As a straight-to-video sequel, this one isn't half bad. What we have here is a sequel to the film TREMORS, which in itself was a modern B-movie classic with plenty of throwbacks to the monster movies of the '50s. It was great fun. Now, obviously, this sequel can't live up to the reputation of its predecessor, but there is still plenty of humour to be had from the banter between the characters.
The film opens on very shaky ground with Ward and Gartin killing off dozens of the original threatening worms within a matter of minutes. There is some stupid comedy filler and this section makes a mockery of the original creatures, which used to be extremely hard to kill. In fact, these scenes are rather pointless. Thankfully, though, Michael Gross turns up and takes a lot of the attention away from newcomer Gartin (thankfully), and halfway through the film new monsters appear. This was a very good idea in my opinion, as otherwise it would have been a straight re-run of the original TREMORS.
The new creatures are a mix of CGI and traditional model work. They look wonderful, little stumpy creatures on two legs with huge mouths. The CGI shown here actually works, despite the obviously low budget; it makes a refreshing change from the usual junk we see in the cinemas. On top of these excellent creature designs, we also have Michael Gross, who supplies a lot of the (funny) comic relief as an over-the-top gun specialist. Kevin Bacon's presence is sorely missed, and Gartin is an abominable replacement, but it's nice to have Fred Ward back with us as the rugged hero. Helen Shaver is instantly forgettable.
There's a nicely high level of goo on offer here, as the 12-certificate is pushed to the extreme. Legs are chomped on and there are even a couple of severed arms, inspired no doubt by a similar scene in JURASSIC PARK. The creatures themselves die very easily so there's plenty of scope for some explosions, where orange slime goes flying everywhere. The budget stretches to an impressive explosion at the end as well, when two and a half tons of explosives go up in smoke, all at once. Worth catching if you're a fan of the original, this is a harmless, entertaining, and light slice of action.
The film opens on very shaky ground with Ward and Gartin killing off dozens of the original threatening worms within a matter of minutes. There is some stupid comedy filler and this section makes a mockery of the original creatures, which used to be extremely hard to kill. In fact, these scenes are rather pointless. Thankfully, though, Michael Gross turns up and takes a lot of the attention away from newcomer Gartin (thankfully), and halfway through the film new monsters appear. This was a very good idea in my opinion, as otherwise it would have been a straight re-run of the original TREMORS.
The new creatures are a mix of CGI and traditional model work. They look wonderful, little stumpy creatures on two legs with huge mouths. The CGI shown here actually works, despite the obviously low budget; it makes a refreshing change from the usual junk we see in the cinemas. On top of these excellent creature designs, we also have Michael Gross, who supplies a lot of the (funny) comic relief as an over-the-top gun specialist. Kevin Bacon's presence is sorely missed, and Gartin is an abominable replacement, but it's nice to have Fred Ward back with us as the rugged hero. Helen Shaver is instantly forgettable.
There's a nicely high level of goo on offer here, as the 12-certificate is pushed to the extreme. Legs are chomped on and there are even a couple of severed arms, inspired no doubt by a similar scene in JURASSIC PARK. The creatures themselves die very easily so there's plenty of scope for some explosions, where orange slime goes flying everywhere. The budget stretches to an impressive explosion at the end as well, when two and a half tons of explosives go up in smoke, all at once. Worth catching if you're a fan of the original, this is a harmless, entertaining, and light slice of action.