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Mimic 2 (September 13/01)

Mimic 2 represents the latest sequel that nobody was exactly clamoring for, alongside such gems as Weekend at Bernie's 2, House: The Second Story, and Breakin' 2: Electric Boogaloo. But unlike those cinematic leftovers, Mimic 2 isn't half bad. Its plot is incredibly weak and the characters are little more than pawns used to take the story from point A to point B, but it's been directed with a lot of panache and contains enough blood and guts to satisfy gorehounds.

Alix Koromzay reprises her role from the first film, in which she played Mira Sorvino's faithful, loyal assistant (she's now a school teacher in New York). That pesky Judas bug from the original movie is back and still has the ability to disguise itself as a human being. After several bloody deaths, Koromzay comes to the conclusion that the bug seeks to make her his queen. Much of the last 45 minutes of the movie follows Koromzay's attempts, along with a student, an ex-student and a detective (played by Bruno Campos), to escape the school that she teaches at. They've been trapped inside by the bug, and must now flee before Koromzay winds up engaged to an insect.

If nothing else, Mimic 2 looks great. Director Jean de Segonzac is clearly a fan of the Scott brothers (Tony and Ridley) and David Fincher, because his New York is dank and dirty and steam seems to rise from every orifice. This wasn't initially pegged as a straight-to-video sequel; it was originally to be a theatrical venture, but somehow wound up on the small screen. This probably explains why the film looks the way it does - most video premieres are low-budget and look it.

But as great as the movie looks and as cool as some of the deaths are (though surprisingly restrained; you get to see the killer bug attack people, but you never see it finishing them off), the complete and utter lack of a solid storyline is somewhat of a turn-off. The first half hour mainly consists of random deaths - there'll be a brutal insect-inflicted murder, some exposition dealing with Koromzay, then another human sacrifice - and then the rest takes place in that school. It's entertaining enough; it's just not terribly linear.

But when most direct-to-video horror sequels are generally disposable trash (Wishmaster 2, any of the Puppet Master movies, etc), Mimic 2 stands out due to its sheer relentless drive towards the finish line (an ending which, by the way, doesn't really make much sense but leaves the door wide open for a sequel).

out of

© David Nusair