A new Predator flick just dropped on Disney + this week, and I was able to watch it with my wife over the weekend; Predator Killer of Killers.
Predator: Killer of Killers brings together a team with a strong history in genre film. Director Dan Trachtenberg, best known for helming 10 Cloverfield Lane and the re-energized and kick-assPrey, has a proven that he understands the key elements in monster movies are characters and creative action. Co-director Joshua Wassung has primarily worked in animation and visual development, helps bring Trachtenberg along for this feature. Writer Micho Robert Rutare, co-creator of cult-favorite mockbusters like Sharknado and Z Nation, brings his flair for high-concept chaos and genre-savvy storytelling. Together, their combined experience across horror, science fiction, and action genres delivers Killer of Killers as a strong entry in the Predator franchise, standing up there with Prey.
KoK is animated, and some stylistic choices seem a bit dated. The character design has a bit too much “Clone Wars” blocky-ness to them for my liking. But the action is fluid and dynamic while also using great creative camera angles that make the film fly. There is a good amount of blood and guts, and the animation doesn’t muddy it up with smore of dim lighting, so it’s not for kids.
Killer of Killers is an anthology, telling the tales of three visits to earth where the Predator hunts and battles a Viking war party, a Samurai and a Ninja, and a World War II air fighter squadron. It’s not quite the viral TikTok samurai film, but it’s not too far off either. All three stories deliver different angles, tell fun hunter tales while still being original and interesting, and they all feel like they exist in the same world as Predator, Predator 2 and Prey.
We both really liked it. I think Trachtenburg just gets Predator. I kind of hope that these films will earn him a shot at making something with the Xenomorphs to see if he can make something new with them. He has a viewpoint almost like a Mark Waid or Brian Michael Bendis, a comic book writer that understands what came before is important to building something new, and that for fans, that’s fun.
