Predator: Badlands is the latest film in the Predator franchise and the third film in the franchise to be directed by Dan Trachtenberg. After delivering to us Prey and this year’s Predator: Killer of Killers, Badlands comes in with a very clear mission statement: to do something different. While I think the movie achieved that goal, does the final product actually deliver, beyond being different than what’s come before? Let’s find out.

Predator: Badlands flips the script on the usual trope for this franchise by making one of its masked Yautja killers (that’s “yow-cha” the protagonist of the story. Badlands follows the journey of Dek (stunt performer Dimitrius Schuster-Koloamatangi), the runt of his clan, who finds himself outcast after his father decides that his small stature is too much of a weakness and thus, a liability for the family to tolerate. He finds himself crash-landed on the planet Genna, a so-called Death Planet, where literally everything, including the grass, wants to kill you. With the goal of killing the most fearsome and apparently unkillable monster on the planet, Dek hopes to return home to his father with a trophy in hand, to prove that he is indeed a killer of killers.

But as a result of his impromptu departure and crash landing, he finds himself at a disadvantage tactically and reluctantly joins forces with Thia (Elle Fanning), a chipper Weyland-Yutani synth (from the Alien franchise) who has lost her legs in an encounter with the very beast Dek is hunting. So she strikes a bargain, movement in exchange for direction. Begrudgingly, Dek puts Thia on his back and makes for his quarry, thinking of her as more of a tool than an ally, as Yautja hunt alone.

Since this is Dek’s story, a lot of the heavy lifting is done from his performance, and that’s something I was never expecting in a Predator movie. I can say that you do end up caring about this runt of a Yautja, as his plight and intent are made clear and relatable from the outset. What’s more is that we can discern Dek’s emotional state thanks to some pretty solid practical effects, combined with mo-cap and VFX work from Studio Gillis and Wētā Workshop, respectively. Apart from some blemishes here and there with the other creatures on the planet, chiefly a little critter nicknamed “Bud”, the visuals of the movie are quite good. The filmmakers also gave the Yautja a language, so a large part of this movie is told via subtitles, as Dek doesn’t know any other languages. Thankfully, Thia is programmed with a universal language module, so we hear her dialogue in English, but Dek understands her words in his own tongue, and vice versa. Thia is quite the chatterbox, and Fanning plays her with a happy-go-lucky pluck that’s the exact opposite of our Yautja lead. This allows the movie to have a bit of a buddy-cop vibe that creates more humorous situations than I was expecting. The jokes never hit Marvel levels, but it’s certainly a tonal change from previous films, and I would assume mileage will vary in terms of whether these jokes work or not. For me, some did, but I found some to be out of place.

For those who may be worried that Badlands is a “soft” movie because of its PG-13 rating, let me assure you that the movie’s action is pretty solid and plenty gnarly. The reason for the PG-13 rating is due to there are no humans in the movie, so no red blood or gore. But there’s plenty of severed limbs and arterial spray in this movie; it’s just green, white, or orange, for example, instead. Much like Prey, the action feels kinetic and creative, and it was interesting to see Dek navigate the world while at a disadvantage, both in terms of his skill and size, and due to the lack of a signature helmet.

As mentioned, this is Trachtenberg’s third outing in the Predator universe, but this is the first time one of his movies has hit the big screen. As such, the move feels a lot bigger in scope than his previous entries. Genna is an otherworldly planet (shot on location in New Zealand) that feels rich in creatures that want to kill our lead. It did sometimes feel like Pandora from the Avatar films, but not enough that it felt like a carbon copy, more like evoking the feeling and spirit of that planet’s ecosystem. The movie is overall paced well, but it does look some momentum in the second act.

Because this is a movie from the point of view of one of the Predators, the movie does feel different from what came before it. It’s not an action/horror movie at all, more of a sci-fi adventure film this time around that pulls the veil back ever so slightly on the culture of these iconic movie monsters. It is a little weird to feel empathy for a creature we’ve rooted for as the villain for decades now, and the tone of the movie can feel a little off for longtime fans. This doesn’t feel like a Predator movie, but more like a Star Wars movie, specifically The Mandalorian, I would say, with Dek being the stone-cold killer adventuring with a chipper buddy. It’s a variation of Lone Wolf and Cub yet again. Dek’s weapon of choice for most of the movie is also a red laser sword that evokes a lightsaber. The movie also reminded me a bit of the 2018 iteration of God of War, with Dek being the Kratos role while Thia functioning as Mimir, the chatty, severed head on Kratos’ hip who offers counsel and knowledge. So while the story feels fresh for the Predator franchise, it isn’t really that original.

Predator: Badlands may not be as original as it claimed to be, but it also did something I wasn’t expecting: it made me care about one of cinema’s most iconic monsters. So, credit where credit is due, the Badlands team pulled it off and honestly, made me want to rewatch the older movies and frame the Predators around Dek and his planet’s culture, think about the movie from the perspectives of the creatures and where they came from. Without spoilers, the end of the movie teased future installments with Dek, and honestly, the movie hooked me enough that I’d definitely watch more stories centred around him. A solid, fun time.