Orang Ikan. Enemigos

No pun intended - since Predator came out many moons ago (decades actually) any movie that is close to what it did, will be compared with it. You know: if it bleeds, we can kill it. Same applies here and again no pun intended. Just saying for arguments sake and all that.

Now I do not remember the budget that Predator had, but it was big budget (Schwarzenegger just to name one of the actors in it) - and this right here is anything but. So if you consider the budget this had, this is really well done! And while the story may not have many surprises, the effects work as intended. Also the run time is short enough - so I don't think anyone will be annoyed at any point. Action and stunts are good too - the make up/costume is also quite good ... yes you can tell it is a human in a suit ... but suspension of disbelief is needed with most movies anyway, this is no different in any regard.

Just go along with the ride ... not a holiday vacation of course.

The look of the creature in this movie is inspired by Creature from the Black Lagoon but it is nowhere a pg13 creature.

The creature attack scenes r solid n so are the practical effects.

Thankfully nothing is shot in the dark n none of the shaky cam stuff.

The kills are very brutal.

Decapitations, heart removal, slashing via claws, etc.

The creature ripping apart the jaws of a big fat crocodile will remind King Kong ripping apart the jaws of a dinosaur in the Peter Jackson version.

The lead actor Callum Woodhouse looked a bit similar to Michael Hall of Dexter fame.

The Japanese actor showcased some good sword skills.

What can you say when the scrip is obviously one of Bruno Mattei's old leftover Preditor rip offs, literally whole scenes ... In this day and age how on earth could this get passed as anything other than a pastiche ? ... But no, sense of humour is totally absent ... Its well filmed and acted ... It isn't written, its some dreadful cut and paste job ... The creatures are quite good, though obviously a guy in a suit, which is cool in my book ... The pacing is awful, it draaaaaaaaaaags from the start ... What should have been a fun romp creature feature is just handled far too seriously and it totally ruins it ... Just a complete waste of time and money when they obviously had enough money to make something decent ... Main problem must have been obvious from pre production ... Who green lit this and didn't have the suss to see that it could have succeeded with a bit of work from a decent writer and a director that knew what he was doing.

Despite of never having heard about the 2024 movie "Orang Ikan" (aka "Monster Island"), of course I opted to watch it as I had the opportunity here in 2025. I am a big fan of all things horror after all.

The storyline certainly sounded interesting as served through the synopsis, however I have to say that the actual movie itself, well not so much. Sure, it was watchable, and there was potential, but ultimately it was a tedious and generic movie.

I was not familiar with a single actor on the cast list. The acting performances were not particularly outstanding or memorable, which was a shame, as the movie had a very small cast ensemble, and thus was depending on the acting performances to carry a certain weight of the movie.

The effects in the movie were okay, and I did like the creature design and the way that they made the aquatic creature look. It definitely helped keep the movie afloat, pardon the pun.

Ultimately then "Orang Ikan" is not a movie that I would recommend you to waste 84 minutes on watching.

My rating of writer and director Mike Wiluan's 2024 movie "Orang Ikan" lands on a generous four out of ten stars.

I recently watched the Japanese film 🇯🇵 Monster Island (2024) on Shudder. The storyline follows a group of war criminals whose boat explodes, leaving them stranded on a remote island in the Pacific Ocean. But they're not alone-something deadly hunts them, picking them off one by one. Where is this creature from, and can anyone survive it?

The film is written and directed by Mike Wiluan (Buffalo Boys) and stars Dean Fujioka (Fullmetal Alchemist), Callum Woodhouse (B&B), and Alan Maxson (V/H/S: Beyond).

There was a lot I enjoyed about this film. The practical effects were fantastic, and I especially loved the creature design-it had a strong Creature from the Black Lagoon vibe. The gore and kill scenes were impressive, but the CGI was hit or miss. Explosions, fire, and blood effects didn't quite land and pulled me out of the moment a bit. The story itself was very straightforward and lacked imagination, and by the final act, it started to lose steam.

In conclusion, Monster Island is a solid monster movie that mixes old-school creature feature charm with modern special effects. I'd give it a 6.5/10.