Hulu originals

[hepcat]

Solar Opposites Holiday Special is up.

Spoiler:

I wipe my mind after seeing any movie where people don't steal the Declaration of Independence.

It does a great job of making it clear what Christmas should be about, but at the same time has the weakness of the series in that it sometimes believes cruelty for the sake of cruelty is funny. Still, it made me laugh more than once.

[Jaymann]

Watched Boss Level last night:



It's pretty much low budget pulp, but I love the premise. Bad to see Mel Gibson is still getting work. Good to see Naomi Watts is still getting work. Of sorts.

[hepcat]

The Great season 2 is still making me laugh. Primarily because Nicholas Hoult is fantastic as unhinged Russian Czar Peter. In a lesser actor’s hands, his character would be ludicrously over the top slap stick. But he just commits to the character so much that it’s like watching someone on a bike at the top of a mountain who just pushes off and doesn’t stop until they get to the bottom. The sheer momentum of his performance drives his rapid fire delivery and manic expressions.

Elle Fanning is okay, but she’s nowhere near his level of comic timing. But that’s probably by design as she’s essentially his straight man most of the time.

Edit: I take it back. Fanning is actually really good. Season 2 seems to really be letting her shine, and she’s doing a fantastic job of it. Or maybe I just didn’t realize how good she was during season 1 amidst all the other performances.

[stessier]

Not a Hulu original, but it's on Hulu. Speechless. - a show about a boy with cerebral palsy who needs an aide to speak for him attending a mainstream school and his family. It's a sitcom - but very well written. Minnie Driver plays the mother who has fought her whole life to get him the access he needs. I'm only three episodes in and think it's great.

[Isgrimnur]

Fresh

[hepcat]

Fresh is pretty good….if you have the stomach for it. It’s a witty horror/comedy/satire about dating that turns into…well….I won’t ruin it. But there’s a reason the credits for the movie don’t run until 33 minutes in.

Quite gory…but in the same way the Evil Dead movies are gory. It’s just over the top. But be warned.

[Jaymann]

Fresh is pretty good….if you have the stomach for it. It’s a witty horror/comedy/satire about dating that turns into…well….I won’t ruin it. But there’s a reason the credits for the movie don’t run until 33 minutes in.

Quite gory…but in the same way the Evil Dead movies are gory. It’s just over the top. But be warned.

Mollie you idiot!

Spoiler:

You don't confront the wife. Get a few boys from the hood to stake out the house and follow Mr. Wonderful back to his lair.

[Isgrimnur]

Deep Waters

[Isgrimnur]

Fire Island

[Isgrimnur]

Good Luck to You, Leo Grande

[McNutt]

I will have to check it out. It's so weird to think of Emma Thompson as an old lady. When she's talking about all the positions she wants to do I'm still thinking, "yes, please."

[Hrothgar]

M.O.D.O.K. cancelled.

[Sudy]

M.O.D.O.K. cancelled.

So what would M.O.D.O.K. do if his memory got too full?
He'd find a powersource and then he'd pick what plugs to pull

[hepcat]

That's too bad. I hated it when it started, but after a couple of episodes I got into it and actually ended up enjoying it.

[Isgrimnur]

The Princess

[Daehawk]

Other than a movie yet again pandering to the politically correct crowd by having a little girl beat a Predator now this looks good. Love the native american setting. Though they are so primitive at this point in history I dont see how they're going to make it at all believable.

[Blackhawk]

It'll just be nice not to see yet another variation of 'badasses trapped in the jungle.' Since P2, all they've really done is try to recreate the originals instead of doing something new.

[$iljanus]

Other than a movie yet again pandering to the politically correct crowd by having a little girl beat a Predator now this looks good. Love the native american setting. Though they are so primitive at this point in history I dont see how they're going to make it at all believable.

If Katniss Everdeen can overthrow a repressive regime with a bow and arrow I don't see much of a pandering issue if a Native American teen is going up against a Predator. (insert shruging emoji here).

Also, if Arnold can beat a Predator with a booby trap composed of wooden spikes I think the girl has a shot...

