Aliens Vs Predator Requiem: Inside The Monster Shop by Alec Gillis and Tom Woodruff Jr with Chris Ayers (book review).
Of all my Alien/Predator films, ‘Aliens Vs Predator: Requiem’ is the least watched of the series. You can’t see much because so much is shot at night. As this book, ‘Aliens Vs Predator: Requiem: Inside The Monster Shop’, by Alec Gillis and Tom Woodruff Jr with Chris Ayers, shows, you’re missing a lot of detail, which is clearly a shame and probably why these unique crossovers never continued. Some directors have stated that when filming at night, it is essential to creatively use light rather than overlook it.
As detailed in this book, Gillis and Woodruff could only take a limited number of their people to Canada for filming, relying on local effects crews when there. This doesn’t deter from the quality and I’m sure both sides learnt from each other. The bigger problem was the rain and cold and costume damage. As Woodruff points out, the talc used to get the costumes on tended to clog up than do its job.
Oddly, there are few if any photos taken from the film itself. Should I say they might have been too dark to see much? Most shown are building the three types of xenomorph, predator and alienpred, as well as a selection of weaponry. For the model-makers of you out there, a lot of this will help you in working out your own designs or even those based off these three creatures even today. It does help if you have a seven foot two inch actor like Ian Whyte inside the Predator costume. In many respects, this is a fast read but what a lot of photographs to gulp at.
GF Willmetts
July 2025
(pub: DesignStudio Press, 2007. 127 page illustrated large softcover. Price: varies. ISBN: 978-1-93349-255-1)
