Predator: Badlands
★★★ 1/2
I’ll be honest. Predator: Badlands was not my top pick for a day off movie. Veterans Day meant lots of kid drop offs and pickups, and I had a small window to sneak something in without blowing up the schedule. The one movie playing in that sweet spot was this one, in IMAX no less, so the decision kind of made itself.
Here’s the funny part. I have reviewed Prey before. Same director, and I said then that the original Predator has always been one of my favorites. But I have not seen anything between the 1987 original and Prey. Still, I really enjoyed Prey, and the early buzz for Badlands was strong enough that I figured it was worth the leap.
And I get why people are loving it. Even if I did not connect as deeply as others seem to, it is extremely well made. Inventive. Creative. Confident in what it is doing. The story is simple by design, but the sci-fi and action elements deliver everything you would want. For a movie loaded with visual effects, it is surprisingly easy to settle into this world and let it sweep you along.
What surprised me most is how much the film asks you to sympathize with the Predator. We are dropped fully into its perspective, even emotionally at times, and the movie earns that shift far better than I expected. It never betrays what makes the Predator an iconic character, but it does shade things in ways that make you rethink its code. It is not subtle. This is a black and white creature learning to see color for the first time, and the movie has fun with that.
Elle Fanning is a big part of why it works. She has always had an intriguing, slightly offbeat energy, and Dan Trachtenberg leans into that. Without spoiling anything, she brings something unexpected to her role that I was not fully sold on, but she absolutely grounds the film’s emotional core. For a character rooted in artificial intelligence, she delivers surprising humanity.
If the movie did not fully click for me, it might be because it owes a lot (and I mean a lot) to The Mandalorian. The “warrior bonds with vulnerable being and becomes its reluctant guardian” formula is unmistakable, to the point that calling it baby Yoda energy feels generous. It is familiar, but to be fair, it is familiar in a crowd pleasing way.
The action, though, is terrific. Set pieces are big and loud and cleanly executed, and the PG-13 rating does not hold anything back. Because so much of the violence involves creatures, machines or alien tech, the film gets away with a lot. It never feels watered down.
If the trailer appeals to you at all, you will have a blast. This is the kind of movie that makes the theater experience worthwhile. Trachtenberg clearly understands this world, understands the Predator’s primal psychology and builds a movie that respects the legacy while trying something new.
It may not have hit me on an emotional level, but it is easy to see why others are calling it a standout.
