The first three Predator movies are fine entertainment with the sequels not quite reaching the level of excellence in my book, though I do greatly prefer the first movie over the others if only for the quality direction from McTiernan and Schwarzenegger’s tough man and charm appeal.
American Ultra has some things going for it from an interesting story that combines Bourne with Pineapple Express to fun performances by Jesse Eisenberg and Kristen Stewart who shows some actual charisma utterly lacking in many of her other movies; yet at the same time, and as outlandish and fun as the story is, it’s not terribly memorable.
The Double doesn’t quite capitalize on an interesting concept thanks in part to a “twist” that not only is revealed in the trailer but early on in the film itself. Despite that, I still feel the film is at least watchable due to Richard Gere and Topher Grace. The Blu-ray offers up solid video and audio transfers but falters in the features department, although the commentary is pretty good.
Traffic still is as engrossing today as it was the first day I saw it in the theaters 11 years ago. The performances all around are fantastic while Soderbergh’s style, now a standard for him, was unique and beautiful. When it comes to the Criterion Blu-ray release, I’d say it’s on par in the video and audio realm as the Universal release but obviously this is the edition to go with as it contains several featurettes and commentaries.
Take Me Home Tonight is a fun homage to 1980s music/movies and while it’s hardly a great movie, the cast ensemble seems to have good chemistry with one another and the jokes on the whole seem to hit rather than miss. I can’t say this is a must purchase title but it is worth a rental and once it gets to the $10 range, might be worth purchasing.
Predators may not have been as successful of a franchise reboot as last year’s Star Trek in terms of quality, but as someone who wasn’t as enamored with the original as some, I thought there were some elements that did work and the casting was well done. The Blu-ray has good audio and video presentations and the features are pretty good.
