Blade II
Released March 22, 2002

Starring: Wesley Snipes
Actors: Kris Kristofferson Leonor Varela Ron Perlman 
Director: Guillermo Del Toro 
Rated: R (MPAA) (strong pervasive violence, language, some drug use and sexual content)
Run Length: 117 min

Reviewed by Peter Veugelaers Ó 2002
- Better than a cheese royale: buy one while its hot

 Blade II, the sequel to 1998’s Blade, is a straight forward tale of good verses evil, with a twist, that does not get overwhelmed with vampire jargon, like the year’s earlier vampire flick Queen of the Damned. It instead tells an understandable half-decent story with stylish flair.

 Blade, otherwise known as the Daywalker, who is half-human, half-vampire, played with detached cool and sophistication by Wesley Snipes, is requested to side with his vampire enemies in stopping a rabid vampire spreading a virus that will eventually wipe out humans, as well as vampires.

 Shades of Aliens is evident – Blade, like Signourey Weaver’s no-nonsense Ripley, leads a crew of cronies, called the Bloodpack, under his strict supervision, but within them is the bad apple who has got a grudge with authority.

 The quest lags a little in the middle, but regains momentum towards the final 45 minutes, which includes the predictable “shoot-out” between Snipes and his enemy.

 Blade II plays on the emotional and instinctual side rather than the intellectual. The style is fast, with exciting martial arts sequences; the tone is dark, complimented by off-orange and dark blue hues. Depth is implied, however, which adds to the film’s character. The ample gory material is not for the squeamish. They can even get away with pretentious one-liners and like all catch phrases they hold a degree of profundity as they are said with utter conviction. Of course, Snipes gets the best ones.