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Prey
Movie

Prey

2022 • Action, Adventure, Horror

Woke Score
5
out of 10

Plot

Naru, a skilled warrior of the Comanche Nation, fights to protect her tribe against one of the first highly-evolved Predators to land on Earth.

Overall Series Review

Prey is a prequel to the Predator franchise, set in 1719, following Naru, a young Comanche woman who seeks to prove herself as a hunter against the gender-based resistance of her own tribe. The main narrative focuses on her journey of survival and skill development as she confronts an extraterrestrial hunter. The film strongly contrasts the resourceful and connected Comanche people with a group of ruthless, greedy French fur trappers, who represent the explicit human evil in the movie besides the alien. Naru’s ultimate victory is achieved through intelligence and observation, which is explicitly framed in the context of overcoming the 'patriarchal culture' of her society. The movie is a visually striking survival thriller, but its core themes are heavily filtered through an intersectional and feminist lens, setting up a woman of color's triumph over both primitive masculine brute force (the men of her tribe) and colonial white menace (the French trappers).

Categorical Breakdown

Identity Politics8/10

The film centers an Indigenous woman of color (Naru) as the heroic protagonist who must overcome both a space alien and the 'roughneck European settlers' (French trappers) who are shown to be cruel and greedy antagonists. The narrative elevates the non-white, Indigenous Comanche culture, which is described as 'fierce warriors,' while simultaneously vilifying the representatives of Western civilization (white male trappers).

Oikophobia8/10

The only direct representation of Western culture—the French fur trappers—are depicted as 'ruthless,' 'greedy and cruel' men who inflict needless suffering on animals and attempt to use Naru and her brother as bait. They are massacred by the Predator in a sequence that positions their destruction as an almost righteous cleansing. This villainous depiction of white, European colonizers directly contrasts with the romanticized and authentic presentation of the Comanche tribe.

Feminism8/10

The core plot is Naru's personal struggle against the 'patriarchal culture' and 'ingrained sexism' within her own tribe, who initially dismiss her desire to be a warrior, suggesting her place is in medicine or foraging. Her triumph is celebrated as a woman proving herself in a 'male-dominated field,' succeeding through superior observation and intellect where the men's reliance on 'brute strength' fails. Her success completes the *kühtaamia*, a male rite of passage, confirming her victory over traditional gender norms.

LGBTQ+1/10

The movie is set in a historical tribal community where the focus is on traditional roles within that society. There is no presence of alternative sexualities, gender ideology, or deconstruction of the nuclear family. The only significant relationship is the sibling dynamic between Naru and her brother, Taabe.

Anti-Theism1/10

The plot focuses on the Comanche warrior's journey and is informed by their own traditional spiritual practices and rites of passage, such as the *kühtaamia*. There is no explicit commentary, critique, or vilification of Christianity or other major organized religions, and the morality centers on survival, hunting, and tribal protection.