. Nevertheless, I loved the brother played by Dakota Beavers. Man, there is an action scene with him where I was gasping out loud and saying, 'Oh my God.' This guy was really cool, and he was a nice brother, taking care of the family and stepping up when he was needed. Even though I hated that they spoke English, the saying "This is as far as you go. No more. This is it" was good stuff. I do not know why they couldn't have done it in the native language with damn subtitles. Are the American audiences so appalled from reading? Like I said, the main protagonist Naro, played by Amber Midthunder, was, for the first two acts, not in character at all. She was Amber in a movie that takes place 300 years or something ago. Her posture, the things she said, the way she acted, everything screamed a modern person. But every time she had to fight, especially in the end, she came across as what this movie needed and delivered overall my favorite Predator story.

What's next for this franchise? It seems like Hulu and director Dan Trachtenberg are going forward with another movie with no release date yet. Here's what the director had to say: 

"The nerd in me looked that far ahead, as far as he could look, before we started writing this movie, but the adult in me said, 'Don’t count your chickens and just be careful. Try and make the best movie possible, straight away.’ End-credit sequence aside, there is something refreshing about seeing a movie that is not really intended to be just a part one of something else. There’s something nice about seeing a complete thought. On the complete other hand, I love that what would’ve been a post-credit scene in other movies is an animated end-title sequence in our movie. Our end titles are still storytelling."

I am glad that he went and put everything into this story and decided to tell it right away. There is an ongoing trend that if you didn’t like this one, wait and you see what's coming next kind of thing. And often I am wanting to see it right now. Why make me wait in the first place? Just make a good movie, and we are going to worry about the sequel after that. Still, I am so excited to see where this story goes, and I love to discover the interconnectivity between the movies.

Iliya Badev