Prey (R), on Hulu
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This movie came out in 2022 as a Hulu Original, but I didn't see it until 2023, on the day it was released on DVD. (But I watched it on Hulu.) I suppose I could have put my review under either "science fiction" or "horror", but I think the best fit is "action". It's only the second web film I've put in that category since I broke my web film reviews into different categories. I find it a bit interesting that the first was The Princess, and both movies were among the first I've seen from 20th Century Studios (after they dropped "Fox" from their name). Anyway, I've heard nothing but good things about this film, so I'm not sure why I took so long to watch it. Except it is part of the "Predator" franchise, and if I ever saw any other Predator movie, it would have been so long ago that I don't remember it at all. And generally speaking, I'm not interested in that franchise, so I don't know if I'll ever watch any of the earlier movies. But there are a few interesting things about this movie, one being that it's set in 1719, and that it focuses on Comanche characters, and of course, the main character is a woman.

So, what can I say about the plot? There's a young woman named Naru who has been trained as a healer, but wants to prove herself as a hunter. One day she discovers tracks she doesn't recognize, and while the other hunters dismiss them as having been made by a bear, Naru is sure they're wrong. She sets out to find whatever made the tracks, and of course she turns out to be right: the tracks were made by an alien Predator, which kills other predatory animals, including humans. At one point she gets captured by French trappers, who eventually fall victim to the Predator, as do a number of Naru's own people. I don't want to spoil how it ends, or many details of what happens throughout the movie. But suffice to say, Naru is somewhat of a badass, in that she fares better against the Predator than anyone else in the movie does. (Not as much of a badass as the main character in "The Princess", I'd say, but still a great fighter, in her own way.) Honestly I can't help but compare this movie to "The Princess", and while I think this one is generally of higher quality, and I rated it slightly higher (two and 3 quarters as opposed to two and 1 quarter), I preferred the style of action in the other movie. This one at least has a bit more of a plot, but the plot still feels somewhat thin, to me. And I don't feel like I got to know any of the characters in this movie except Naru herself. Her brother, Taabe, is of some importance, but he still felt to me like nearly as much a cipher as the other hunters. At least he did the second-best of any character against the Predator, and helped establish character development for Naru. Anyway, I'm glad to have finally seen the film. I definitely liked Naru. And I probably liked this more than I would like any Predator movies set in modern times.