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The
Hitcher II
(Universal Studios Home Entertainment)
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| DVD
Release Date:
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July
15, 2003
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Length:
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93 mins.
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| Rated:
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R
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| Format:
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Widescreen (1.85:1)
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Audio:
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English Dolby Digital 5.1, French Dolby Digital 5.1
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| Subtitles:
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French, Spanish
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| Extras:
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n/a
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Although I have never seen The Hitcher
(1986), from what I have read and heard, it is classic horror. Well,
maybe not classic, but a really good scary movie. The follow-up movie,
"The Hitcher II - I've Been Waiting", is a classic alright.
Classic B-list movie. This movie puts the B in B-list. It puts the
straight in straight to video (or in this case DVD). It puts the
cheese in cheesy. Okay, I think you get the point.
The movie is strife with everything that is "B" in
Hollywood. The actors are all middle of the road - C. Thomas Howell
(who hasn't done anything more than a "B" movie since 1986
(that's almost 20 years folks) when he appeared in The Hitcher and
Soul Man), Kari Wuhrer, whose filmography includes mostly movies that
have gone straight to the shelf of your local video store, and Jake
Busey, who may be teetering on the outskirts of stardom but has not
quite yet made the leap from B to B+.
The story is as simple as it gets - boyfriend (Howell) and girlfriend
(Wuhrer) pick up hitchhiker (Busey) and the hitchhiker starts killing
everyone in sight. There are actually a couple of twists and turns but
nothing that can save the B-ness of this script. Of course, Howell's
character is the same guy who picked up a hitchhiker in the first
movie that killed many people. You think he would have learned his
lesson about picking up creepy-looking people standing on the side of
a deserted road. And yes, he was very hesitant about picking up the
creep. But his girlfriend insisted. And he gave in. Personally, I
would have kicked the bitch to the side of the road and told her to
walk home. But maybe that is why I am single. And then there are other
moments in the plot - the hot chick in the tank top flying planes,
driving transport trucks and handling semi-automatic rifles. Sadly,
she does everything but show us her boobies. The small-town Texas
police who could not catch a criminal if all the trailer parks in the
state were relying on them. And the dialogue. Consider this exchange
between bad guy Busey and the pretty girl Wuhrer, who is trapped in a
water tank:
Good morning sunshine.
You freak, why are you doing this?
Why the heck not?
You'll never get away with it.
Ha ha ha. Oh no? What are you going to do about it? You gonna hurt me
from down there?
Just gimme the chance.
That is about the extent of the reason
we find out why Busey's character is killing people - Why the heck
not? Ummmm, because it is murder. Because it is illegal. Because you
are a freak! I don't expect a psychotic murderer to understand these
simple rules of human existence, but I certainly would expect to hear
a better explanation for his behavior than "Why the heck
not?".
Nevertheless, I would have to classify The Hitcher II as mild
entertainment. Very mild. Fans of the original Hitcher movie might be
slightly disappointed. It is definitely not classic horror. And it
will leave you with many questions in your head. Like why did this guy
kill people? Are all police in Texas born without a brain in their
head? When did they start making modern-day horror movies without
showing boobies? There are points in the movie that are a little
scary. There are other parts where you will laugh (when you are not
supposed to). Just proceed with caution. Don't expect too much and
maybe you will enjoy the straight-to-video follow-up to The Hitcher.
What
did you think?
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Brendan Cullin - Senior
Editor
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