I want to be Blade for a day.... (Blade II (DVD))

Member Name: louise1971

Product:	Blade II (DVD)
Date:	04/04/02 (48 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Fast-paced, cool

Disadvantages: none

I loved the first Blade – blood, guts, great effects, fantastic fight scenes, so couldn’t wait to see Blade 2 – blood, guts, fantastic fight scenes. The same, yet so different.

As a kid, I was a bit obsessed with vampires (and gangsters, but I’ll leave that for the Godfather op!) – I used to go to sleep with my arms crossed over my body, and the duvet pulled over my neck. My mum drew the line at garlic though! So, I have seen pretty much all the vampire movies out – but I think that Blade and Blade 2 have the edge.

Obviously, films like this are an acquired taste – if you like action, great effects, quite a bit of gore and an extremely cool hero, then this is for you.

I don’t want to spoil the film for you, or bore you rigid, so I’ll give a brief summary of the plot.

PLOT 
For those of you who don’t know, Blade is a ‘Day Walker’ – he is half man/half vampire, after his mother was bitten by a vampire whilst carrying him. He controls his thirst for blood by injecting a special serum.

Blade 2 starts off with Blade hunting for Whistler (his sidekick from the original Blade film – at the end of the first film, Whistler was seriously injured and had been bitten by vampires, and we thought he had taken his own life). Scud is Blade’s new sidekick.

After the hunt for Whistler is at an end (after many twists and turns), Blade encounters two uninvited guests in his ‘home’. They are ‘assistants’ of the vampire overlord, Damaskinos.

It transpires that Damaskinos needs the help of Blade to fight a deadlier evil than he has ever faced before – the Reapers.

The Reapers are a mutated form of vampire who are hunting and infecting, vampires and humans alike. Reapers have none of the ‘glamour’ of normal vampires, and none of the sexual overtones. They are s
imply pretty nasty and must be stopped, as they are infecting vampires and humans with frightening speed.

Damaskinos has formed an army of vampires and has honed their fighting skills so that they should be pretty much indestructible. The original purpose of this vampire army was to hunt and kill every vampires worse nightmare – Blade.

So, the 8 members of the vampire army, along with Blade and sidekicks, embark upon an action packed, kick-a** adventure, whilst trying to rid the world of Reapers.

I felt dizzy watching the film – trying to keep up with the moves on show. As always, the fighting scenes are amazing – I might just take that kickboxing class now!

Since I don’t want to give away more of the plot, I’ll move onto the main members of the cast.


CAST 

Wesley Snipes – Blade
What can I say – he is the man as far as this role is concerned. Wearing body armour and optional long leather coat, he massacres vampires using swords, specially enhanced guns, and a funny boomerang thing with twin blades (ok, I don’t have a clue what it’s called!). In this sequel, Blade starts to show a different side – perhaps coming to terms with what he is, which he found difficult in the past (quite understandably).

Kris Kristofferson – Whistler
Now, I don’t really like Whistler much, but I am not sure you are meant to. I find his constant suspicions (mostly substantiated) and miserable demeanour a bit annoying. Although I think he can be forgiven, since his family were slaughtered by vampires. Whistler found a young Blade wandering the streets – he took him under his wing, and taught him how to control his thirst.
Kris Kristofferson pulls this role off pretty well – fine piece of acting.

Norman Reedus – Scud
New kid on the block Scud is a technical wizard, a rampant dope smoker, and
Blade’s new sidekick, rescued by Blade whilst being attacked by vampires. He treats the hunting of vampires as a bit of fun. Norman Reedus does a good job of making you warm to Scud, then dealing a startling blow….

Luke Goss – Nomak
Nomak is the original Reaper, and looks flippin’ scary. His story also has a few twists, making him a tragic figure in some respects (till you see him in action with a jugular vein).
And don’t mock, but Luke Goss is actually very good in this part – no boy next door looks here. You’ll be surprised.

Leonor Varela – Nyssa
She is the daughter of Damaskinos. A beautiful, exotic vampire, she almost seems to win the heart of our cool hero, Blade. She forms part of the vampire army sent to kill the Reapers.

Thomas Kretschmann – Domaskinos
As mentioned, he is the vampire overlord who formed the vampire army, with the original intention of killing Blade, then realising he needs Blade’s help. You don’t see him much in the film, but he is a major part of the plot.

I would recommend you go and see this film (had you guessed that I liked it?!). For me, Wesley Snipes makes Blade his own, and I can’t rave enough about the fast pace and excitement of the film. Although oddly enough, a man fell asleep next to me in the cinema while watching it – although that was maybe the trailers!

Summary: