Honestly, if you mention Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem—often just called Aliens vs. Predator 2 by the casual crowd—to a room full of sci-fi nerds, you’re going to get a lot of groans. Most people remember it as "that movie where I couldn’t see a single thing." It’s basically the 2000s version of that one Game of Thrones episode where everyone was squinting at their TVs. But behind the murky lighting and the divisive reviews, there is a weirdly fascinating history to this movie that explains why it exists and why it nearly killed two of the biggest franchises in Hollywood history.
The film landed in 2007 with a massive weight on its shoulders. Its predecessor, the 2004 AVP, made money but felt like a neutered, PG-13 version of what fans actually wanted. When the Strause brothers took the helm for the sequel, they promised a return to the R-rated glory of the original Alien and Predator films. They gave us gore. They gave us a Predalien. They even gave us a nuke. But they forgot to turn the lights on.
The Lighting Fiasco: Creative Choice or Total Disaster?
Let’s address the elephant in the dark room. The lighting in Aliens vs. Predator 2 is legendary for being terrible. You’ve probably heard the rumors that the directors did it to hide "bad suits" or "save money," but the truth is actually weirder. Directors Colin and Greg Strause were visual effects experts. They’d worked on huge projects and actually felt that showing the creatures in broad daylight would make them look like "guys in rubber suits."
They were obsessed with "mood."
In their minds, the Aliens should only be seen in silhouette, rain, and flashing lights. Cinematographer Daniel Pearl, who shot the original Texas Chain Saw Massacre, actually argued with them on set. There are behind-the-scenes stories of Pearl trying to add more light so the camera could, you know, actually record an image, only for the directors to shut him down.
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Why it was so dark
- The "Guy in a Suit" Fear: The directors were terrified of the creatures looking fake if they were too visible.
- Red Camera Tech: There’s a theory they used early digital sensors that just didn't handle low light as well as they expected.
- Post-Production Tinkering: Some fans believe the film was artificially darkened even further in the editing room to hide the messy choreography of the fights.
The irony is that when you actually do find a high-brightness version or look at the production stills, the creature work by ADI (Amalgamated Dynamics, Inc.) is actually pretty stellar. The Wolf Predator is one of the coolest designs in the whole series. Too bad we spent half the movie looking at a black screen with occasional green blood splatters.
The Predalien and the Wolf: A New Kind of Rivalry
Despite the visual mess, Aliens vs. Predator 2 introduced the Predalien, a concept that had been floating around in comics and games for years. This wasn't just a gimmick. The "Chet" (the nickname the crew gave the Predalien) was a powerhouse.
It didn't just have the mandibles of a Predator; it had a totally different way of reproducing. It bypassed the whole "egg and facehugger" phase by barfing embryos directly into victims. It’s gross. It’s arguably the most "R-rated" thing about the movie.
On the other side, we had Wolf. Unlike the "teenager" Predators from the first movie who were just there for a rite of passage, Wolf was a professional. He was a "Cleaner." When the ship crashed in Colorado, he didn't come to Earth to hunt for sport; he came to erase the evidence. He used blue dissolving liquid, high-tech traps, and a whip made from a Xenomorph tail. Honestly, Wolf is probably the best part of the movie. He felt like a weary janitor who just happened to be a seven-foot-tall killing machine.
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Why the Human Characters Basically Didn't Matter
If you’re watching an AVP movie for the deep character development, you’re kinda in the wrong place. But even by those standards, the humans in Aliens vs. Predator 2 were... well, they were fodder.
The movie took a very "slasher film" approach. Instead of the high-stakes corporate intrigue of Prometheus or the military grit of Aliens, we got a small town in Colorado. We had the ex-con brother, the military mom, the pizza delivery guy, and the mean girl. It felt more like Friday the 13th than Alien.
This was a deliberate choice to make the threat feel "grounded" and "local," but it backfired because nobody cared when they got picked off. The movie is famous (or infamous) for its nihilism. It kills kids, it kills pregnant women in hospitals—it doesn't pull any punches. By the time the government decides to just nuke the whole town of Gunnison to solve the problem, most of the audience was just as ready to blow it all up too.
The Legacy of the 2007 Crossover
For a long time, this movie was the "franchise killer." After the lukewarm reception to Aliens vs. Predator 2, Fox put both series on ice for a bit. Ridley Scott eventually came back to do Prometheus, and Shane Black tried to reboot The Predator in 2018.
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But here’s the thing: in the year 2026, we’re seeing a weird resurgence of love for this era. With the success of Alien: Romulus and Prey, fans are looking back at the "dark times" of the mid-2000s with a bit of nostalgia.
Was it a "good" movie? Probably not. It has a 12% on Rotten Tomatoes for a reason. But it was the last time we saw these two titans go head-to-head on the big screen.
How to actually enjoy it today
- Watch the Unrated Version: It’s slightly better paced and includes a few more "clear" shots of the action.
- Adjust Your TV: Seriously. Crank the brightness and the gamma. Don't worry about the black levels; just try to see what's happening.
- Focus on Wolf: Ignore the teen drama. Follow the Predator's journey as he tries to clean up the mess. It’s a much better movie that way.
The "Requiem" in the title was supposed to be a funeral for the series. Instead, it became a cult artifact. It’s a messy, violent, too-dark experiment that proved one thing: you can’t just throw two icons together and hope for the best. You need a script, you need a vision, and most importantly, you need a light technician who knows what they’re doing.
If you’re looking to revisit the lore, the best place to start isn't the movies, but the 1990s Dark Horse comics that inspired them. They have the grit and the scale that the movies never quite captured. You can also check out the 2010 Aliens vs. Predator video game, which arguably does the "three-way war" better than any film ever did.