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DVD Review- Crank 2: High Voltage (2009)
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Amy Smart shows Corey Haim who's the boss in Crank 2: High Voltage.
On September 1st of 2006, Crank was unleashed on the world, an unapologetically ridiculous action opus that was the best of its kind in decades. Here was a film that punched plausibility in the face with a cinder block, set it on fire, and threw it out the window. At that time (and also since), action flicks were not nearly as awesome as they were in their heyday in the 80's, when Schwarzenegger and Stallone ruled the box office in such violent and excessive behemoth extravaganzas as The Running Man and Cobra. Crank was something of a success (though a modest one), so a sequel was inevitable. Now the world has Crank 2: High Voltage to contend with...how does it measure up to its predecessor?
Crank 2 opens exactly where Crank left off, with our (anti-)hero, hitman Chev Chelios (Jason Statham; the Transporter trilogy, Snatch), crashing down from (as he describes it) "a mile [high] drop out of a helicopter" to his supposed death. However, a group of Chinese Triad gangsters quickly scoop up his body (with a snow shovel, no less) and load it into a van which speeds off into the horizon. It turns out that Chev isn't among the deceased, as we watch while he amazingly witnesses his own heart get transplanted for an artificial one. Chev quickly springs into action, beating his insurgent surgeons before they can remove his next most valuable of parts. From there, he springs into a race to retrieve his heart while contending with his infalliable mechanical one. You see, his mechanical heart can only last for so long. So Chev is left to juice this manufactured nerve center by such impractical means as a car battery, a tazer, a dog's electrical collar, and several other short-termed solutions.
Chev finds out that the evil Johnny Vang is carting around an icebox that supposedly contains his heart. So, once again like in Crank (wherein he was polluted by a poison which necessitated that his adrenaline be jolted in order to stay alive), Chev needs to be electrically energized in order to live to avenge his attempted death. His adventure causes him to confront a wealth of colorful supporting characters, many returning from Crank. In a strip club, he reunites with his gorgeous girlfriend Eve (Amy Smart; Starship Troopers, The Butterfly Effect), now a stripper with a penchant to punch out anyone who gets in her way. Chev gets some much needed medical advice from the questionable Mafia doctor Doc Miles (the country singer Dwight Yokam), also returning from Crank. He also meets up with a hooker of uncertain cleanliness, Ria (Bai Ling; The Crow, Entourage), whose English is so bad she often requires subtitles (hers is easily one of the funniest portrayals in this movie). There is also the somewhat helpful Venus (Efren Ramirez; Napolen Dynamite), the brother of the deceased Kaylo (a role he also played in Crank) who is looking for vengeance but unfortunately (and hysterically for the audience) suffers from Full Bodied Tourettes. Plus, 80's teen heartthrob Corey Haim (virtually indistinguishable under a mountain of mulleted goodness) makes an appearance as a strip club employee who constantly gets his butt kicked. On top of all that, there is a Latino gang hunting Chev led by a tattoo-faced machete wielding psycho. Also, a character whose life was surely ended in Crank makes a most interesting reappearance.
Perhaps such a statement is extraneous, but this movie is totally insane. Crank 2 delivers dollups of deranged violence, bounties of bared breasts (possibly the most of any film in the last 20 years), pounds of profound profanities, and nothing close to political correctness (nary a stereotype comes away not good naturedly mocked). Very early on in the proceedings a reporter declares the events of Crank as "implausible," and Crank 2 follows in similar fashion. Are you looking for a movie well-grounded in reality? Then Crank 2 is NOT for you.
However, if you realize that movies are all just make believe and are okay with that, then Crank 2: High Voltage will likely be a lot of fun for you. Crank is considered to be a classic by this reviewer, and while Crank 2 doesn't quite reach the dizzying heights of the original, it gets awfully close. The score of Crank 2 was executed by noise rock pirate Mike Patton (lead singer of Faith No More, Mr. Bungle, Tomahawk, and many other great bands), which features an excellent and wide array of speed metal riffs, lilting spaghetti western guitar solos, crazed percussion, horror movie vocals, eerie keyboards, and many other musical tricks that make you wish other movies had such soundtracks. The best sequels feature many, if not all, of the contributers to the original. Not only does Crank 2 feature many of the principal cast members, but also the original's writers/directors Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor (who penned and directed the recently released Gamer) who return to helm this entry. It has been rumored that a Crank 3 is to hit screens in 2011. Let's hope that all those who helped to make parts 1 and 2 so thrilling and entertaining return for Part 3.
The features on the single disc DVD only include the trailer. The two-disc DVD set includes a commentary with the directors, a Making Of documentary, and a featurette entitled "Crank 2: Take 2." Also available on Blu-Ray, which also includes a gag reel and footage of the wrap party.
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