The Condemned 2 is merely the latest dumb direct-to-video to come down the pike with clunky dialogue, mundane action and poor acting albeit at least Eric Roberts was semi-enjoyable in his role for whatever that’s worth. No doubt if this sells well we’ll see a third entry probably starring Dean Ambrose or something.
The Condemned 2
(2016)
Genre(s): Action
Lionsgate | R – 90 min. – $19.99 | January 19, 2016
Date Published: 01/16/2015 | Author: The Movieman
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THE MOVIE – 2.0/5 |
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“Dead man walking. Please, Will, run, hide, bleed. The longer you live, the more money I make, right up to the moment someone puts a bullet in your head.” Not sure if anyone was clamoring for a sequel but not too surprising since we are living in a world with 2 12 Rounds and 3 Marine sequels and under the WWE Productions brand, we get The Condemned 2.
The film opens with bounty hunter Will Tanner (RANDY ORTON) and his team are hunting down a monster named Cyrus (WES STUDI) who kidnaps the homeless and uses them for fellow sociopaths to gamble on when the victims would die. Tanner and his men infiltrate the facility with strict orders not to kill, only to shoot at the knees. Upon entry of the venue, Tanner and Cyrus duke it out but things go way wrong when Cyrus is body slammed onto some spikes, instantaneous death. Tanner is arrested and six months later makes a plea bargain for the lesser charge of involuntary manslaughter. He swears off working as a hunter again much to the chagrin of his father, Frank (ERIC ROBERTS), who started the business before passing it off to his son.
But Tanner’s troubles are only beginning: his old comrade Michaels (MORSE BICKNELL) attempts to kill him claiming he’s forced to. After a brief fight in a bar, Tanner kills Michaels by snapping his neck. This gets the cops involved but the patrons vouch it was in self defense. Back at his father’s ranch, Tanner is met by another member of his former team, Lange (MICHAEL SHEETS), and in spite of his father’s warning, Tanner gets in Lange’s car and they go for a ride. Guess what? Yeah, he’s been coerced to also take Tanner out. Tanner manages to escape and eventually also kills Lange, all the while a drone above watches. Tanner must now avoid a supposed master sniper (DYLAN KENIN) but in typical Hollywood fashion, can’t hit the broadside of a barn. We find out that Cyrus’ right-hand man has taken over his operations and inspired by the events of the first Condemned has started his own game, the objective to kill Tanner with millions of dollars on the line. Now Tanner must run for his life, but he does receive help from another member as well as his father.
I don’t think it’s very surprising, but The Condemned 2 is just plain bad. Passably bad perhaps, but bad nevertheless. The action by-the-numbers, the acting downright terrible save maybe for Eric Roberts who frankly might’ve been the only one trying and the writing/dialogue was awful. All that said, I can’t say it’s horrible, but this is the type of film that seemed to be made to air at some point on Spike. As I mentioned about the acting, I didn’t think Randy Orton was all that bad in 12 Rounds 2 but he lacks any sort of charisma here, something both John Cena and Steve Austin both possess and add in some hilarious over-acting by the likes of Steven Michael Quezada, it doesn’t add up to being an especially fun cheesy flick. Oh, and in spite of being credited third, Wes Studi’s appearance is merely a cameo, regrettably. The film was helmed by Roel Reiné who has made his career on these direct-to-video flicks including The Marine 2 & 3, Death Race 2 & 3 (Inferno), The Scorpion King 3 and 12 Rounds 2 (and has The Man with the Iron Fist 2 in the mix for good measure). He’s a by-the-book director who I guess can point and shoot well enough but none of his previous film are anywhere good. Same goes for the writer, another dreck journeyman, Alan McElroy who credits include Wrong Turn, The Marine 1 & 4 (Moving Target), Spawn and also had a story credit on The Perfect Guy.
The Condemned 2 is yet another movie that needn’t to exist and will inevitably land in the bargain bin at your local Wal-Mart. I suppose if you’re a collector of these types of movies, along the lines of The Marine and 12 Rounds franchises — and I really don’t want to the only one to have all of these in a collection — then maybe it’s worth picking up on the cheap, otherwise skip it. |
SPECIAL FEATURES – 1.0/5 |
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This release comes with a matted slip cover. Inside is a redemption code for the Digital HD copy. Drones (4:32; HD) — this featurette explores the usage of these machines in the movie and for shooting key aerial shots. Fight for Your Life (4:53) delves into the fight sequences in the film. Previews – 12 Rounds 3: Lockdown, Vendetta, See No Evil 2, The Condemned |
VIDEO – 3.5/5 |
| Lionsgate releases The Condemned 2 onto Blu-ray presented with a 1.78 widescreen aspect ratio and a 1080p high-definition transfer. The picture isn’t the best but adequate enough. While some shots were sharp and well defined and colors are generally bright, particularly daytime scenes, there were numerous instances of banding. I don’t know if it was due to the type of camera (likely digital) or what, but at times it was glaring. |
AUDIO – 4.0/5 |
| The DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track at least comes out a tad better providing some decent depth for the numerous action sequences, specifically the finale where the filmmakers probably spent the bulk of the budget. Dialogue levels though do sound good so it’s at least a serviceable enough for the type of movie this is. |
OVERALL – 2.0/5 |
| The Condemned 2 is merely the latest dumb direct-to-video to come down the pike with clunky dialogue, mundane action and poor acting albeit at least Eric Roberts was semi-enjoyable in his role for whatever that’s worth. No doubt if this sells well we’ll see a third entry probably starring Dean Ambrose or something. The Blu-ray has limited bonus material while the video and audio transfers are probably above average. |
Check out some more screen caps by going to page 2. Please note, these do contain spoilers.