Blade II DVD Synopsis:
Following on from the 1999 installment, half vampire/vampire hunter superhero Blade (Wesley Snipes) is hellbent on rescuing his mentor Whistler (Kris Kristofferson) from the clutches of his undead enemies. Meanwhile a new strain of bloodsucker, the Reapers, are becoming ever more powerful. Under the leadership of Nomak (Luke Goss), their existence threatens both human and vampire worlds so Blade must team up with a gang of highly trained assassins, the Bloodpack, originally devised to hunt down Blade himself, to make the streets safe for day and nightwalkers alike.

I wouldn't worry if you missed Stephen Norrington's underrated original as Blade is summed up in a few short words during the sequel's opening credit sequence and all you really need to know is he's one bad, leatherclad, motherfucker who really, really hates vampires despite having some of their rather useful superhuman powers. Gone is the character's inner turmoil, torn between two worlds, instead he is a man with a job to do and one he now takes a particular relish in. "Oooh, so exciting" he quips as the action begins to step up a notch and boy this film IS action. In his opening salvo Mexican director Guillermo Del Toro masterfully proves that anything the first movie could do he can do better with vampires exploding left, right and centre in showers of sparks and bone. On that evidence he then ups the ante by introducing a new strain of vamp, the Reapers, ugly bald ghouls who are a bizarre hybrid of Nosferatu and the Predator (just try and keep your eyes on the screen when they go for the jugular). Forget Stephen Dorff's flashy yuppie villain from the original, forget the loverboy image of Lestat from Interview with a Vampire, the Reapers are here to do what those guys should have been doing, sucking every last drop of blood from your twitching, helpless body. Even being led by pretty boy pop star Goss (yes, from Bros and simply brilliant in the role despite being completely unrecognisable) doesn't improve their fashion sense and it's going to take Blade teamed up with even more badasses in the form of the Bloodpack (oh sweet irony, they're vampires!) to take 'em down.

The characters are set, the comic relief's supplied by banter between Ron Pearlman and Kristofferson so let battle commence. Del Toro does not disappoint. Surely never before have set-pieces been so painstakingly choreographed and executed. The gore, the moves, the weapons and the endless supply of gadgets that would have Bond himself trembling with desire. The film just builds and builds to a thundering crescendo. This is clearly the work of a fan for the fans and it puts Blade firmly on the A-list of superheroes at long last. Couple non-stop action with Del Toro's wonderful eye for style and you've got something visually stunning. From his sleek corporate vampire headquarters kitted out like a glorified blood bank with pools full of the red stuff to his journey back into the sewers and all memory of the failed Mimic will be banished from your minds forever. In a film world dominated by pretenders to The Matrix throne, Blade II succeeds where others have failed by providing more than simple bullet-time parody. OK, look closely and you'll see the plot amounts to little more than a bad soap opera but you'll be too busy thinking what the third one's going to be like to care.

Blade II DVD Picture Quality:
This two-disc set gives you the now standard 2.35:1 widescreen picture and on this movie beautifully renders it onto your TV screen with Del Toro's gothic sets and dark, rich colours better than ever. If a mate of yours is still lumbered in video land just show 'em this.

Blade II DVD Sound:
Either Dolby Digital EX 5.1 or DTS ES 6.1 surround sound mean whatever you choose is going to blow you away. The crisp action sound effects and the thumping bass soundtrack will mean your neighbour's walls will always be vibrating.

Blade II DVD Extras:
Disc 1
Commentary - We're treated to two here, one with director Guillermo Del Toro and producer Steve Frankfurt and another featuring Wesley Snipes and writer David S. Goyer. The first is the more entertaining as the two filmmakers have an interesting banter. Frankfurt helps Del Toro with the English language although he is more than adept at saying the f word plus he is also the kind of director who loves making movies and talking about them. The second commentary is still good but more incidental rather than looking at what's actually happening in the movie with Snipes seriously laid back and Goyer only there to prompt him with a question every now and again.

Isolated Score - Speaks for itself.

Script-to-Screen - If you're playing the movie on your computer you can read the script as you go. Nothing too exciting but it does mean you can print off the script to your favorite scenes.

Disc 2
Deleted/Alternate Scenes with Commentary from Del Toro and Frankfurt - About 25 mins of mostly extended scenes and a couple of new sections that were rightfully left out. A last minute flashback sequence of Blade's childhood is poorly directed but Del Toro's good-humored comments remind us why things like this appear in the deleted scenes section. I wouldn't recommend watching these without the voiceover as they are simply lengthier versions and don't over anything new to the action or drama but stay to the end to find out what the director means by 'sperm removal'.

A Pact in Blood - A collection of documentaries that you can interact with by branching off into different areas whenever a logo appears. Better than most as it doesn't rely on the old habit of cutting in bits of the movie together with gushing superstar interviews and instead gives us the thoughts of the background guys who actually made the movie happen including the originals writer David S. Goyer.

Sequence Breakdown - Takes certain scenes and allows you to cycle through the various aspects including the original script, the shooting script and the storyboard before looking at the actual scene as it turned out in the film. Nothing new and means plenty of pressing of the step forward button.

Visual Effects - The strongest element of the DVD as it gives you a very comprehensive look at how the main effects were accomplished through a mixture of prosthetics and CGI including the Reapers maw and the trouble gone to produce a realistic body for the autopsy scene. All this is done using special makeup designer Steve Johnson's video diary that he used to keep Del Toro up-to-date with developments.

Notebooks - More cycling through images this time taking a look at discarded scenes from the script, the script supervisor's notebook and Del Toro's notes and drawing done in a scrawling Da Vinci style.

Art Gallery - Even more cycling with images taken from various aspects of the production such as set design, costume and props.

Original Website - The promotional site in full on the DVD-ROM saving you a bit of loading time but it means you can get the screensavers and wallpapers you missed.

Music Video - Cyprus Hill and Roni Size performing 'Child of the Wild West' in a pretty unspectacular video with cuts from the film clumsily shoved in.

Trailers - A couple of the cinema trailers that just make you want to watch the action scenes again.

Blade 2 Game Survival Guide - An extended advert for the console game that merely tells you what the rules are. It seems an old fashioned game clearly influenced by the Double Dragon genre and the player in the video here seems to be some old lady making it look especially dull.

Blade II DVD OVERALL VERDICT:
This is a classic action movie that blows most other superheroes away, Spider-Man included. Just look at how much better the special effects and sets are here and that alone should prompt any fan to buy this. The extras don't offer much more than other DVDs on the market but the in-depth look at how the monsters were created and Del Toro's infectious enthusiasm for his job mean they are at least worth one watch.

Rich Badley