Movie reviews are not really my forte, so perhaps not the best way to return from my writing hiatus... but, I felt the need to share my thoughts after I thoroughly enjoyed watching Predator: Killer of Killers.
So if you want to be spared from all ensuing words below, just go and enjoy the movie. It's really worth a watch.
I think we can all agree, 2025 was a great year for predators. This, of course, includes the release of two back-to-back full feature films: Predator: Badlands and the animated film Predator: Killer of Killers. Both were written and directed by Dan Trachtenberg, who also wrote the story for Prey (2022) - another successful Predator feature, and 10 Cloverfield Lane (2017) - for which he won "Best New Filmmaker" Award from the Hawaii Film Critics Society.
That's it.
That's all he has done so far — and I must say - he gets it.
Well... almost.
I say 'almost', because in Predator: Badlands he broke my #1 rule for action movies: "Show don't tell".
When worldbuilding and storytelling relies too much on dialog between the characters (or worse: a monologue), it undermines the very 'action' aspect of an action film. It's simple: Don't talk me into believing — just show it to me. Even the protagonist’s character growth leaned so heavily on dialog with other characters (mind you, via translator device), that I checked out pretty early on. The action and the story itself was OK - a solid one-timer — but riddled with many "huh?" moments.
Still, Trachtenberg gets it, because Prey was a "show don't tell" movie through and through, and while 10 Cloverfield Lane relied heavily on dialogue, it was deployed cleverly to build psychological tension, not to spoon-feed us the story.
Then I watched the animated film Predator: Killer of Killers.
And here is where the creators really found the sweet spot — with spectacular worldbuilding, and compelling storytelling through visceral action and authentic dialogue.
This animated movie consists of three unique "human vs. Predator" stories that span centuries and cultures apart. In each story, a different Predator uses their classic invisibility camouflage and heat vision to stalk and hunt their human prey. The Predator's objective is to hunt down the strongest of the human warriors. Meanwhile, each warrior is presented with their own emotional backstories and unique circumstances that brought them to this place and time. While the Predators are only there for the glory of the hunt, the main protagonists are on a hunt of their own, that blinds them from seeing what they cherish most in life. Only when they become prey, they realize that their own pride was senseless, and survival comes at great cost.
The animation goes above and beyond what you expect form the Predator franchise. From a stylized visual storytelling, to dynamic battle choreography, to incredible use of the environment, with each protagonist turning it to their survival advantage. And don't even get me started on the brutal violence and the body gore - no details were spared.
As far as dialogue goes, not only is it kept to a minimum, it is also presented very authentically from each region of the world - with unique accents and native languages. Here, unlike Predator: Badlands, talking is meaningful, but the visuals and the musical score do all the heavy lifting.
And if that wasn't enough, the final story brings all three protagonists to fight against each other in battle arena on a Predator's world, and guess what, their personal translator devices don't help them at all - in fact, verbal communication becomes their handicap, so wasteful dialogues are abandoned and only raw instinct to survive through cooperation remains.
I don't know, maybe it's just my personal preference, but I'd like this to be a more prolific sub-genre of action movies. Perhaps the Predator franchise is safe in hands of filmmakers like Trachtenberg, who truly gets it. But can we have more movies where dialogue is meaningful and action does all the 'talking'? I really can't recall more than just a handful of movies that exemplify what I mean. Movies like Apocalypto, Conan The Barbarian, Quest for Fire, Mad Max, and Predator (1987) of course.
My bold conclusion here is that Killer of Killers is the better of the two Predator films of 2025.
If you already seen Predator: Badlands and liked it, this will be the 'cherry on top'. And if you hated it, then it will be your 'palette cleanser'. Either way, I hope you add Predator: Killer of Killers to your watchlist.
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As a token of gratitude for reading all the way through, I'm leaving you with this timeless gem:
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