[hepcat]

Other than a movie yet again pandering to the politically correct crowd by having a little girl beat a Predator

Christ, there are still 25 thousand films featuring buff macho men for you to watch for every 1 with a woman as the star. If the story is good, I don't give a shit if the star is male or female, white or black (or any other race), gay or straight.*

Think of it this way: for the longest time, little girls had to identify with characters who were in need of protection. Weak characters who couldn't survive without a man. Now they can go to a movie (or watch a tv show) and see strong female characters who aren't just victims for a plot point. What kind of person would be against that?

Anyway, I love Amber Midthunder. She was absolutely fantastic on Legion. I look forward to seeing what she can do with a big action film.


*Standard caveat that Mark Wahlberg would be a shitty choice.

[ImLawBoy]

Other than a movie yet again pandering to the politically correct crowd by having a little girl beat a Predator

Christ, there are still 25 thousand films featuring buff macho men for you to watch for every 1 with a woman as the star. If the story is good, I don't give a shit if the star is male or female, white or black (or any other race), gay or straight.

I'd take it a step further and say that I do care about those elements in a movie, because they can help to make a better story. Do we really need to see this generation's version of Ahnold (or, God forbid, Ahnold himself) battling a Predator again? Been there, done that. In this case, adding the elements of a teenage girl in a Native American tribe (And why was just the gender singled out as pandering to PC and not the NA setting? But I digress . . . .) may very well make this movie watchable vs. a retread of what's already been done. I'm still skeptical, but at least this version has me interested.

[Zarathud]

I don’t care who they cast as the victim/prey, only that there be a good story. Getting bent out of shape over who is playing a role is stupid culture war bullshit.

[Blackhawk]

Other than a movie yet again pandering to the politically correct crowd by having a little girl beat a Predator now this looks good.

I'd fork the other comments and add that sometimes what is seen as pandering is actually correcting an imbalance. "Frank - you've gotten to go first four times in a row now. This time it's Suzie's turn."

Except in this case Frank has gone first tens of thousands of times. Shouldn't Suzie get a few extra turns for a while?

[hepcat]

Also, just another reminder, this is Amber freakin' Midthunder we're talking about.

Spoiler:

[hepcat]

It may just be mostly studio shills, but apparently they debuted Prey at SDCC to rave reviews.

Have I mentioned how damn great Amber Midthunder is?

[Hamlet3145]

Just FYI, Prey on Hulu is the best Predator movie since Predator. Mega bonus points for staring Amber Midthunder from FX's Legion.

"If it bleeds, we can kill it."

IMDb: : Prey
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt11866324/

[stimpy]

As I started watching this tonight, my first thought was why am I watching this at home? Why was it not even given a theatre release?
I was pretty stoked for it.

After watching it, I can see why it wasnt released in theatres.

It was good, but rather slow and not very action packed.
Some scenes were good, but as an overall movie? Average at best.
Not even close to Predator.

I think one of my major beefs with it was it was touted as being a Predator without the hi-tech gear.
Ummmmm....not.
Had it been, I think it would have been alot better.

[EvilHomer3k]

As I started watching this tonight, my first thought was why am I watching this at home? Why was it not even given a theatre release?
I was pretty stoked for it.

After watching it, I can see why it wasnt released in theatres.

It was good, but rather slow and not very action packed.
Some scenes were good, but as an overall movie? Average at best.
Not even close to Predator.

I think one of my major beefs with it was it was touted as being a Predator without the hi-tech gear.
Ummmmm....not.
Had it been, I think it would have been alot better.

I would agree that it was a bit slow. I didn't mind that too much but it never felt suspenseful (they revealed the predator almost immediately). Overall, it was pretty predictable. Some of the scenes were good but most were quite predictable and overall the movie felt a bit formulaic. There wasn't enough action for an action movie. I enjoyed the action scenes that involved the brother significantly more than the main character.
One of my biggest complaints was the

Spoiler:

Scene where the brother said he was done and then just kind of stood there waiting to be killed. It felt like the scene in the Simpsons where Pookie said "I have to go now. My planet needs me'" It wasn't well done.

