the first species was a moderately - successful science fiction yarn that diverted audiences with some nifty special effects , a few well- paced action sequences , and frequent views of model - turned - actress natasha henstridge sans clothing .
however , it was definitely not a movie that cried out for a sequel . and , considering the quality of species 2 ,
it 's obvious that mgm should have stopped while they were ahead .
the only thing that distinguishes species 2 is how awful it is .
if you throw away the plot , which is characterized by a blatant disregard for intelligence , logic , coherence , and consistency , species 2 actually has a few things to recommend it to a select audience .
of course , that audience is primarily comprised of teenage boys ( who , at least in theory , should n't be able to get into an " r " -rated film ) and connoisseurs of bad movies .
there 's enough blood , gore , simulated sex , and bare flesh in species 2 to prevent it from ever becoming boring .
this is a grade z exploitation flick that 's ripe for the mystery science theater 3000 treatment .
somewhere , someplace , i recall hearing species 2 described as
" erotic .
"
i would love to know who used with that adjective for this movie , because he ( or she ) has a peculiar notion of eroticism .
sure
, there 's a lot of sex and nudity , but it 's almost always accompanied by the ripping open of a woman 's abdomen as an alien baby
claws
its way free , splattering blood and gore in all directions .
anyone turned on by that is not someone i would care to be sitting next to in a theater .
i suppose the main attraction in species 2 is natasha henstridge ( and , to get the obvious question out of the way -- yes , she does remove her top , but only once , and only briefly ) .
although the character she played in the original species is dead , government scientists still have the dna , and , out of what can only be described as a suicidal impulse , they decide to create another clone .
this creature , dubbed " eve " by its creator , dr .
laura baker ( played by marg helgenberger , reprising her role ) , is genetically engineered to be kinder and more docile .
meanwhile , man has finally set foot on mars .
a team of three , led by patrick ross ( justin lazard ) , has traveled to the red planet , but when they return to earth , they bring something with them .
ross has become a half - human / half - alien hybrid , and he 's soon mating like crazy , collecting the blood - soaked children that are the result of each sex session .
his intention is obviously world domination .
standing in his way is that indomitable soldier of fortune from the first film , preston lennox ( michael madsen ) , and one of patrick 's fellow astronauts , dennis gamble ( mykelti williamson ) .
but when patrick learns about eve , a female of his kind , there 's
no damping his ardor .
i 'm not sure what the budget for species 2 was , but a significant portion of it must have gone into paying handsome salaries to several recognizable actors ( as opposed to being diverted into the special effects ) .
michael madsen and marg helgenberger , both back for a second round ,
are clearly on hand to do as little as they can , grab the money , and run .
ditto for james cromwell , who plays patrick 's father -- " underused " is too kind a word to describe his involvement
( " invisible " would be more like it ) .
george dzundza gets to do a little scenery- chewing as an angry - but - inept general .
meanwhile , justin lazard 's performance as patrick is so flat that he makes natasha henstridge 's limited abilities look good by comparison .
the only one in the whole production with any energy is mykelti williamson , who is cast in the part of the wisecracking black sidekick .
complete with cheesy special effects , bare breasts around every narrative corner
, and dialogue capable of producing howls of laughter , species 2 has been dumped into the marketplace without advance screenings for critics .
director peter medak , a journeyman film maker with a significant list of mediocre movies on his resume , has added another forgettable title , but at least he appears to have had fun doing it , which is more than can be said of anyone trying to take this film with even a scintilla of seriousness .
do i recommend the movie ?
absolutely not
,
but i will admit that species 2 is dopey enough that it did n't try my patience to the degree that some pseudo - intellectual bad movies do .
here 's hoping there 's no species 3 .
Output: N