*PREDATORS, out at UK cinemas from 8 July*

Starring: Adrien Brody, Laurence 'Fishy' Fishburne, Alice Braga

Keeping it simple and joyously rehashing all the '80sms' that made 1987's original Predator a stonking action flick, this belated (and second) sequel dumps a bunch of hand-picked killers on a mysterious planet to partake in Mr. Predator's new hunting game. And that's pretty much all the plot that's needed here, folks. Basically it's like watching a game of paintball with aliens and real death for 100-odd minutes.

The un-Arnie-like Adrien Brody stars as the self-enforced leader of the human pack, a mumbling, grizzled mercenary with the loyalty of a marriage bigot loaded up with notes in a Thai brothel. He's joined by a Sierra Leone death squad member, a Yakuza samurai, a death row rapist, and a sassy yet bold Special Forces heroine, who's the 21st century's sexier answer to Aliens' Vasquez (played by City of God's stunning Alice Braga).

What makes Predators an entertaining watch is that, under the guidance of Robert 'grindhouse' Rodriguez (Desperado, Planet Terror), it harks back to the franchise's '80s roots, swaying away from the usual po-facedness associated with most modern-day action flicks, remakes and sequels. No attempt to create a masterpiece here, this is a raw cat-and-mouse thriller, low on premise and caked high with cool-guy one-liners, unfamiliar mood and chew-your-finger-to-the-bone tension.

Even some inconsistencies in the predators' tactical play (they're normally cheating bastards who overuse their invisibility cloaks rather than somone who fancies a toe-to-toe square-off with a swordsman), which goes against their mantel as sophisticated, near-invincible huntsman detracts little from the action. In fact, its flaws only make it feel more like the Arnie original.

A bit like the last Rambo flick, this is a sweet, sharp hit of nostalgic-y, irony-free macho thrills. Not fantastic by any means, but very fucking fun.

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