Contrary to Hepcats love for Amber Midthunder I don't find her action scenes to be very good. The legion clip he put up looks bad. The action scenes with Amber in Prey are better but just okay. I don't dislike her but just never felt like her action scenes were well done and that's where this movie falls the most for me. I honestly would have liked to see a lot more action scenes with the brother. They were much more exciting than Amber's.
Overall, it's a decent movie but as stimpy said, not even close to the original.

[coopasonic]

I really enjoyed Prey. I would have happily seen it in the theater in the before times.

[hepcat]

I’m going to watch it later this week. Was at Gencon so wasn’t able to see it when it debuted. But I’m hopeful it’s going to be good since the reviews are almost all overwhelmingly positive.

Stimpy not liking it makes me even more sure I’ll enjoy it.

[McNutt]

I finished this and agree that it's the best Predator film since Predator.

That's not saying much.

It was fine, but the story was merely a slight variation of the original. It really offered nothing new and I can't see me going any further with this series.

edit - autocorrect

[Scraper]

I finished this and agree that it's the oar Predator film since Predator.

That's not saying much.

It was fine, but the story was merely a slight variation of the original. It really offered nothing new and I can't see me going any further with this series.

I really enjoyed the movie and completely disagree that it didn't offer anything new for the series. I'm going to spoiler my reasons why:

Spoiler:

1. It is the first Predator movie where the Predator is actually the Prey throughout the entire movie. The Predator didn't know it, but the main character sure as hell did, the entire movie she is hunting it and trying to figure out how to kill it.

2. The setting was completely new and desperately needed in the series. For one thing there were no modern weapons, no vehicles, no technology. Just Native Americans and the tools they had at their disposal in the 1700s (I won't count the weapons the French brought in, as they mostly sucked).

3. Having a female lead was definitely new and a welcome change. One that I'm sure people will wrongly call "woke".

4. It is also the most scenic move in the Predator movies with several instances where they deliberately show off the landscape. Which I appreciated.

[McNutt]

I'm not disagreeing with you, Scraper. What you said is correct. I should have said it didn't offer enough new for me to keep me interested.

Keep in mind, I'm the guy who doesn't understand how there is any draw to more Jurassic Park movies. Dinosaurs get loose. Got it.

[hepcat]

Keep in mind, I'm the guy who doesn't understand how there is any draw to more Jurassic Park movies. Dinosaurs get loose. Got it.

That I can completely understand. Although I would add the caveat that the Jurassic Park movies just have dumb stories, mostly (after the first one, that is).

I believe you can confine yourself to the basics of a source film and still succeed with a sequel if the story is good. That's what I'm hoping for with Prey. While I wish all films would continuously evolve into even better films that take risks (The second Alien film, Aliens, being the prime example), I can appreciate films that don't take such risks, but do give me characters I like in a setting that's fun and with a story that is interesting and/or entertaining.

I also take the complaint about a lack of action with a grain of salt. The first Predator wasn't exactly John Wick levels of action. It was "80's action". That is not a complaint, mind you. I just think the action films we have today have been heavily influenced by such things as The Matrix and the ensuing influence of martial arts films from overseas that changed the action from "pew pew/punch punch" to more "kick kick/flip flip" (if that makes sense). They're more frenetic. An action film in the 80s was (mostly) simple brute force vs. brute force. Action films of today are more choreographed dance in many ways. And again, that's not a complaint. I love both 80s action and current action films for what they are. But viewing the original Predator after watching something like John Wick, you're going to be surprised at how much less "actiony" Predator feels.

[rittchard]

I really enjoyed Prey. I would have happily seen it in the theater in the before times.

Samesies!!!!

I guess my only "complaint" would be that it's a little hard for me to buy that this young, relatively inexperienced girl could "realistically" (whatever that means) take on a Predator at all, when in the past the Predators seem to be so far advanced over any opponent. Of course that's what makes the movie interesting, but I think in the back of my head I was expecting there to be some sort of equalization factor. Like maybe he was somewhat injured, or she had magic powers, I don't know.

Spoiler:

I guess losing his helmet might be the "equalization" I was looking for, but to even get to that point is pretty hardcore. I'm also not 100% sure how she did the trick at the end to have him target himself, but it was cool nonetheless.

