Half Past Dead 2
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Features
• AC-3
• Closed-captioned
• Color
• Dolby
• DVD-Video
• Subtitled
• Widescreen
• NTSC
In Theaters : 2007
DVD Release : 15 May, 2007 |
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Half Past Dead 2 Customer Reviews
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♥♥♥♥♥ |
Half Past Dead. Cup Half Empty.
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There was a time when Hollywood only made sequel's to movies that were good in the first place and actually warranted a follow up. Now, with the ever increasing direct-to-video market near critical mass with once action giants Seagal / Van Damme / Lundgren lugging it out on a digital landscape - it seems that all bets are off and any movie can have its own spin off or franchise potential. Forget the original's quality - let's just do a follow up, film it quickly and get some studio to release it!
Which brings us to Half Past Dead 2'. Where the original Half Past Dead' had an amusingly awkward title that always raised a smile and filled its by-the-numbers running time with a sweaty lookin' Steven Seagal hooking up with a bevvy of rappers to protect Alcatraz from Morris Chestnut and his "Matrix-lite" team breaking in. It was hardly an oscar calibre production and easily ranked as a forerunner to where Seagal's mindset is regarding his recent video output. However, why let that little problem stop producer Andrew (yeah, he starred in Munchie!) Stevens from bankrolling a sequel and dumping it on an unsuspecting action video hungry public?
However, on this occasion - Stevens couldn't convince the Lord Seagal to return in orange jumpsuit/buddy rapper duties (he was obviously eyeing up another The Foreigner sequel) and had to find a replacement to fill the shoes of a non-acting hard man type. Well, there's plenty out there but lucky for him - step up Bill Goldberg. He, of WCW fame and Van Damme rival in dull sequel Universal Soldier: The Return' turns up in the main lead role and although he looks the part in his wife beater and jeans, hardly injects his character with anything like, er . . . you know, character. Its like watching a piece of meat in a vest hitting people in the head with the odd expletive thrown in for good measure. You almost get the impression that the producers are dangling dollar bills infront of the camera prompting him to move from scene to scene. Granted, he looks the part - but, unfortunately the part is beyond him. Quite the opposite has to be said of Kurrupt - who delivers a bright and breezy performance and actually pushes the movie along. Without him, the movie would be devoid of any atmosphere whatsoever and thank goodness he returns from the original. Kudos too to Angell Conwell, who plays Kurrupts love interest - she brings a sassy attitude to the movies' more duller moments.
I won't bore you with the story (there isn't really one to speak of), except it features the usual assortment of prison fighting cliches, overlong riot sequences, dumb prison guards/wardens and the always classic canteen bust up! You can almost tick off the cliches rolled out, so keep a pen and paper handy.
Tony Plana also returns from the first movie in an extended cameo, and this kind of continuation is where this sequel succeeds to a certain point. Its good to have actual characters from a previous instalment turn up in this day and age and actually helps this movie. All-in-all, not the best movie around, but certainly not the worst. The cast are generally good (Goldberg needs a little more coaching in the acting department, but his physical presence is impressive and you believe he could seriously cause some damage) and Art Camacho directs what is obviously a low budget with a strong, assured hand. The picture quality isn't the best though, and most of the darker scenes lose some "dramatic" quality.
Its on par with most other direct-to-video releases of late, except it actually features a better cast and nicely handled fisticuffs. For a movie that doesn't need a sequel, this movie has turned out better than expected. However, that's hardly a recommendation... maybe worth renting before you buy. |
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Half Past Dead 2 dvd movie.