Movies: Blade II

Years from now, when Guillermo del Toro looks back at his directing career, it's doubtful whether he'll count "Blade II" among his best works. Like many film trilogies, the "Blade" series got markedly worse as time went on, and the signs of the malaise are visible even in the second installment. It's at once stupider, less innovative, and more forgettable than its predecessor.

The movie features the half-human half-vampire comic book hero Blade, played by Wesley Snipes before his troubles with the IRS. He's forced into an uneasy alliance with vampires (his sworn enemies) when a new threat emerges - a new strain of monsters called Reapers who feed on vampires. As you might expect, the only way to resolve this is with lots of fighting.

"Blade II" loses a lot of steam in its second act. When Blade and co. are fighting the mindless Reapers, it's about as exciting as a B-grade sci-fi flick. The real problem, though, is the absence of interesting characters; whereas the original "Blade" had a snarling, sneaky Stephen Dorff as a foil for Blade, this new installment's villains are boring and schlocky. Donnie Yen and Ron Perlman are sadly underused, and when the final "twist" is revealed, you won't care.

Rating: 5/10