History Film / Predators

** Despite the supposed CanonDiscontinuity, the Berserker Predator's jawbone decoration is actually a [[Franchise/AlienVsPredator Xenomorph's]] and the Tracker Predator bears acid blood burns on his mask.

* AntiHero: With the exception of Edwin, most of the main group are this to varying degrees. Cuchillo, Mombasa, Hanzo, and Stans are all [[NominalHero Nominal Heroes]] who only work together for mutual survival whereas Royce is an UnscrupulousHero and Isebelle and Nikolai are more PragmaticAntiHero.

* AntiHero: With the exception of Edwin, most of the group are this to varying degrees. Cuchillo, Mombasa, Hanzo, and Stans are all [[NominalHero Nominal Heroes]] whereas Royce is an UnscrupulousHero and Isebelle and Nikolai are more PragmaticAntiHero.
* ArmiesAreEvil: Inverted. In a group that includes criminals, terrorists, and psychopathic killers; Isebelle and Nikolai, both of whom are enlisted soldiers in their respective countries' armed forces, are not only the most respectable but the most morally decent and mentally stable out of the lot of them. Royce was a former soldier as before going freelance and while he has his jerkass moments, in the end he regains a bit of his old moral center.

* ArmiesAreEvil: Inverted. In a group that includes criminals, terrorists, and psychopathic killers; Isebelle and Nikolai, both of whom are enlisted soldiers in their respective countries' armed forces, are not only the most respectable but the most morally decent and mentally stable out of the lot of them.

* AntiHero: With the exception of Edwin, most of the human characters fall into this. Cuchillo, Mombasa, Hanzo, and Stans are all NominalHeroes whereas Royce is a UnscrupulousHero and Isebelle and Nikolai are more PragmaticAntiHero.

* RealityEnsues: With the guns, at any rate.
** Royce's automatic shotgun blows through ammo like a hooker through coke, and Hanzo's Beretta only holds fifteen rounds. Both run out of ammo about when they should, and the characters are forced to improvise. Cuchillo's guns also run dry after one extended burst, forcing him to draw his sidearm.
** Isabelle's finely-calibrated--and thus finicky--sniper rifle jams in the midst of a fast-paced gun fight. Highly likely in the dirty, humid jungle environment they were in.
** Awesome weapons and firing stances like {{BFG}}s and Dual Wielding have very bad aim. All the shots from the hip burn through ammo with very few bullets actually hitting.
** [[spoiler: Edwin]] is able to take down [[spoiler: Isabelle]] with a potent neurotoxin and the element of surprise. But after [[spoiler: Royce]] deduces [[SerialKiller what he is,]] and sees him coming, [[CurbStompBattle he destroys him pretty handily.]] Someone with no combat training just can't stand up to a seasoned ex-commando without some kind of edge.

* NotSoDifferent:

* ArtisticLicenseBiology: Edwin identifies a plant as ''Archaefructus liaoningensis''. Not only does it not resemble ''liaoningensis'' at all, but the entire Archaefructus genus has been extinct for millions of years. [[note]] An earlier draft of the script would have had Edwin point that out as yet another weird thing wrong with the preserve, but that got cut [[/note]] He also identifies it as incredibly poisonous, but no current findings suggest that.

* BoomHeadshot: Isabelle on one of the "dog", to save Edwin.

* ContinuityNod: Isabelle is the only human who knows about the Predators, because she's read the reports detailing events of the original movie.

* InnocentBystander: While the other abducted humans are military, {{Yakuza}}, criminals, or the like, Edwin is just some poor shmuck doctor snatched from his way to work. [[spoiler:[[SuspiciouslySpecificDenial In fact, there is no reason at all for him to be on the planet, and he isn't a serial killing sociopath or anything like that.]]]]

* IncestSubtext: Implied with Stans toward his sister. Sure, having a picture of your sister is one thing, but having a nude woman tattoo of her on your body dedicated to her is another.

