10 Movies That Didn't Understand What The Fans Wanted

Fans were understandably ecstatic when Shane Black was announced as both writer and director of a new Predator reboot-sequel, which Fox hoped would be the first entry into a new blockbuster franchise.

With Black fresh off the success of Iron Man 3 and his penchant for pithy dialogue firmly reinforced, this really felt like a film that couldn't miss. On paper, at least.

Sadly, the end result lacks almost all of Black's personality as a filmmaker - bar a few inspired one-liners - suggesting that the production ultimately ran away from him.

But as much as one wants to criticise the studio, who forced Black into third-act re-shoots after disastrous test screenings, the movie as a whole feels more like a student trying to copy Black's style than an actual Black original itself.

From the awful jokes about Tourette's to a woefully misguided subplot about autism and a cringe-worthy CGI Predator that feels like a studio-mandated addition, it never becomes more than a cynical box-ticking exericse.

This is no truer than in its hysterically awful finale, which unleashes an Iron Man-inspired "Predator Killer" suit while teasing the genesis of a new cinematic universe.

All fans wanted was some likeable characters, some gory violence and the return of the iconic titular antagonist.

But nowadays, it's all about teasing future attractions before the box office numbers are even in, ramping up the stakes with ugly digital creations, and basically doing everything to cast as wide a commercial net as possible.