Predator: Bad Lands
Dek (played by Dimitrius Koloamatangi) is a young Yautja who, due to his slighter build compared to other clan members, is seen as weak — an outcast.
He decides to prove his worth by attempting to kill one of the most feared predators in the galaxy.
During his hunt, he encounters Thia (played by Elle Fanning), a synthetic from Weyland-Yutani (the same organization present in Ridley Scott’s Alien cinematic universe — once again sealing the union between the two worlds), along with many other creatures, both hostile and benign, thus shifting from predator to prey.
He decides to prove his worth by attempting to kill one of the most feared predators in the galaxy.
During his hunt, he encounters Thia (played by Elle Fanning), a synthetic from Weyland-Yutani (the same organization present in Ridley Scott’s Alien cinematic universe — once again sealing the union between the two worlds), along with many other creatures, both hostile and benign, thus shifting from predator to prey.
Predator: BadLands stands as the ninth film in the franchise that began in 1987 with the first Predator, directed by John McTiernan, and as the third installment helmed by Dan Trachtenberg, who also directed the previous two entries (Prey, a prequel, and Predator: Killer of Killers, an animated short).
In this latest film, Trachtenberg radically redefines the narrative foundation by shifting the point of view from human to alien, from protagonist to antagonist — from what is familiar to what is foreign.
He abandons the human-versus-alien feud, long driven by high tension and a palpable horror atmosphere that made the saga a sci-fi horror, and instead ventures fully into the realm of pure science fiction.
In this latest film, Trachtenberg radically redefines the narrative foundation by shifting the point of view from human to alien, from protagonist to antagonist — from what is familiar to what is foreign.
He abandons the human-versus-alien feud, long driven by high tension and a palpable horror atmosphere that made the saga a sci-fi horror, and instead ventures fully into the realm of pure science fiction.
The absence of humankind is not the only departure from previous entries. Gone are the towering, muscular, and menacing Yautja; Dek, the Yautja protagonist, is smaller, leaner, and far less battle-hardened than the rest of his clan — weak, inferior, inadequate. Or so his father would have him believe. As a last chance to prove his worth, Dek is tasked with killing the Kalisk, a creature from the planet Gemma, rumored to be unkillable.
In pursuit of his goal, Dek assembles his own unlikely clan — a dismembered android and a blue monkey — and comes to understand that being an alpha does not mean being the most ruthless predator, but rather the one capable of protecting others, the weaker ones.
Predator: BadLands thus renounces the ideal of the muscular, unstoppable, stubborn, and above all solitary hero, and reshapes it into the modern archetype: imperfect, emotional, fulfilled not through individual triumphs but as a vital pillar of the group.
In pursuit of his goal, Dek assembles his own unlikely clan — a dismembered android and a blue monkey — and comes to understand that being an alpha does not mean being the most ruthless predator, but rather the one capable of protecting others, the weaker ones.
Predator: BadLands thus renounces the ideal of the muscular, unstoppable, stubborn, and above all solitary hero, and reshapes it into the modern archetype: imperfect, emotional, fulfilled not through individual triumphs but as a vital pillar of the group.
For some long-time fans, this “alien modernization” may seem like yet another contemporary attempt to deconstruct legendary characters once celebrated for their strength and flawlessness, by exposing their weaknesses and making them more relatable to audiences.
However, a more attentive viewer will notice that from the very first film, such values and lessons were already embedded in the saga’s symbolic core: Dutch, the protagonist of the original movie and the embodiment of postwar American invincibility, triumphs over the creature only by setting aside his brawn, brute force, and impulsiveness — instead relying on patience and cunning, the very traits of his enemy.
Predator has never been a mere celebration of violence — despite its abundance — but rather the creation of a creature that embodied the saying: “Brains over brawn.”
However, a more attentive viewer will notice that from the very first film, such values and lessons were already embedded in the saga’s symbolic core: Dutch, the protagonist of the original movie and the embodiment of postwar American invincibility, triumphs over the creature only by setting aside his brawn, brute force, and impulsiveness — instead relying on patience and cunning, the very traits of his enemy.
Predator has never been a mere celebration of violence — despite its abundance — but rather the creation of a creature that embodied the saying: “Brains over brawn.”
Also noteworthy is the world-building: creative, surreal, yet remarkably convincing. The alien planet comes to life with painstaking detail — alien yet strangely familiar. Dek’s journey is both internal and physical; step by step, through an unknown world as foreign to him as to us, the viewer oscillates between wonder and dread, immersed in a reality where even a caterpillar or a flower can pose a lethal threat.
In conclusion, Trachtenberg’s expansion of the saga once again proves to be a genuine act of innovation — a modernization process that smartly avoids the trap of mere subversion for its own sake, becoming instead an audacious exercise in renewal, capable of blending originality with extravagance.
Inizio modulo