-->'''Stans''':You know what? This is bullshit! I want a fucking gun! [to Cuchillo] Come on man, give me a gun! You got two fucking guns! [Looks at Royce and Isabelle, [[{{Beat}} seems to think better of it]], turns to Nikolai] Come on Russian, you got a big fucking gun!

* NotSoDifferent: Royce says this almost verbatim to Isabelle, then taunts her with
--> "You do it for your country so you don't have to admit you like it."

** Royce says this word for word when they are attacked by the alien dogs.

* TheCastShowOff: Lewis Ozawa Changchien has practiced kendo since he was five years old, and insisted on using that style in Hanzo's fight.

* TheWorldsExpertOnGettingKilled: Noland. Interestingly, while the Predators have a "sportive" attitude about the killing for most of the movie, the one that finds Noland kills him immediately with his shoulder cannon at maximum power, so maybe they were simply ''that'' pissed off at him.

* WhatYouAreInTheDark: Where the whole planet is "the dark." Mostly, [[RousseauWasRight they pass the test]], though a couple characters prove they're too selfish or crazy.

** Notably defied, as the Black Predators are exiled criminals who don't play by the rules. Noland has managed to kill at least two Predators, but unlike past media, he's still being hunted rather than being allowed to go home [[spoiler:and Tracker doesn't even try to be sporting with him]]. Also [[spoiler:despite managing to kill Berserker, the cast are treated the same as Noland was and left for the next hunt.]]

* TheReveal: The humans are trying to figure out where they've been dropped. Cue the AlienSky, with a gas giant and multiple moons!

* SociopathicSoldier: Half the cast are soldiers, but only Mombasa is part of a militant group known to have openly participated in atrocities and war crimes and he admits as much. Royce also hints that he's a merc because he likes killing. Averted with Nikolai, who's a fairly stand-up guy with two children he obviously loves, and was selected by the Preds because he was on some top-secret mission in Chechnya with ''Spetznaz'' Alfa Group.

* RareGuns: The Atchisson Assault Shotgun (AA-12) makes its second appearance on the big screen.

* MultinationalTeam: American (including the poor Army sod at the beginning), Mexican, Sierra Leonean, Russian, Japanese, Israeli.

* PlanetaryNation: Subverted when it's revealed the Predators have different tribes who have been at war with one another. We see at least two.

** Numerous to the earlier ''Predator'' films, from the entire plots itself, the Marine who set traps and the discovery of dead Special Forces surrounded by ammo casings, the references to the first film's plot, Laurence Fishburne's character, the lighting used in the Predator ship and the flares (it mirrors shots and lighting in ''Film/{{Aliens}}''), among numerous others.

Creator/RobertRodriguez had put together a script for the film way back in 1994 before Fox finally greenlit the project 16 years later. Directed by Nimród Antal, it stars Creator/AdrienBrody, Creator/TopherGrace, Alice Braga, Creator/LaurenceFishburne, Creator/WaltonGoggins, Louis Ozawa Changchien, Creator/MahershalaAli, Oleg Taktarov & Creator/DannyTrejo. It was co-produced out of 20th Century Fox by Robert Rodriguez, who is [[DirectorDisplacement frequently misidentified as the director]].

* EarthAllAlong: The characters assume.their on Earth until they realize that the sun hasn't moved in the several hours they've been there.

** Zigzagged with Noland. He was the SoleSurvivor from a previous ''season'', but then is the next one to die after joining the main group.

** Not to mention the white Special Forces guy they find already dead and the white guy who's chute doesn't open.

* OneOfTheseIsNotLikeTheOthers: All the characters are seasoned killers, except for the doctor, it seems. Royce even [[LampshadeHanging lampshades]] it.

** Notably defied, as the Black Predators are exiled criminals who don't play by the rules. Noland has managed to kill at least two Predators, but unlike past media, he's still being hunted rather than being allowed to let go [[spoiler:and Tracker doesn't even try to be sporting with him]]. Also [[spoiler:despite managing to kill Berserker, the cast are treated the same as Noland was and left for the next hunt.]]