Thursday, October 18, 2018

THE 31 MOVIES OF HORROR-WEEN: BLOODSTONE: SUBSPECIES 2 (1993) ** ½


Bloodstone:  Subspecies 2 picks up immediately where the first one left off with the little Subspecies dudes reviving their vampire master Radu (Anders Hove).  Once resurrected, he quickly goes about getting revenge on his brother by driving a stake through his heart.  His vampire girlfriend Michelle (Denice Duff) steals the coveted bloodstone from the castle and takes off for the hills.  Panicked, she calls her sister Rebecca (Melanie Shatner, Captain Kirk’s daughter) for help.  As Rebecca tries to find her sister (all the while playing catch-up on the rules of vampirism), Radu follows in hot pursuit trying to recover the bloodstone.

As with the original Subspecies, the opening sequence is the best part.  The scene where Radu’s decapitated head reattaches itself is awesome and utilizes some excellent special effects inspired by The Thing.  I also dug the part where Radu stakes his brother’s heart and drinks from the arterial spray as if it was a water fountain.  There’s also a cool crusty mummy that aids Radu in his quest.

Denice Duff is a much better actress than Laura Tate was, and she does a fine job selling her transformation into a vampire.  I especially liked when she woke up in a body bag and caused the coroner’s van to run off the road.  The problem is that the scenes of Shatner going on sightseeing tours, learning about vampire lore, and trying to track down her sister are a bore.  These scenes mostly feel like filler and totally bog down the middle section of the film.  

Returning director Ted Nicolaou does some impressive things with the low budget.  I liked the Nosferatu-inspired scenes of Radu casting a long shadow while stalking Michelle.  Once again, the film suffers from the lack of the cool Subspecies creatures who just about disappear after the opening.  I can’t quite call Bloodstone “good” as it drags like a son of a bitch after the first act, but it’s a remarkable step up in quality from the last one, so all involved should be commended for that.

AKA:  Helldance.  AKA:  Subspecies:  In the Twilight 2.  AKA:  Subspecies 2:  Bloodstone.

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