As with all retrospectives, I'll try to keep the reviews relatively short.
Blade
Blade was a unique movie for its time in a lot of ways: a hard R rated movie from Marvel comics, a black comic book hero getting mainstream film exposure, and the introduction of vampires into a major action movie. For those unfamiliar with the plot, Blade tells the story of a half-vampire hybrid (Wesley Snipes) who makes it his personal mission to hunt down and kill vampires running a secret criminal underworld right under humanity's nose.
If The Matrix hadn't come out just a year later, this might have been the epitome of late 90s action. Blade is uncompromisingly bloody and violent and filled with the kind of preposterously stylish action that makes for nothing but the purest entertainment. The movie, and especially Snipes as the titular hero, are overflowing with cool. The same goes for Kris Kristofferson as badass sidekick Whistler and Stephen Dorff as lovably over-the-top villain Deacon Frost.
At the same time, if Blade has any real shortcoming it's being too much of a 90s movie, which means the tone is an inconsistent mash-up of camp and grit. Some of the gore effects and gross-out moments seem more goofy than shocking by today's standards. Plus it doesn't help that an occasionally cheesy script gives Blade too many stock black guy lines like "awww hell no" and "fool, you out your damn mind?" Needless to say, Blade's at his coolest when writers aren't trying too hard to make him look cool.
Simply put, Blade is an easy movie to roll your eyes at, but it's far easier to just sit back and enjoy. If you like your action bloody and stylish without the polish of modern Hollywood fare, you'd be hard-pressed to do much better.
Score:
Blade 2:
Blade 2 is the rare sequel that surpasses the original. It fixes a few things that didn't quite work in the first Blade and brings everything that did work to the next level. This time around Blade and his gang join forces with a group of vampires to take on a new, more deadly breed of vampire called the reapers. This is the movie that kick-started director Guillermo Del Toro's career, and it has all the hallmarks of his style, from the masterfully designed monsters to the unsubtle but absolutely touching infusion of heart in unlikely places.
For starters, Blade 2 got rid of almost everything that dated the first movie. The diaogue, while still nothing extraordinary, is much smoother and far less cheesy. It helps to have a wider and more diverse cast, including Ron Perlman as the leader of the vampire gang and Norman Reedus as Blade's new sidekick Scud. Along with more characters and deadlier villains comes a wider arsenal that really brings out the movie's killer potential.
In terms of action, Blade 2 is a remarkable improvement over an already solid predecessor. The real highlight this time is the swordplay. Aside from a few classic martial arts movies and maybe Kill Bill this is the quintessential love song to the katana.
For starters, Blade 2 got rid of almost everything that dated the first movie. The diaogue, while still nothing extraordinary, is much smoother and far less cheesy. It helps to have a wider and more diverse cast, including Ron Perlman as the leader of the vampire gang and Norman Reedus as Blade's new sidekick Scud. Along with more characters and deadlier villains comes a wider arsenal that really brings out the movie's killer potential.
In terms of action, Blade 2 is a remarkable improvement over an already solid predecessor. The real highlight this time is the swordplay. Aside from a few classic martial arts movies and maybe Kill Bill this is the quintessential love song to the katana.
And if the action doesn't do it for you, the romance just might. The relationship that forms between Blade and the vampire Nyssa has a touching love-hate dynamic that never feels sappy or forced. And the ending, despite being one of the most common vampire movie tropes, has never been delivered so effectively.
Basically, if you enjoyed the first Blade there's really nothing stopping you from falling in love with this one. However, if you found no redeeming quality in Blade, there's really nothing here that will change your mind. This is everything that worked about the original distilled and taken to the next level.
Basically, if you enjoyed the first Blade there's really nothing stopping you from falling in love with this one. However, if you found no redeeming quality in Blade, there's really nothing here that will change your mind. This is everything that worked about the original distilled and taken to the next level.
Score:
Blade Trinity
Obligatory third parts are rarely a good idea, and Blade Trinity proves to be no exception. While most of the elements of a good Blade movie are present here, they're weighed down by a script that tries too hard to be cool and not hard enough to be compelling.
If this movie has two particular low points, it's the loss of a favorite character in a disappointingly anticlimactic way and the portrayal of the villain, Dracula. While Stephen Dorff was certainly flamboyant, his character was still intimidating and believable. The same can't be said of Dominic Purcell who plays his character in a way that's too campy to take seriously, and it certainly doesn't help that he often looks like he just steeped out of the most stereotypical gay bar. The plot has to do with a Dracula's return and a scheme to fulfill his reign over the world. The details don't really matter though. You came for the action and one-liners.
Jessica Biel and especially Ryan Reynolds are welcome additions to the cast, as Whistler's daughter Abigail and reformed ex-vampire Hannibal King. Reynolds' humor and the interplay between him and Snipes are enjoyable, but it's simply not enough to compare with Blade 2's diverse cast, and again, a certain character's absence is felt too strongly in the movie.
The action doesn't disappoint, but it doesn't raise the stakes either (well, except literally, before impaling them into everything that moves). It's about on par with the original Blade's action scenes, and the modern-day visuals don't really help or hurt. In short, this is Blade streamlined. It's smoother, less edgy, and less clever than its predecessors, but a worthwhile action flick nonetheless
If this movie has two particular low points, it's the loss of a favorite character in a disappointingly anticlimactic way and the portrayal of the villain, Dracula. While Stephen Dorff was certainly flamboyant, his character was still intimidating and believable. The same can't be said of Dominic Purcell who plays his character in a way that's too campy to take seriously, and it certainly doesn't help that he often looks like he just steeped out of the most stereotypical gay bar. The plot has to do with a Dracula's return and a scheme to fulfill his reign over the world. The details don't really matter though. You came for the action and one-liners.
Jessica Biel and especially Ryan Reynolds are welcome additions to the cast, as Whistler's daughter Abigail and reformed ex-vampire Hannibal King. Reynolds' humor and the interplay between him and Snipes are enjoyable, but it's simply not enough to compare with Blade 2's diverse cast, and again, a certain character's absence is felt too strongly in the movie.
The action doesn't disappoint, but it doesn't raise the stakes either (well, except literally, before impaling them into everything that moves). It's about on par with the original Blade's action scenes, and the modern-day visuals don't really help or hurt. In short, this is Blade streamlined. It's smoother, less edgy, and less clever than its predecessors, but a worthwhile action flick nonetheless
Score:
P.S. if you like my commentary on vampires, here's a sample of a book in progress that I'm working on
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1A8oahssk729UN5CdLTi_JHLRvR40CjlquUxa1C5IldM/edit
