TWO ICONIC Monsters Bash Heads AGAIN in this Sequel!

ALIEN VS. PREDATOR had a fairly successful box-office take; good enough to spawn this sequel; ALIEN VS. PREDATOR: REQUIEM. Purists were very disappointed with W.S. Anderson's version being rated PG-13 (Fox tried to make amends with an unrated dvd) and that the film didn't follow the essence of past Alien or Predator films. I am not defending Anderson's take whatsoever, but his version had a "comicbook" feel because hey, the idea came from a comic book by Dark Horse Comics. AVP: Requiem has been rated-R and thankfully so. I would not go as far as saying that the sequel is superior to the first film but I can happily say that the blood and gore is omnipresent.

The film takes off from where the first film ended; a newer, tougher version of the alien spawned from the predator race wreaks havoc in the spacecraft carrying the hunters which caused the ship to crash-land on Earth. The aliens led by the hybrid attack a small town and for reasons unknown, a lone Predator warrior is sent to hunt and kill each one of the aliens. Humans are caught in the middle and the unsuspecting residents led by Dallas (Steven Pasquale) and Kelly (Reiko Aylesworth) must band together to have a chance at survival.

              

"AVP: REQUIEM" does have a different feel from its predecessor. While the plot is simple and quite frankly it only has minor character development, directors Colin and Greg Strause waste no time in setting things up for the two warring creatures. This may be a either a good or a bad thing, it all depends on how you take the plotline. The film is definitely a continuation of the first film, so it just deals with a different situation and different characters. The screenplay by Shane Salermo is not without any faults as it almost succumbed to unneeded and nauseating teen situations and it didn't develop the characters with a lot of potential such as Kelly; a mother who has just finished her service in the marines. I was rather disappointed that 15 minutes were wasted on characters that were obviously plot devices to increase the body count. One thing that really makes me grind my teeth sometimes with Hollywood fakery is the usual stereotypical views with cops and armymen. (Right, trained men and women wouldn't last long but untrained civilians would?!) "Requiem's" biggest weaknesses are its usual clichés and stereotypes. 

                           

The cinematography of the film is a bit confusing. I know the film has a dark premise (thankfully) but the way it is shot is very dark. Ok, the timeline does mostly happen at night and there are a quite a few scenes wherein the area is in a very dark, enclosed space but I found it rather "inky". I'm not sure if this was done intentionally but some of the blood and gore gets lost in the "pitch black" cinematography. Thankfully, the screenplay does have a secret weapon: the aliens don't just look for the usual human hosts. They target pregnant mothers and it even suggests that infants were killed and devoured. How's that for a dark premise? The Xeno-morphs led by the alien-predator hybrid are the merciless killers they should be. The film does contain quite a lot of blood and gore. 

            

                               

Despite its faults, the film does have its redeeming qualities. The predator(s) have the classic look in the Schwarzenegger film; they don't look like cool, stylish (with shiny helmets) and huge linebackers as in the first AVP film. I've also observed that the use of CGI has been limited and the EFX crew went on to use puppets for the aliens and a very big actor for the lone predator. I liked this approach because I still believe that the old fashioned way in making a horror film is still the best approach (depending on the film). The film does have a dark and moody atmosphere that adheres to its proceedings. There is also a scene that looks like a tribute to Ripley's character (Sigourney Weaver) in Alien 3.

AVP REQUIEM is not superior to the first film but rather a different feel. The first film has its comic book-inspired action sequences and while "Requiem" does have a duel between the Predator-hybrid and a lone hunter; the battle didn't feel "comic-bookish" at all. Requiem felt more like an action-horror movie than its predecessor. The film isn't a bad film but in the end the film is very predictable and collapses in the usual plot devices and clichés. Fans of blood and gore will be partially satisfied. Again, I know this film will shine with an unrated extended cut. AVP REQUIEM does entertain and thankfully it does capture some of the essence of the highly successful "Alien" and "Predator" franchises.

RECOMMENDED timidly to fans of the franchise and sci-fi monster films. [3+ stars]