Tough good beginnings
There is a group of films that take a moment to gain momentum and gain the favor of viewers and critics. Although it seems almost impossible in retrospect, the Predator found itself in this position near its premiere . Despite the promising attendance (in the opening weekend alone, the film earned over $ 12 million, returning a large portion of the production budget), the critics received a rather cool reception. The production was accused of substantive emptiness, repetitiveness and the pretext of the plot, there were complaints about the unclear motivations of the predator and the residual psychological profiles of the characters. However, there were also those who appreciated the film, paying attention to those aspects that in the future were to secure it a well-deserved place in the canon of American genre cinema and the status of a cult work.
However, the Predator was close to never seeing the light of day (or rather the light of a projector in a dimmed room). Newcomers were involved in the production; the director, then 36-year-old John McTiernan, had only one title on his artistic account – low-budget ($ 2.3 million), crushed by critics horror film Nomads , and the script was born in the minds of the brotherly duo – Jim and John Thomas. The first versions of the script – then under the title Hunter(English hunter) – established at the beginning of the 1980s, no studio was interested in the proposal of unknown magazine writers. The brothers themselves were involved in various activities at that time – they taught at school, dug ditches, worked as carpenters or lifeguards on the beach. The urban legend has it that the Thomass were inspired to write this story by a joke circulating in Hollywood circles at that time, according to which Rocky’s opponent in the next, fifth installment of the box office series could only be a newcomer from another planet. There is no evidence that a popular joke was involved in the brothers’ creative process, but it was allegedly one of the main factors in purchasing the rights to the script by 20th Century Fox. The producers even wanted to cast Sylvester Stallone in the lead role …
Source: looper.com
Trouble in the tropics
The lead role was eventually offered to Arnold Schwarzenegger (the producers today maintain that it was their first choice), who at the time was already recognizable not only as a multiple Mr. Olympia, but also a distinctive actor – after his breakthrough appearances in two parts of Conan The Barbarian and the box-office TerminatorJames Cameron. The strict selection of projects in which he wanted to participate was also becoming a legend. The former bodybuilder saw himself as a future big star, so he chose only those scenarios that had the potential for megahit status. After reviewing an early draft of the Thomas brothers’ script, Arnie proposed a significant change; the idea of a balanced one-on-one duel between an American commando and a predator not from this Earth seemed unlikely to him, so the creators decided to expand the cast with the entire commando team, including Carl Weathers (Apollo Creed from the Rocky series ) or the charismatic wrestler and veteran of the Vietnam War, Jesse Ventura.
The design was slowly taking on the shape we know it today. Still, the key element was missing – the title hunter. This role was initially offered to Jean-Claude Van Damme. The creators hoped to use its advantages – agility and knowledge of martial arts – to create an antagonist who is a real predator, someone like a cosmic ninja. It soon turned out, however, that the dimensions of the Belgian actor paler compared to the taller, more muscular stars; Van Damme himself often complained about the uncomfortable, quickly overheating costume in the Mexican sun, as well as the fact that his face would not appear on the screen for a second. Ultimately, the Belgian said goodbye to production. He was replaced by the measuring 220 cm Kevin Peter Hall. The image of the Predator has also completely changed – the first versions of the costume designed by Richard Endlund resembled an oversized mantis and did not have the effect that the creators intended. The final design of the monstrous disguise came from the stylus of Stan Winston, who was already working with Arnie onTerminator , the idea for the final shape of the characteristic, ghastly jawbone of an alien was to be suggested to the artist by James Cameron during the flight.
The shooting period in the Mexican jungle is remembered by both the crew and the cast as a real hell on Earth. Production at all times was marked by logistical, health and organizational problems. To mention just a few, producer Joel Silver cites a rapidly shrinking budget ($ 14 million initially allocated to production was only enough to make 2/3 of the film, after which the crew had to stop shooting to raise additional funding), delays due to a conflict of schedules involved in production stars and difficult conditions on the site. To make matters worse, a large proportion of the team on site developed severe stomach problems; the local water supply was inoperative, and the tap water was not suitable for drinking without boiling it first, which the hotel staff informed the filmmakers only after a week of work. The next shots were shot in a great hurry, between a few dialogue lines and a sprint to the nearest toilet. Despite the difficulties, the shooting was finished in June 1986, and almost exactly a year later – on June 12, 1987 –Predator hit the screens of American cinemas. The rest, as they say, is history …
Source: stanwinstonschool.com
A hunter-worthy edition
More than 30 years after its premiere, the film is still a great watch. Pure entertainment, undisturbed by unnecessary rhetoric – the Predator is a ideless predator, hunting and maiming its prey for the sheer pleasure of killing. There is a feeling of being trapped and trapped by an unknown enemy; The photos taken on the site and the practical special effects portray the subtropical jungle as a trap, a trap with no exit in which highly trained commandos – the most alpha of all terrestrial predators – are eliminated one by one by an opponent who surpasses them in all respects. Thanks to this, the entertainment value seems universal and timeless.
A treat for collectors and fans of the “hellish ugly” (to cite one of major Dutch’s many memorable issues) is the Blu-Ray edition distributed on the Polish market by Galapagos Films. In addition to the movie itself (remastered to HD 1080p quality), the album includes over two hours of extras: behind-the-scenes materials, deleted and unsuccessful scenes, a photo gallery and profiles of the creators. The Predator profile is, in turn, a compendium of knowledge about the cosmic predator, describing various aspects of the equipment and abilities of the iconic character. Those who are hungry for knowledge can be enriched by a director’s commentary or a special historical and film-related commentary prepared in the form of subtitles (unfortunately not translated into Polish). The icing on the cake, however, are longer materials – Evolution of the genre(the only material with a Polish translation) focuses on the cultural phenomenon that Predator has become and the impact it had on future authors (e.g. Robert Rodriguez, who repeated the genre formula of the film years later in From Dusk till Dawn ), while If It Bleeds, you can kill him is a half-hour report on the production of the film , made on the occasion of the 15th anniversary of the premiere of Predator . The screening itself can be held in several language versions, but most of the add-ons have not been translated.
We would like to thank Galapagos Films for the copy of the film
