Most inferior sequel ever

Rating: Null/10 (28 November 2002)

The first MI was aimed at an audience already out of high school and with an IQ at least over 50. It was real brain candy and stylishly directed by DePalma. MI2 has none of it all. It's just one big ego-trip for Tom Cruise. He is the über-James Bond, doing all this amazing stuff, killing a lot of people in the process and of course getting the girl in the end.
This movie combines the worst recent Hollywood action movies have to offer : totally unbelievable action scenes, an almost complete lack of plot, and a hero escaping all this mayhem with barely a scratch. One of the most ridiculous scenes features Cruise on a motorcycle being chased by an armada of cars full of guys shooting at him with machine guns. Imagine this in real life, only one bullet has to hit either him or the cycle and its quits. And what about the mask changing thing again, the lame romance, Anthony Hopkins (?) and so on. Halfway the movie I just started rooting for the bad guys.
I never liked much John Woo's movies. I have not seen any of his earlier Hong-Kong made films but I am sure it has a high bodycount. I even didn't enjoy the much hyped Face-off, which I'll admit had a clever premise, but finally resulting in the same ridiculous shoot-outs.
I'll give it a 3 (though it deserves a 1) , for the camerawork and the stuntdoubles.