I can't believe that there wasn't a writeup here! I'm not sure when this movie came out in the US, but it's been out in the UK for about three weeks. Unless I've missed something and there's already tons of nodes about it...


This isn't going to be one of those ultra-factual nodes, listing the entire cast of Blade II or the exact running time and decibel levels. I saw the movie last night and loved every minute of it, so I've decided to node it. This will mainly be my opinion of the film, the things I enjoyed and the things that I found highly dubious; not a synopsis or complete review. I've been waiting for the film to come out ever since seeing Blade a few years ago, and I really wasn't disappointed. If you haven't seen it and intend to, stop reading NOW. And then go see it.

First off, Blade II begins with an huge advantage over the original -- it has a plot. Yes, yes; Blade supposedly also had a plot. Really, it didn't, just another new suit on an old formula. Arguably Blade II is just as formulaic, but it does it so much better; it kept me guessing up until the very end. But let's face it: we're not there for the plot.

That's right, we're there for the bone-crunching, blood-spurting, vampire-exploding action! There are no words to adequately describe this: Wesley Snipes is a god, and the choreographer/computer graphics teams are demi-gods. Blade has more weapons than James Bond and some really nasty gadgets (most of which he uses once and promptly throws away); not to mention a load of cool new moves that would make Li Mu Bai start to sweat. There are moments where I began to wonder how killable Blade really is, compared to the hordes of enemies that he vanquishes without batting an eyelid. That's one of the only faults, aside from some hard-to-follow action sequences: the fact that Blade is too good.

Those are my major problems with the movie. I was really glad to see Danny John Jules in something other than Red Dwarf, although Blade's "allies" could have done with a little more personality; once again, quantity was chosen over quality. I still admire the Blade films for a different slant on the vampire myth (seeing it as a virus rather than something more mystical) and the action is, well, to die for. Some things are more unbelievable than others, but let's face it: you're watching a film about a seemingly invincible half-vampire set on saving the world again, what's impossible?



Some of the better speaking moments (in paraphrase, unfortunately):

  • One of Blade's vampire allies lunges for him, but he parries and counterattacks...


  • BLADE: ...and now you've got an explosive device stuck to the back of your head!


  • WHISTLER: It's no use. They took all of our weapons, Blade -- even your sword. (Maybe I'm being picky, but surely the sword would be the first thing to take? Shouldn't Whistler say something more like: "They took all of our weapons, even that silver toothpick you keep inside your big toe."?)



  • BLADE:You're human.


  • FAMILIAR: Barely -- I'm a lawyer.