Friday night entertainment, but not REALLY an Alien movie

Like most people, I always liked the Alien movies. In fact, the original Alien movie is probably the only horror movie that really scared the living day lights out of me! Even when I saw it a second time (with annoying commercial breaks), it still scared me. Later, I learned that the alien monster or "xenomorph" was originally designed by a Swiss surrealist painter with an interest in psychoanalysis, H.R. Giger. Perhaps that's why the monster is so scary. Clearly, Giger and the rest of the production team have tapped into our worst nightmares and subconscious fears.

I liked the Predator movies as well, so the concept of a crossover had a certain appeal.

I know that the critics dissed "Alien vs. Predator", and apparently many hard-line Alien fans didn't like it either. In my opinion, however, "Alien vs. Predator" is an underrated movie. It could have been much worse! Sure, it's not as good as the real Alien movies, but it's perfectly acceptable. If you like constant action, monsters, and a little bit of science fiction, that is!

What's missing from the crossover movie is that special magic touch that made the original Alien movies so memorable. The characters aren't very interesting either, not even the main hero Alexa Woods. Also, the continuity between "Alien vs. Predator" and the other Alien or Predator movies isn't very clear. While this will no doubt annoy the most devoted fans, I don't think the regular viewer will mind. I certainly didn't when I saw the movie on Swedish TV just the other day! Once the action gets started, and the bizarre aliens and predators start fighting each other, with the humans stuck in between, you tend to forget that it's not "really" an Alien movie.

The plot of "Alien vs. Predator" is quite simple. A research team discovers an underground pyramid in the Antarctica. The pyramid was built by a previously unknown civilization, combining traits of the Aztecs, Egyptians and Cambodians. It's all bunk, of course. My father (who was watching the movie with me) kindly informed me that the Aztecs didn't have the kind of calendar depicted in the movie. Those were the Mayans! I kindly informed him that the Egyptians, of course, never practiced human sacrifice...

Then, the fun begins. It turns out that the pyramid is used by the "hunters" from the Predator movies for initiation rituals. The young hunters must prove their worth by fighting "the snakes", which turn out to be the Alien monsters. Unfortunately, the Aliens need to kill other life forms to reproduce (they are parasites). For that purpose, humans are fooled into the sacrificial chamber of the temple, only to be infected and killed by Alien "facehuggers". When the mature Aliens burst out of the dead human bodies, the hunt can begin! Of course, something goes terrible wrong, the captive Alien Queen escapes, and soon it's not so clear who is the hunter and who is the hunted... The female hero, Alexa, is forced to co-operate with an Alien-infected Predator to stop the Alien Queen from reaching the surface. Meanwhile, the Predator space ship plans to "drop the big one" in case they fail.

The fate of human civilization hangs in the balance...

The best movie around? Hardly. A worthy prequel to the really real Alien movies? Probably not. But as Friday night entertainment goes, I'd say it's about as good as it can get.