I never saw Species II when it came out, but I remember thinking it looked really cool and interesting. Similar to the first movie but taken to the next level, what sequels usually try to do. This time, there are two of them. If the female was that dangerous, imagine how bad the male will be! Or if they combine/mate!
The mix of horror, cool HR Giger alien design, sex, space (going to Mars) and then the military/detectives/scientists trying to stop a disaster all seems exciting to me. But this movie has a low rating so I never bothered to watch it until now.
It was okay, not a great movie but not that bad either. It was actually pretty entertaining. The concept has potential but the script doesn't know what it's doing. Madsen is once again the main highlight. It's also nice that they brought back his biologist girlfriend from the first one and, of course, Natasha Henstridge. But Natasha is underused. She's literally locked up for most of the movie, making her presence feel a bit unnecessary and wasted.
Some of the other actors are pretty bad. The main military general guy felt lame. The main astronaut guy who gets infected is not the strongest actor either. The black guy gets to be a funny sidekick which works fine.
The story is just way too superficial, and the overall weakness of the script, direction and some of the acting brings it all down. The violence feels stupid and over-the-top. There are no consistent rules. It's not clear why some people simply get infected while others get killed. It's kind of hilarious seeing the women have horrific birth deaths right after having sex. The Species movies are good advertisements for using protection.
The finale is pretty stupid but somewhat entertaining. The design of the male alien is pretty cool (similar to Dr Smith in Lost in Space (1998) but we barely see it. It's all over too quickly. Probably the highlight was using Sil to see what the male alien sees and track him down. It's a cool idea but doesn't last long. The movie just feels cheap and unpolished so good parts are only feebly sprinkled throughout.
Still, this movie was pretty easy to watch. I was generally engaged by it, but it's pretty forgettable. Not as bad as a lot of movies. With a better crew and more serious effort at a good script, it could've been quite good - there were plenty of ways to follow on from Species and up the ante.
The mix of horror, cool HR Giger alien design, sex, space (going to Mars) and then the military/detectives/scientists trying to stop a disaster all seems exciting to me. But this movie has a low rating so I never bothered to watch it until now.
It was okay, not a great movie but not that bad either. It was actually pretty entertaining. The concept has potential but the script doesn't know what it's doing. Madsen is once again the main highlight. It's also nice that they brought back his biologist girlfriend from the first one and, of course, Natasha Henstridge. But Natasha is underused. She's literally locked up for most of the movie, making her presence feel a bit unnecessary and wasted.
Some of the other actors are pretty bad. The main military general guy felt lame. The main astronaut guy who gets infected is not the strongest actor either. The black guy gets to be a funny sidekick which works fine.
The story is just way too superficial, and the overall weakness of the script, direction and some of the acting brings it all down. The violence feels stupid and over-the-top. There are no consistent rules. It's not clear why some people simply get infected while others get killed. It's kind of hilarious seeing the women have horrific birth deaths right after having sex. The Species movies are good advertisements for using protection.
The finale is pretty stupid but somewhat entertaining. The design of the male alien is pretty cool (similar to Dr Smith in Lost in Space (1998) but we barely see it. It's all over too quickly. Probably the highlight was using Sil to see what the male alien sees and track him down. It's a cool idea but doesn't last long. The movie just feels cheap and unpolished so good parts are only feebly sprinkled throughout.
Still, this movie was pretty easy to watch. I was generally engaged by it, but it's pretty forgettable. Not as bad as a lot of movies. With a better crew and more serious effort at a good script, it could've been quite good - there were plenty of ways to follow on from Species and up the ante.