Predator 2 (1990)

Very undervalued sequel suffering because of the first films success. Los Angeles is imploding with mayhem as gang wars fill the streets, an under pressure police force try to restore order, but both parties have another foe to worry about, a Predator is in town, and he's about to up the ante. Gone is Arnold Schwarzenegger, gone is John McTiernan, and gone is the jungle setting, so following in the foot steps of the ultimate beefcake movie that was Preadtor 1987 was an unenviable task it seems. Yet I personally feel that Predator 2 stands up to scrutiny as a fine entry into the sci-fi/action genre. Locating it among the urban decay of L.A. works real well, and pitting the Predator against a tough grizzled (but hardly giganticus beefcakeus) cop (Danny Glover) gives us a smart brains against brawn story. Also cutely is that director Stephen Hopkins and writers Jim & John Thomas have actually got the Predator cleaning up the streets of L.A., in fact another two hours of Predator hunt and kill tactics and crime in L.A. would have been completely eradicated! There is plenty of bloody snotty gore to appease fans of that persuasion, and it's nice to report that the characters on show do actually impact as part of the story. Voodoo magic man! It has a fine cast that reads like a who's who of action films, Danny Glover (Lethal Weapon), Bill Paxton (Aliens), Robert Davi (Die Hard), Gary Busey (Under Siege), Rubén Blades (Once Upon a Time in Mexico) & Maria Conchita Alonso (The Running Man), whilst Kevin Peter Hall dons the Predator suit and suitably kicks arse again. It's not genius, it's not even ground breaking, but Predator 2 is a fine and entertaining genre piece that sadly seems to forever be undervalued on internet forums. Who's Next? 8/10