Thirty-five years after the extraterrestrial monster movie “Predator” made its first outing, the creature is back in action in the upcoming film “Prey.”
Directed by “10 Cloverfield Lane” filmmaker Dan Trachtenberg, “Prey” is set in 1719 and sees “Predator” landing in the Northern Great Plains, ready to hunt.
Based on an original idea by Trachtenberg and Patrick Aison, the movie is the latest installment in the “Predator” franchise which began with John McTiernan’s 1987 movie of the same name starring Arnold Schwarzenegger.
Trachtenberg also revealed that the movie is set in the “Comanche Nation” tribe, and it features a cast comprised almost entirely of Native and First Nations actors.
Explaining his choice of the film’s cast, he said, “I thought, wouldn’t it be great to have Native Americans and Comanche specifically, who are so often relegated to playing the sidekick or the villain and never the hero, be the leads of a giant franchise.”
Prey fixates on a young Comanche girl named Naru (Amber Midthunder, Legion) from the Northern Plains of the early 18th century. She’s an aspiring hunter who refuses to adhere to her community’s gendered roles.
Though Naru fails to track down a troublesome lion, she finds something far more dangerous: a Predator, another one of pop culture’s iconic dreadlock trophy hunters. Ex-basketball star Dane DiLiegro suits up as this film’s Predator, a nameless villain who speaks only in ominous clicks.
As our protagonist, Naru is unlike Schwarzenegger’s Dutch in obvious ways: She’s shorter, leaner, and her clothes practically wear her more than she wears them. But through Amber Midhunter, whose piercing brown eyes pop atop her black war paint, Naru never feels like a spunky Disney princess — and she’s a lot more like Dutch than she’ll ever know.
Prey descends from an established film franchise. In ways not so obvious, it bears a lot of resemblance to the original that started it all. But its distinct characteristics, such as its modernist filmmaking, ensure it also stands apart. On its own, Prey is a remarkable portrait of bravery in the face of survival, and at just 90 minutes, it’s a taut action-thriller that feels old school yet exciting for a new generation.