Oh and one of the big Predator themes is that they don't usually consider non-hunters a threat. Yet here it was established she was definitely hunting him to some degree, but there were certain parts it seemed like he let her off like she wasn't a threat. Or maybe I imagined it?

[Scraper]

I really enjoyed Prey. I would have happily seen it in the theater in the before times.

Samesies!!!!

I guess my only "complaint" would be that it's a little hard for me to buy that this young, relatively inexperienced girl could "realistically" (whatever that means) take on a Predator at all, when in the past the Predators seem to be so far advanced over any opponent. Of course that's what makes the movie interesting, but I think in the back of my head I was expecting there to be some sort of equalization factor. Like maybe he was somewhat injured, or she had magic powers, I don't know.

Spoiler:

I guess losing his helmet might be the "equalization" I was looking for, but to even get to that point is pretty hardcore. I'm also not 100% sure how she did the trick at the end to have him target himself, but it was cool nonetheless.

Oh and one of the big Predator themes is that they don't usually consider non-hunters a threat. Yet here it was established she was definitely hunting him to some degree, but there were certain parts it seemed like he let her off like she wasn't a threat. Or maybe I imagined it?

Without spoilers, no you didn't imagine it. In the past they didn't see people as threats if they didn't have a weapon on them. Same thing in this movie, they specifically show the predator focusing in on weapons prior to killing several people, or in the animal cases it would wait until they show themselves to be a predator to other animals. So I think the movie held true to that concept.

[stimpy]

Spoiler:

For the record, I wasnt expecting John Wick levels of action. But I was expecting to see more of the Predator's short comings, given that the setting was in the early times. Having him show up with all of that technology just made it way more improbable that knifes or arrows were going to do any substantial damage. I mean....he does get killed with his own weapon, after all...... To me it would have made for a much better movie had the Predator been at a somewhat similar disadvantage weapon and armor-wise. Maybe showing the early development of both our weapons and theirs.

[hepcat]

The Predator race has always had a goofy technology tree. For all their advanced knowledge, their weaponry is pretty basic. Sure, it looks cool...but all we've ever seen is weaponry designed for one on one encounters. You KNOW they have to have super death rays that can wipe out entire villages...but they never show them. I'm guessing that's by design as their culture appears to be entirely derived from intercepted Earth broadcasts of the Sportsman Channel.

p.s. Am I the only person here who liked Predator 2? I suspect I am.

[Scraper]

The Predator race has always had a goofy technology tree. For all their advanced knowledge, their weaponry is pretty basic. Sure, it looks cool...but all we've ever seen is weaponry designed for one on one encounters. You KNOW they have to have super death rays that can wipe out entire villages...but they never show them. I'm guessing that's by design as their culture appears to be entirely derived from intercepted Earth broadcasts of the Sportsman Channel.

p.s. Am I the only person here who liked Predator 2? I suspect I am.

I haven't watched it in a while, but I did enjoy it back in the day. Danny Glover doing his underdog hero thing is hard to beat and then add in Bill Paxton and you have yourself a good start.

[stimpy]

The Predator race has always had a goofy technology tree. For all their advanced knowledge, their weaponry is pretty basic. Sure, it looks cool...but all we've ever seen is weaponry designed for one on one encounters. You KNOW they have to have super death rays that can wipe out entire villages...but they never show them. I'm guessing that's by design as their culture appears to be entirely derived from intercepted Earth broadcasts of the Sportsman Channel.

p.s. Am I the only person here who liked Predator 2? I suspect I am.

The Predator in 1 had a nuke. Pretty sure not much was left after that.
Except, of course, Ahnold.

[hepcat]

Yeah, but it wasn't intended as a weapon. It was a self destruct option to prevent humans/other races from finding any evidence of the Predator race. Although in later films, that seemed less a concern, until eventually they were basically strolling through Walmarts without their helmets on.

The only weapons they use against their prey are just the one on one stuff we've seen so far. I think that's by design as it's all about the hunt, obviously. Human hunters don't use grenades and machine guns when hunting for trophy kills. Well....the ones that aren't morons who should be kicked out of the gene pool, at least.