ScreenFish

where faith and film are intertwined

Michael-Keegan Key

5.01 Bringing THE PREDATOR Back to Life

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With the return of The Predator, writer/director Shane Black wants to take you back to the 80s for some good old-fashioned violence and horror… but do other stereotypes and issues come with that? In the Season 5 premiere, Steve welcomes Peter Adourian to talk about The Predator‘s views on hyper-masculinity, mental health and throwback films in the modern era.

Want to continue to conversation at home?  Click the link below to download ‘Fishing for More’ — some small group questions for you to bring to those in your area.

5.01 The Predator

Thanks Peter for joining us!

DF-14814_R2 – A deadly Predator escapes from a secret government compound in Twentieth Century Fox’s THE PREDATOR. Photo Credit: Kimberley French.

TIFF ’18: The Predator

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From the outer reaches of space to the small-town streets of suburbia, the hunt comes home. The universe’s most lethal hunters are stronger, smarter and deadlier than ever before, having genetically upgraded themselves with DNA from other species. When a boy accidentally triggers their return to Earth, only a ragtag crew of ex-soldiers and an evolutionary biologist can prevent the end of the human race.

Directed by Shane Black (The Nice Guys), The Predatoris filled with his trademark humor and broken but likeable characters. Having actually helped write (and cameo in) the original film, Black is clearly familiar with—and passionate about—the franchise. Whereas other entries into the canon have often deviated from the charm and energy of the original film, Black is determined to transport his audience into the past to give them an experience similar to Arnold’s iconic piece and, in many ways, he almost succeeds. Built on the charm of his band of military ‘Loonies’, the film is often engaging and funny in the midst of its trademark violence. Characters like Coyle (Keegan-Michael Key), Nebraska (Travante Rhodes) and Baxley (Thomas Jane) are entertaining as the rag-tag band of misfits forced to take on their alien assailants. What’s more, the film has also delivered upgrades to the space-baddie himself, giving him an even more lethal edge. (And, of course, a highlight of the film remains the obligatory hunt in the woods, complete with shadowy kills and invisible attacks.) Packed to the brim with action and alien gore, The Predatoris a throw-back to the 80s action genre that Black knows the fans are craving.

But…

Admittedly, this is where things get awkward. While Black’s film invites the audience to take a trip back in time, it also exposes so many of the issues that were prevalent in the films of that time. Led by Quinn McKenna, the ‘Loonies’ are engaging… but they also reinforce the gender stereotypes of a bygone era. Female characters, while usually intelligent, are frequently pushed aside by their masculine heroes. Whether it is the fact that Emily is left exclusively to her home or to take care of the children (as is Olivia Munn’s Casey on several occasions), the women simply seem… outdated. (In fact, while on a mission, Casey actually shoots herself in the foot with a tranquilizer at one point, a plot point that is used for laughs at her expense by the men.) The argument could be made that the film is poking fun at these stereotypes, there is no evidence to support the theory. While one is likely not looking for depth of feminist theory in a film about The Predator, it also showcases what was missing at the time when viewed in a post-#MeToo world. Since all films are a window into the culture, it’s hard to blame the original film for being ignorant of what we’re speaking about today… but Black’s film should know better.

 A deadly Predator escapes from a secret government compound in Twentieth Century Fox’s THE PREDATOR. Photo Credit: Kimberley French.

In the end, The Predator mostly delivers what it promises and serves as a suitable addition to a franchise that is over 30 (!) years old. Black believes he knows what his audience wants to see: violence, R-rated laughs and invisible killers.

One simply wishes that he might have also upgraded his sensibilities as well.

 

Hotel Transylvania 2: Can Our Hearts Really Change?

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Dracula (Adam Sandler), Griffin the Invisible Man (David Spade), Murray the Mummy, Frank (Kevin James), Mavis (Selena Gomez), Wayne (Steve Buscemi) and Johnny (Andy Samberg) in Columbia Pictures' HOTEL TRANSYLVANIA 2.

Adam Sandler’s schtick is well-practiced. Whether it’s Grown Ups, 42 or whatever other Happy Madison Productions flick he is pumping out, we haven’t seen much new material over the last decade. Still, periodically, Sandler chooses to show us his depth, whether it’s in a live action film or something like Hotel Transylvania 2.

Yeah, I said it.

Count Dracula’s (Adam Sandler) daughter Mavis (Selena Gomez) weds human Dennis (Andy Samberg) and, a year later, their son is born. As the boy ages, the dialogue between Dracula and Mavis becomes multi-layered by covering topics such as where the couple should live, how the boy should be taught, and whether or not the kid is a monster or a human. All of this is set against the backdrop that includes Frankenstein (Kevin James), Wayne the werewolf (Steve Buscemi), Griffin the Invisible Man (David Spade), and Murray the mummy (Keegan-Michael Key). (For the record: this is several times funnier than the first one.)

When Dracula sends Mavis and Dennis off to vacation at Dennis’ parents’ home, he and his crew take the boy on a trip to all of their old haunts, literally. Dracula is convinced that he can help the boy’s fangs come in and prove that he is actually a vampire, not a human. This is the overall plot of the movie, which will also wrap Dracula’s father, Vlad (Mel Brooks), into the storyline. Humor? Yes, it’s here in graveyard spades, but how about the various issues that Robert Smigel and Sandler’s storyline raises?

Dracula’s desire to keep his daughter close reflects a parental desire to protect, but it’s also that part of growing up that makes parents cringe: change. I’d often propose that people are allergic to change in the first place, no matter what kind, but every parent risks losing their children forever once they leave home. Sandler might not have his finger on the pulse of what makes America laugh, but he certainly understands the heart of a parent.

Heart. That’s another issue that the script plays with. Mavis tells Dracula early in the sequel that he may have changed his mind about humans, but he hasn’t changed his heart. Dracula’s open-mindedness, his ‘conversion’ to equality, has only been intellectual; his internal processes and view of the world has not truly been molded into a new being. This is the crux of the film, and the issue that easily translates spiritually.

It is genuinely hard to change our minds. Whether it’s dealing with a new found affinity or geographic transition that results in rooting for a new team (especially a hated rival) or the burning social issues of homosexuality, religion, abortion, gun control, etc., we struggle to think in a new way. But how often have we been convinced and yet still inwardly, we doubt?

Over and over again, we are told in Scripture that God will give us a new heart (Ezekiel 36:26, Psalm 51:10). In 2 Corinthians 5:17, Paul writes that “if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!” He knew that we could change our minds, but we needed help to change our hearts. It’s true for us as Christians, and it’s true for Dracula, who needs a child to show him what is important.

Isn’t it amazing how a child can change our hearts?