Monday 19 January 2015

Blade II (2002)


Blade is back, and this time he has a new plague to fight off. However, he will not be doing this alone as he will be doing this in alliance with the Blood Pack, a posse of vampires trained to hunt him. The plague in question is in the form of super vampires, dubbed 'reapers', which feed on both humans and vampires.



This movie has gone some way from the crud computer work of the 1998 movie Blade. This movie demonstrates better computer work which blends with the footage. But it does work too well in distorting several characters that perform somersaults and crawl on walls.

 

Let's also consider the amount of noise in the movie: the reapers' screeching, Priest's howling which even Reinhardt could not endure, gunshots, grunts during sword fights, and roaring and grunting during the final battle. This amount of noise can be greatly unbearable in a cinema or at home while watching on cinema television system.



So this movie also seems to bear more violence than its predecessor. More blood is shed; some organs are torn out; not to mention the spikes draining Blade's blood after tearing his bone and flesh! If anyone can stomach this, then they must have guts!

 

Blade spends more time with his vampire allies, even though he hates all vampires. But one who reaches out to him is Nyssa, Eli Demaskino's daughter. She tries to talk some sense into him and treat vampires as his own race. After all, Deacon Frost did the same thing because humans cannot accept a sociopath whose pretext is just to cause untold mayhem and risk people's lives.

 

Speaking of organs, the autopsy scene must have been so realistic that I thought they really cut up a human and rearranged his organs. Even I would be shaken like Scud if I were asked to move the reaper's jaws.



The villain in this movie is Jarad Nomak. He was created as a vampire without the hereditary weaknesses. He is considered a failure when he is strong against silver, garlic and EDTA but weak against sunlight. This villain still proves to be stronger than Deacon Frost and Blade combined, but less bloodthirsty than his victims. Jarad Nomak is a predator to both vampires and humans, and Blade must see to it that he is dealt with.

  

Blade is stronger, swifter and deadlier than before. His dedication to protecting the human race gives him the more reason to use his gifts rather than loathe himself perpetually. His arsenal of weapons throws so much light into the vicinity that it blinds in a flash; his bullets tear through the vampire targets and ashes them; his sword cuts more than steel. One short note: Blade more rarely uses his sword in this movie than he did in the first movie, which does take the fun out of it. But at least his UV flash-bang grenades offer something more to dazzle his enemies.

 

So Blade shows more humor, has more charisma and takes charge in leading a group without faltering. This must be his high point after the first film where he is taken seriously and learns what it feels like to be a leader. This movie goes further to cover more ground by giving each character a piece of the action and their chance to deal with it. Modern camerawork and up-to-date graphics must be some things to look out for in this movie.

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