Dan Trachtenberg is a name you should get familiar with. The director is responsible for the underrated 10 Cloverfield Lane, which he followed up by writing and directing Prey in 2022. That movie, the seventh to bring the Yautja to the big screen, revitalized the Predator franchise. Trachtenberg built upon the established lore and tropes of the previous films to deliver a story that felt distinctly “Predator” but also fresh. He did the same earlier this year with Predator: Killer of Killers. For his third outing in this universe, however, he’s made the bold choice to tell a new kind of story. In doing so, he may well have made Predator: Badlands the best Predator movie yet.

Unlike all the previous films, Predator: Badlands doesn’t follow the story of a group of humans being hunted by an unstoppable alien killing machine. In fact, there are no humans in this movie at all. Instead, we follow Dek (Dimitrius Schuster-Koloamatangi), a young Yautja warrior. Dek must travel to an incredibly dangerous planet and hunt an unkillable monster in order to prove himself to his father and avenge the death of his brother. Along the way, he meets a damaged synthetic named Thia (Elle Fanning) and must learn to work with and trust her if either of them is going to survive.

To get the obvious out of the way, there is little resemblance between Badlands and any other Predator movie. It has no real horror elements, opting instead to be a classic action/adventure story about a young hero coming into his own. It’s thrilling, often heartwarming, and much funnier than one would expect. I laughed out loud multiple times. Prey had some similar moments and ideas, but Badlands fully embraces the new direction.

Schuster-Koloamatangi and Fanning deserve a ton of credit for making it work. They are both excellent. Both Dek and Thia are fun and nuanced characters, and you can tell how much both actors enjoyed the roles. Their chemistry together is also off-the-charts. Never in a million years would I have guessed that an endearing friendship between a robot and a Yautja would work in a film. Now, all I want is more of it.

The world the characters inhabit is also beautifully realized. Breathtaking views are dotted at almost every turn with dangerous, imaginative alien creatures that give the planet a feeling of deadliness. I love that Trachtenberg goes out of the way to show us the viciousness of the wildlife even when it isn’t actively trying to kill Dek and Thia. The world, Genna, feels fully alive and real. It’s great.

I also liked that the story is brisk. Very little time is wasted, and every scene contributes something. The guiding principle of the film is “be as much fun as possible.” Trachtenberg wisely doesn’t allow long exposition monologues or melodramatic moments to ever get in the way of that.

If there’s a complaint to be had, it’s perhaps that the CGI and fight editing can sometimes fall flat. Most of the movie is so beautifully rendered that when the CGI is lacking, it’s extremely noticeable. The problems most often arise in the more complex action sequences. Trachtenberg tries to mask them with choppy editing and jump cuts, but it doesn’t really work. It just looks strange. These moments are few and far between, the vast majority of the film is fully engrossing, but they do happen.

A couple of editing problems aren’t nearly enough, though, to drag down an otherwise spectacular film. This is Predator like we’ve never seen it before; campy, sweet, funny, and a total blast. I’m sure that franchise purists could find things to complain about, but I can’t imagine why anyone would want to. Predator: Badlands just wants to take you on a fun adventure, and you’ll have a great time if you let it. Much like Dek, it may not be the perfect Predator, but it’s easily my favorite one yet.