Reviews

Tremors, the first film, was top. A quirky, funny and strangely satisfying movie, you just wanted to see it again & again. Of course, Universal realised this, and decided to give us what we wanted - More Tremors.

Unfortunately, it just didn't exude the same qualities of the first film. Tremors II goes down the formulaic action-comedy route, steering clear of the original's quirkiness and subtle humour and replacing it with crass one-liners and in-your-face action scenes. Much of the team involved in the original film are present here, though it does feel slightly lost without Kevin Bacon. The young actor attempting to replace him gives a reasonable performance, but his character in the film is just a bit too streetwise and 'smart', and he doesn't make a convincing on-screen partnership with Fred Ward.

The plot is different to Tremors, but still contains the Tremor-creating 'graboids' that were present in the original. In fact, the special effects of these are one of the film's strong points. The camerawork & directing is passable, as are the performances from all involved. Will you enjoy this film? It depends. If you're looking for a straight-up action movie, then this wouldn't be a bad choice. If, however, you're looking for a good sequel to Tremors, you'll be disappointed. Overall rating: 5.5/10

I'll keep it short: Tremors is one of the best films I have ever seen, and I consider myself something of a movie obsessive.

The plot: Reminiscent of 1950's Horror movies, two handymen decide to leave their dead-end life in the town of Perfection, Nevada (Population: 14) and head off into the wilderness in search of a better life. But on the way, they encounter some underground beasties...

The Direction: For first-time Film director Ron Underwood, it's remarkably well-shot. The film just oozes atmosphere and it feels both surreal and strangely life-like & believable at the same time. The special effects are excellent considering the year it came out (1990) when CGi effects were just toddlers.

The performances: A career-defining performance for Kevin Bacon. Fred Ward is on top form as the tired, middle-aged Earl, and the supporting cast are brilliant.

Everything else: The dialogue and on-screen interaction between Bacon and Ward is believable and well-played. The humour is subtle and quirky, and luckily the film doesn't take itself too seriously.

I can't stress how much I enjoyed this film, so just make sure you see it too! Oh, one word of warning: Avoid the mediocre sequel. Overall: 9/10