Robert Rodriguez presents a bold new chapter in the Predator universe. The film stars Oscar-winner Adrien Brody (The Pianist) as Royce, a mercenary who reluctantly leads a group of elite warriors who come to realize they’ve been brought together on an alien planet… as prey. With the exception of a disgraced physician, they are all cold-blooded killers – mercenaries, Yakuza, convicts, death squad members – human “predators” that are now being systemically hunted and eliminated by a new breed of alien Predators.

I had to do a double take when I saw the year this came out, I really feel like it hasn’t been 8 years, but here we are, 8 years later, and there hasn’t been another great Predator movie since 2010. Robert Rodriguez did a great job refining down the key elements of a good Predator story, even including Topher Grace as the stealth character to watch for his behavior in the background of scenes. Having him in the movie gives me the impression that the Predators are a much more intellectual species than you may assume from first impressions.