A Worthy Sequel

Rating: 6/10 (14 January 2004)

Wesley Snipes returns as the day-walker in this worthy sequel to the original Blade. The plot is less formulaic than the first one, which is especially necessary in sequels when the newness of the originality of the characters disappears. This time Blade teams up with select vampires to hunt a more deadly threat to both vampires and humans. There's tension between Blade/Whistler and the vampires, and Blade starts to fall for one of the vampires. There are several more good plot turns that follow. The action is fierce and swift, even more so than in the first movie. However, the vampire lore takes more of a back seat in this film, and the effects are far more intrusive and grotesque in this film. Kris Kristofferson once again plays the crusty Whistler, although his reappearance in this film is somewhat dubious. Ron Perlman is a worthy adversary as one of the select group of assassins. Donnie Yen does a good turn as the sword wielding member of the group; I would like to have seen more of him. The third Blade movie will be coming in Spring I believe, and it will certainly be worth seeing. **1/2 of 4 stars.