A far superior film compared to the first...

Rating: 8/10 (28 May 2002)

The first Blade was a travesty. It was an unexcusable mess compiled together with quick cuts, flashing technology and a never-ending soundtrack of techno music. It had no sense of joy or adventure; it was just a slice and dice film with no purpose and blood oozing out of every frame. Now, Blade 2 is here with its quick cuts, flashing technology and a never-ending soundtrack of techno music. The only difference between the first Blade and the second is, the second one is good.
Blade (Wesley Snipes) is half man and half vampire. He chooses to side with the humans, rather than the vampires. He hunts down vampires, kills them, and they explode like a Fourth of July firework. In the first one, Blade got his weapons specially made from Whistler (Kris Kristofferson), but Whistler met his untimely demise. But, in actuality, the vampires took Whistler's body and kept it and nursed him back to health so he could become a vampire. Blade is searching the entire world and finally he finds Whistler. Vampires confront Whistler and Blade. They don't want to kill him, they want him to help them. There's a new breed of killing machine, which feeds off of humans and vampires. They want to put aside their differences and try and stop these Reapers, as they are called. The Reapers appear to be normal, but they have a `scar' on the chin that opens up to a giant mouth with about nine tounges.
The reason Blade 2 is better than the fist is because Blade 2 has a story to back up its action scenes. The first was just an endless killing spree that got boring after about five minutes. Blade 2 has substance to match with its style.
Wesley Snipes, who returns in the role, has about a much enthusiasm as a rock. But, he does give Blade the certain edge he needs. Kristofferson has much better material to work with this time and provides a lot of comedy relief when its needed and keeps his mouth shut when the time is inappropriate. Director Guillermo del Toro knows how to mix computer effects when the time is right. The first Blade had an overkill of special effects, but in Blade 2 uses them to perform stunts the human body is incapable of doing. Del Toro also has a way with the camera. When Blade spins, the camera spins right along with him.
Blade 2 will probably be the best popcorn movie of the year. It differs from Resident Evil in that Evil was just an exercise in special effects and zombies. Blade 2 is a smart popcorn movie that knows its audience doesn't always need everything spelled out. Resident Evil, which I did enjoy, had the plot planned out around the action. Blade 2 has the action planned into the plot so it makes sense and fight scenes just don't break out for any good reason. Blade 2 is extremely above average when it comes to popcorn movies. If only Tomb Raider would have been this good.---------8/10