Prey – Film Review

The science fiction action franchise Predator is one that is quite messy in terms of its quality. The original film from 1987 starring Arnold Schwarzenegger is by far the best, excellently blending relenting action with insanely palpable tension, and even some good humor every so often. It’s an action classic of the 80s.

As for the sequels… the same thing cannot be said about them. Predator 2 isn’t awful by any means, but it’s certainly more than a little disappointing of a follow-up. It did, however, take some big swings in terms of its story which is more than we can say about most film franchises today.

Then, of course, there’s the Alien vs. Predator series and most recently, the 2018 film The Predator, which failed to capture the hearts of fans around the world who came to the consensus that the action, story, and overall tone of the film was nowhere near as good as the first film.

But now, we have a prequel film titled Prey, directed by Dan Trachtenberg who previously helmed the critically and commercially successful (and amazing, might I add) 10 Cloverfield Lane. By adding Trachtenberg as director and hiring Patrick Aison as screenwriter, the folks over at 20th Century Studios have finally done what the fans have been asking for for years – they made a terrific Predator movie.

This is by far the best film in the franchise since the first, complete with a legitimate sense of wonder, awe, and spectacle. Despite the fact that this movie is very much so grounded in reality and feels similar to the first film in terms of atmosphere, it is my favorite Predator movie in terms of the grittiness.

Trachtenberg definitely knows a thing or two about suspense and how to craft it. After all, the aforementioned 10 Cloverfield Lane was essentially a film that rode entirely on suspense, making the audience guess what the film was really about until the third act reveal.

With Prey, Trachtenberg gets a little more ambitious and it works excellently. The scope and scale of the film is astounding, and all of the action sequences are filmed expertly. No shaky cam here, which is such a blessing. To be honest, a lot of this movie reminded me of Mad Max: Fury Road.

Both films are new installments in wildly popular franchises that took elements that fans loved while also adding some new elements to the mix. And, most notably, both films have plots that are basically propelled forward by the action sequences. Seriously, there’s an action scene every three minutes or so in Prey.

Sometimes, you can’t help but feel as if it would be nice to get a little more breathing room with this movie, but at the same time, it’s incredibly easy to get swept away in the awe-inspiring set pieces and fight choreography. It’s all filmed incredibly well, so all action fans need not worry.

The performances across the board are also all great, most notably from Amber Midthunder as Naru, a young Comanche warrior who does whatever she can to protect her tribe from the looming danger and threat of the Predator. Midthunder does some truly phenomenal work as Naru, proving that she will definitely be a name to look out for in the years to come.

With Prey, director Dan Trachtenberg injects some new life into the Predator franchise. It’s a bold, exciting, and riveting prequel and is easily the best in the series since the first.