Director: Dan Trachtenberg
Starring: (voices of) Lindsay LaVanchy, Louis Ozawa, Rick Gonzalez, Michael Biehn
Certificate: 15
Run Time: 90 mins

Predator: Killer of Killers is the first of two Predator films releasing this year, an adult animated anthology film filmed in secret ahead of the live action Predator: Badlands. Dan Trachtenberg, who made the excellent Prey, is once again in the director’s chair (and is also behind the upcoming Predator: Badlands). This animated film is split into four sections – three which tell the stories of human warriors throughout various points of history who face off against a Predator and a final section which ties the preceding stories together. The first chapter, ‘The Shield’ follows a fearsome Viking queen Ursa (Lindsay LaVanchy), the second ‘The Sword’ is centered around a ninja (Louis Ozawa) in feudal Japan and in the third chapter, ‘The Bullet’, we see a World War II pilot (Rick Gonzalez) battle with Nazi fighters and a Predator.

Predator: Killer of Killers is an odd film – the three standalone stories are rather undercooked but the final section that then ties them together is rather excellent, with some fascinating concepts. The film is balls-to-the-wall action and holds nothing back when it comes to gore, which I’m sure many will appreciate.

But I like some meat to the bone, and the standalone stories feel as if they’re feature film concepts that have been distilled into their final climax Predator face-off sequence. They feel like distinct films that Trachtenberg wanted to make – much like how Prey was a period piece – only condensed into 20 minute shorts. As a result, character development is virtually non-existent and the leads of each respective story feel like caricatures. Micho Robert Rutare’s rote and on-the-nose screenplay certainly isn’t helping proceedings (fortunately Patrick Aison, who wrote Prey, is also writing Predator: Badlands). I also found the animation style rather disorienting, although considering the story Trachtenberg tells, this would have been one very budget-heavy live-action feature.

Although the lack of substance of the three stories failed to properly engage me, it’s the final section which really elevates proceedings. How Trachtenberg ties these stories together is like a child playing in a sci-fi sandpit, with a thrilling set piece and some tantalising teases that hint towards the future. It’ll be interesting to see if Predator: Badlands further develops these concepts – and that’s what Predator: Killer of Killers really functions as in a nutshell – a teaser towards something more exciting in the future.

Predator: Killer of Killers is an ambitious film in the series, and you have to hand it to Trachtenberg for his innovative concepts. But the three separate stories that make up the majority of the film’s runtime don’t cut the mustard and are sorely lacking in a reason to care for the characters, partly down to how they are condensed into 20 minutes without any substance and a generic script. Fortunately, it’s not all for nothing if you can stick out the first hour.