Defeat The Predator without the assistance of any Deus Ex Machina in 8-player mode.
This film (alongside Aliens) defines every Hollywood action film after it. Even to the point where every sequel of the Predator franchise is a derivation of the original.
Arnold Schwarzenegger, fresh off the cult success of The Terminator and Commando stars alongside Carl Weathers who was killed off the Rocky franchise.
Plot? Simple. An American paramilitary squad is asked to retrieve hostages from a Colombian insurgent group. Sounds familiar? It’s the basis of many an action movie, an even a couple of video games (Metal Gear 1/2). The twist is that the squad is being hunted by an unknown force with superior technology, strength and tactics. Again, familiar trope now, but not until the mid-90s. The trope is featured in Top Gun (and Maverick), Aliens, The Matrix amongst popular films.
As it turns out, the unknown force is an extraterrestrial biological entity! In the concluding act, we have a primal confrontation between the last man standing and the eponymous Predator giving off vibes of all the big 1-on-1 endings from 70s and 80s martial art films.
The film concludes gracefully, leaving open a lot of plot threads for a sequel, that eventually came and spawned a franchise.
Always good for a lazy Sunday viewing to get your heart pumping!
Re-screened sometime in November 2022 on HBO Max.
