Predator: Killer of Killers Review
Dan Trachtenberg seems like he’s on a one-man mission to resuscitate the Predator franchise. After delivering the action-packed Prey in 2022, Trachtenberg returns with the first of two films he has releasing from the franchise in 2025. Before we get Predator: Badlands – starring Elle Fanning – later in the year, Trachtenberg brings us an animated action film in the form of Predator: Killer of Killers.
The film follows three of the fiercest warriors in human history: a Viking raider guiding her young son on a bloody quest for revenge, a ninja in feudal Japan who turns against his Samurai brother in a brutal battle for succession, and a World War II pilot who takes to the sky to investigate an otherworldly threat to the Allied cause. But while all these warriors are killers in their own right, they are merely prey for their new opponent — the ultimate killer of killers.
After Prey was released and blew everyone away, there was clamouring online for more films set in different eras with a Predator doing battle with the likes of a samurai or a Viking warrior. They sure listened, and it has become a reality with Predator: Killer of Killers, albeit in the medium of animation, which actually works brilliantly for the story being told here. Live-action, even with the largest budget, has its limitations, and half the stuff we see attempted here in live-action would no doubt look garish. The brutal and insane action is brought to life through some stunning animation that only this medium could deliver without its limits, and there are some shots throughout that, quite honestly, belong in an art gallery.
It’s a thrill-ride from start to finish, Trachtenberg and Micho Robert Rutare writing an anthology film that moves along at such a pace and comes together in such satisfying fashion. Each segment brings a unique spin to the battle between man and alien; the Viking era offers the most brutality, the samurai era is rife with technicality, and the World War II segment takes the combat to the air. It’s honour that combines them all, and the finale is as engrossing as what came before, one easter egg in particular at the end, something that would have made a cinema crowd lose their minds.
The stellar voice work adds depth to these characters and the lore of each respective warrior, with Rick Gonzalez in particular as a pilot having a ball bringing his character to life. Never thought we’d hear Timo Cruz from Coach Carter take on such an iconic movie villain. Michael Biehn is a welcome surprise as another pilot and s the exclusive club of being in the Predator, Alien and Terminator franchises, ing Bill Paxton and Lance Henriksen.
If Dan Trachtenberg can continue to deliver such thrilling adventures within the Predator franchise, then just hand him the keys to all the future films. Here’s hoping Badlands is another hit because if so, we’d love to see him take on an Alien vs Predator film.
★★★★ 1/2
Streaming on Disney+ from June 6th / Lindsay LaVanchy, Louis Ozawa Changchien, Rick Gonzalez, Michael Biehn (voices) / Dir: Dan Trachtenberg / 20th Century Studios / 15
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