Usually I'm always very sceptical of sequels, and I'm sure most people are, uncertain of whether the movie is going to give us new and exciting material, give us new and terrible material, or just be a retread of the original movie. Tremors 2 thankfully is in the first category, adding new characters, new story lines, a new location and a new stage in the evolution of the horrible subterranean meanies!What's the Rye? In Mexico, an oil refinery comes under attack by the gigantic underground worms known as the Graboids, and the refinery's owner calls upon the assistance of Earl to help make them extinct once again. Although reluctant at first, Earl is penniless due to bad dealings, and thus takes up the challenge, with the help of his new friend, a taxi driver (interesting accomplice). Together they go down to Mexico and start blasting the worms to pieces, calling in the assistance of survivalist Burt Gummer when it's found that there are far more worms than they originally thought. However, things go awry when the worms suddenly start to die, with a new and even more terrifying set of creatures appearing to have burst from their carcasses!So, the good things. Pretty much everything if I'm honest! The film takes the story in a whole new direction with the introduction of the new creatures and the new location. Although many may find the lack of Val a downgrade, Earl seems to hold the movie up well on his own, with the assistance of Burt and his Taxi Driver friend. Indeed there is a rather convenient love story thrown abruptly into the mix, but there is a grounded chemistry between the two.The animatronics have been upgraded, and although what little CGI is used in this movie is rather ropey, it's clear a lot of effort went into this film.Overall, I love this movie! As an action packed thriller in pursuit of bloodthirsty worms, with all the explosions, expletives and good humour of the first movie, I'd call this a faithful retelling of a fun story!

When an army of Graboids - giant, carnivorous underground worms - threaten the Petromaya oil refinery in Mexico, its owners call on Earl Bassett (Fred Ward), who once helped kill four of the creatures in Perfection, Nevada.TV Guide wrote, "This movie is a rarity among direct-to-video sequels, one that's not only worthy of its theatrical predecessor but suggests that it too, belongs on the big screen... Despite the significantly lower budget, the monsters remain entirely convincing." This is spot on. Although the 1990s were full of countless horror sequels, most were garbage. This one, despite the low budget, offers a high-quality film with creative new (and good looking) monsters.Anyone who liked the first film definitely needs to see the second.

Despite meager box office returns and only late success on home video, Tremors may be one of the only films to spawn a franchise out of a film that was never a big hit nor really intended to be a series. But unlike contemporary, flash-in-the-pan successes like The Hangover and Taken, the substance of the Tremors sequels is what kept their longevity and their quality at least in some ways comparable to the original masterwork. Tremors II: Aftershocks is a very strong sequel, and with the original film's screenwriter S.S. Wilson getting promoted to director and Brent Maddock assisting Wilson once again in the writing department, the original film's spirit is still captured in what is also a pleasantly different film than the first. For all the griping I, myself, and others do about sequels failing to raise the stakes, here's a film that doesn't mind changing the rules late in the game because, hey, it was already told that Graboids themselves don't play fair.After opening with a stunningly suspenseful scene of an oil worker trying to avoid a Graboid, we are dropped right in the middle of the sleepy desert-town of Perfection, Nevada, once more, where Earl Bassett (Fred Ward) is now making his living as an ostrich farmer. Despite him and his partner Valentine gaining unprecedented popularity from their discovery of Graboids, Earl hasn't received much, if any, royalties from the licensing of the beasts, from comic books to arcade games. He still makes his living as a humble handyman and is almost going to keep it that way until Señor Carlos Ortega (Marcelo Tubert) and Grady Hoover (Christopher Gartin) show up on his doorstep informing them of the most recent Graboid, large, subterranean worms that hunt by sounds and sonic vibrations in the ground, crisis. An oil rig in Mexico has been deemed a serious hazard to employees and occupants after numerous Graboid attacks have resulted in the deaths of innocent workers. Ortega is prepared to offer Earl $50,000 per each Graboid he kills whilst in Mexico, in addition to $100,000 if he can capture one alive.After much persuasion from Grady, Earl reluctantly agrees to make good use of his big "second chance," taking Grady along with him as his right-hand-man. When the two realize the Graboid operation is more dangerous and prolific than they thought, even after managing to blow up several using a remote-control car and dynamite, they enlist in the help of survivalist Burt Gummer (Michael Gross), who has spent his most recent days wallowing in self-pity and frustration after his wife Heather chose to leave him. The three, in addition to Kate (Helen Shaver), a local paleontologist, work to complete Ortega's operation, which goes rather seamlessly until the worms wind up undergoing metamorphosis and subsequently transforming into something more dangerous and more ubiquitous.While the amiable and often hilarious chemistry of Kevin Bacon and Fred Ward is subtracted from the formula of this sequel, Gartin steps in to do an okay job at playing second banana to Fred Ward's always interesting Earl character. Gartin's obnoxiousness is grating at times, and while his character is clearly the comic relief here, he comes off as a sign as being that a bit too obviously. The great thing about the original Tremors was no blatant comic relief was needed (even the listless teenager Melvin really didn't constitute as one, in my mind) because both leading men were capable of being funny without forgoing any element of seriousness and believability. Gartin does what he can within the screenplay of Wilson and Maddock and the result is fair but not totally destructive to the plot.Tremors II largely works because it doesn't settle to do the same thing twice; it keeps its story moving by not only changing the setting and adding a few more characters in the mix, but changing the entire biological spectrum of the monsters. Wilson and Maddock put a lot of thought into the mindset of these Graboids, biologically, physically, and conceptually, which results in a fairly elaborate and well-played detailing of the next wave of monsters sure to plague our characters. In addition, much like the original Tremors, this is a film that makes total use of its desert setting, spending considerable amounts of time in some settings, but always giving different locations their time of day in a manner that feels very regionally democratic.Tremors II: Aftershocks is a thoroughly pleasant sequel because it helps to revoke the spirit of the original film, whilst deviating course into something that expands upon the mythology of the monsters in the film and general likability of most of the film's characters. Rarely has there been a franchise quite like Tremors that has proved its own longevity better than most established, financially successful franchises and rarely has there been an impressive sequel quite like Tremors II: Aftershocks.Starring: Fred Ward, Christopher Gartin, Michael Gross, Helen Slater, Marco Hernandez, and Marcelo Tubert. Directed by: S.S. Wilson.

No, this movie certainly ain't as good or fun as the first and original movie but oh well, it's still a good enough sequel that has plenty of quality to it and is still fun to watch as well.They obviously couldn't get all of the actors from the first movie back for this movie. There are only two actors reprising their roles from the first one; Fred Ward and Michael Gross. A mistake they made was that they tried to replace the missing characters from the first movie with similar type of characters in this movie. So not much originality to this sequel with it's characters really.But of course the movie is not just simply a rehash of the first movie, though at first it still really seems that way. There are some new creatures in the movie this time, that besides are looking better as ever. The creatures got created by the Tippett Studio this time and it's quite fun to see how its design is somewhat similar like the creatures from "Starship Troopers", a movie the Tippett Studio worked on shortly after this movie.Still the movie really isn't better than the first one, which is not only due to the fact that it's entire premise of course isn't anything new or original anymore but more due to the fact that this movie is simply less pleasant to watch. It's less entertaining, due to its new characters but also obviously due to it's script, that seems to have been written in somewhat of an hurry, which is odd when considering that this movie got done 6 years after the first one.Still, the movie remains a perfectly watchable one. It's not like this is a sequel that I hated watching or anything, it's just less refreshing and entertaining all when compared to the first movie. But on it's own right, the movie simply still remains a good and fun enough genre movie.6/10http://bobafett1138.blogspot.com/