Prey

Prey should be retitled The Stupid Family Goes to Africa. If one took this film seriously, which would be a mistake, one could say that this dysfunctional family was responsible for the deaths of several persons who would have been just fine if this family hadn't come to the Dark Continent to make it even darker. Knowing nothing about the private lives of lions, I can guess that the plot was probably highly inaccurate as I cannot imagine why a pride of lions would set their sights on these silly people when there are lots of zebra and wildebeest running around. As I sat open-mouthed(with awe at the lousy direction) waiting for the ending, I felt certain that a film this bad would have to end with one of the most offensive of movie clichés and indeed it did when Peter Weller said, "Let's go Home." This is what I would have said at the beginning of the movie if I had seen it in a theater.

Judging from the reviews here, I didn't expect much so I was somewhat pleasantly surprised. In a cold winter evening in Sweden it can be pretty nice to see a movie set in the beautiful South African landscape. The story is not much to say about. It's basically "Cujo" but with lions instead of a St Bernard Dog. By far not a great movie, but a pretty entertaining and exciting 90 minutes. Seen to the budget the movie looks pretty good. The acting is also OK, but it could have been a better movie if the script would have been more believable. But that is often the case with this type of movies and it didn't bother me that much.

This film pretty much sums up the problem with modern B-movie making. If Prey were made in the seventies, you could bet your bottom dollar that it would have been a gritty exploitation classic; but here in 2007, it's merely a predictable horror yarn where you can pretty much guess everything that's going to happen. The plot concerns a woman and her husband's two kids that get trapped in the middle of the savannah when their safari car breaks down and their guide is killed by lions. From there, it pretty much stretches the climax of Cujo out over eighty odd minutes. There are a few subplots, which involve things such as a family struggle as the daughter doesn't like her father's new wife, and the father himself sets out to save his family 'at all costs'. The film lays all it's cards on the table right from the beginning as we are let into the secret that not a single one of the 'beautiful' central cast is going to come to any harm at all, and that's very annoying as all you actually want to see is them getting eaten alive!

It's annoying that this film is terrible as there's actually a basis for a decent film in the middle of all the sap. There aren't that many horror films about big game, and a seriously good film could be made out of the idea of a bunch of people being stuck in Africa's lion territory. Director Darrell Roodt, who has a lot of experience in making films that nobody sees, fails to make the audience believe that his central cast are in any danger throughout the film; and this is a major flaw as a movie with one selling point needs to make sure that it makes that selling point count! The film doesn't have any atmosphere; the locations look nice, but nothing is made of it and really, anyone with a video camera could have made this film. Peter Weller is the only 'draw' where the cast is concerned, and he's not a big enough draw to ensure that the movie doesn't fail. To be honest, I don't like him much anyway. It doesn't take long for the audience to guess how this film is going to end; and indeed, that is exactly how it does end. The ending made me cringe for all the wrong reasons. There's a fair bit of blood, but other than that; this film has nothing in the way of positive elements, and I don't recommend it!

True story or not (and I'm sure plenty of the facts are manipulated) There is nothing in Prey that we have not seen before. Its generic formula and a certain lack of credibility/scientific accuracy certainly do some damage but they don't make the movie unwatchable.

It certainly could have been worse. For a start, it places a certain value on character, something that many b-movies care little for. There is no obvious reason why we should be rooting against the Newman family, who get screwed while on an African safari.. Their guide is attacked and killed by a lion while escorting the youngest Newman on a pee break. The hapless family is forced to hide and wait in the lousy little tour jeep, until Mr. Newman shows up (he's working construction on a local dam) Meanwhile, three hungry lions are waiting patiently outside.

So the film doesn't have us disregarding the protagonists, that's a start. another advantage is the lions being real. There is no five cent CGI in this picture to distract us. Well, some of the blood is clearly digital, but most of it is make up. The movie does have it's share of gore, yet nothing too unrealistic or severely overdone. Prey is shot in a heavily saturated colour scheme and because blood is the only red in the film, it really stands out. (although it is certainly not the only film to try this). The acting quality is nothing to be proud of, but it suspends disbelief enough. As long as it doesn't sound like the characters are reading off a teleprompter, I'm fine with that.

So where then does the movie go wrong, well in the same way that many of these films have, it has been done before. Prey is one in a million, and the only possible distinction for one to see is its protagonists being a lion, not a common creature feature creature. If lions sound interesting, my recommendation would be the Ghost in the Darkness.

A father (Peter Weller), his new wife (Bridget Moynahan), and his two children (Carly Schroeder and some boy) go to Africa, where he is overseeing the construction of a large dam. One day as his family goes on safari without him, they decide to go off the road and end up stranded in a field full of bloodthirsty, man-eating lions. That's a bummer. In a country without cellular reception or decent police, how can they be found?

I watched this film because I felt obligated as a horror reviewer to tackle it. Not because it was something I thought would be any good. Usually -- and this is no exception -- my instincts are correct. They found a way to take lions -- the kings of the jungle -- and make them seem like just lazy, overeating cats. I really couldn't care less that a family was surrounded by them (especially since the family does everything possible to dig themselves a deeper hole).

There isn't much good to say about this film, but at least the cast included two good choices: Wisconsin native Peter Weller (still best known for "RoboCop"), and Carly Schroeder, who I recall seeing on "Dawson's Creek" some time ago and telling my friend Kristy that this girl was going to have a bright future. I guess I made a mistake -- I never dreamed she'd end up starring in bad no-budget films.

For the first part of the film, this seems like a weaker version of "Wind Chill" or "Penny Dreadful" due to the idea that a person or small group is stuck in a car surrounded by harsh situations. Is this a new trend in horror? I hope not. At least it's short, but not short enough. And by the way, did this film need to be even 84 minutes? Couldn't it have been written as some special episode of "Hannah Montana" or something?

I didn't like the mother and step-daughter fighting, and the bratty stepdaughter archetype... boring. If I see one more film where the daughter blames her step-mom for everything wrong in the world, I'm going to scream my head off. No matter what happens in this film, the new wife is the enemy.

I really disliked the "lion vision". I have complained and complained and complained so many times in my reviews about "snake vision" and "vampire vision" and "pinata vision"... and this is no exception. I don't care that lions see things differently from humans, and I have no interest in seeing some lame effect to tell me where the lion is. Go ahead and give me "lion cam" but don't give them a special lens. That's just unoriginal and lame.

Every intelligent thing you could do, these people avoid -- they drive too fast, they run and scream from lions, yell for no reason when no one can hear them, go off the designated road to find animals... dumb dumb dumb. I don't feel bad for them in the slightest. The only part of this film that was at all worth watching was the run-in with the natives. There was a strong tension that had me on the edge of my seat waiting to see how they were going to play out a racially-charged rape scenario. And they took it where I never expected them to go with it!

Please don't rent this film, and absolutely don't buy it. I don't want these people thinking they did something right so they can make "Prey II" or some other "When Animals Attack" garbage. This film will go to the cheap bin and then never get a second printing, and I think that's the best thing one could wish upon this waste of my time.