Rating: 
Summary: The HiTcHeR 2 I ((HAVENT)) Been WaiTiNg...
Review: WeLL When I Heard That a HiTcHeR 2 WaZ maDe I Was ExciTeD! ThiNkiN Hmmm How r They Gonna Go bouT Thiz 2nd edition to The HITCHER...SoOoO I acT fast an Buy The MoViE aN...My Opinion....WHY DID I Buy iTTTTTTTT.....The MoViE iz HORRIBLEEEEEEEE!!!!!!! HoweLL Dies mid way Through The MoViE HOW DUMB! He'z The main Part oF The Hitcher Franchise..aN 4 Him 2 Be KiLLeD oFF Mid Way Through an 4 his GF to stay aLiVe aN KiLL The New Hitcher....iTz ashame!!! i LuVeD The 1st One...WHY DiD They Have to slap Fans oF The 1st oNe iN ThE faCE aN make a 2nd one That suKz as Bad as THE HITCHER 2 Does...iF u WaNT 2 See whaT The HITCHER Franchise iz aLL aBouT...WATCH The 1st One...WHY KILL HOWELL...sTuPiD MoViE!
Rating: 
Summary: Could have been a good follow-up!!!!
Review: What is wrong with the filmakers here, the first film was a neat thriller, even if it lost its suspense element toward the end, it was still chilling, I had high hopes for this one, especially since C.Thomas Howell decided to return, only the first 20 minutes are good, In this one, 15 years has passed since the first film's events, Jim Halsey(Howell) has for the most part put that nightmare behind him, he is now cop himself & leads a pretty normal life with his girlfriend (Kari Wuhrer) who is always nice to look at, but keeps having recurring flashbacks especially after a undercover situation goes wrong & he is suspended on his job, he contacts Captain Esteridge who helped him in the first film, & he suggest that he come see him so he can face his fear & move on which means to do so, he would have to travel the same road, Halsey reluctantly does, with Wuhrer, & what follows is Halsey's paranoid behavior as he refuses to stop, even for a wrecked mobile home, it is understandable why he is paranoid, but soon they see a stranger(Jake Busey) who Wuhrer forces Halsey to pick up, Busey's demeanor is that of Rutger Hauer's Hitcher in the first film, & Halsey immediately forces him out at gunpoint, I really felt this film would take elements of 1997's "Breakdown" & have Howell & Wuhrer out wit Busey, it seems that way at first, but instead the filmakers decided to rip off the original, & to add insult to injury, kill off Howell's Halsey leaving Wuhrer to fend for herself, as she like him in the original is framed for all of Busey's mayhem, as kills anyone & everyone & manages to make her look like the culprit, this one even suggest that Busey is the same character that Hauer played, come on, in the original, Hauer's Hitcher is blasted by a shotgun at least 3 times by Halsey at the end, no way was he coming back, but this tries to suggest that, when what they should have done is have Busey somehow related to Hauer, but no they insult our intelligence with this whacked out theory, that he somehow survived, yeah right, Hauer must feel so honored, I would have much rather seen Howell & Wuhrer play cat & mouse with Busey, that, at least would have brought back the suspense element, & Howell's Halsey facing his demons for sure, why Howell agreed to this script is beyond me, I'm sure Hauer was offered to return as well, it is easy to see why he might have passed, Howell should have too, or at least demanded a better story, Wuhrer & Busey do their best to play off each other's emotion, but their talent is completely wasted here, which is disappointing, A "Breakdown" type suspense story would have been better, who knows it might have gotten a theatrical release, you can't fault Wuhrer or Busey, but Howell should have known better!!
Rating: 
Summary: Not your typical straight to video movie
Review: When Entertainment Weekly gave this film a B this week, I figured I take a look at my free screener copy. Sure it's not the original, but it's pretty cool for straight to DVD. Frankly, I thought the original was a little slow, over-rated and made C.Thomas out to be an idiot. This movie is smarter and tighter for a low budget movie. Busey steals the film. Some great twists and a cool ending... for a video movie.
Rating:
Summary: Drive on. There's nothing to see here.
Review: With what seems like the most unnecessary sequel in recent cinema history, THE HITCHER 2: I'VE BEEN WAITING is ''finally'' here. Coming from out of nowhere, this film not only doesn't need to be made, but actually succeeds in making you know that it doesn't need to be made.The story picks up years after the first movie closed, as Jim Halsey (played by C.Thomas Howell, who has grown up to resemble a rejected member of Motley Crue) is still haunted by the nightmare that was Rutger Hauer. He is now a veteran cop, undergoing serious stress and anxiety. In an effort to get his life back on track, he seeks out his police mentor buddy (Jeffrey DeMunn's character from the original, here played by someone else). However, to get to him, he must travel down that same stretch of road from the original movie, where he first encountered Hauer's malevolent villain. En route, he takes his girlfriend Maggie (Kari Wuhrer in serious direct-to-video fatigue), who is blissfully unaware of Jim's past. Together, they travel down that same dusty highway, with Howell sweating and moaning about 'how they cannot stop for anything, must keep driving' etc. However, within 5 minutes of the running time, up pops Jake Busey - decked out on long black overcoat, wild blonde hair and carrying a rather big gun. Obviously, Howell flips his lid after Busey whispers in his ear 'I've been waiting for you' and then all hell breaks loose. Well, I say 'all hell'. If you call people running away from a guy who looks about as frightening as a grinning children's entertainer at a kid's 5th birthday party, then by all means be terrified. However, I doubt it. To be fair to Busey, he is thoroughly entertaining - with his wild looks and goofy antics just about making the film bearable. Its just coming after Hauer's icy and twisted portrayal in the original film, Busey has to work EXTRA hard to get any real licks in. Returning 'star' Howell valiantly strives to rise above the mediocre script, and at some points he succeeds in exhibiting the right amount of stress and paranoia, but even he is flogging a dead horse in this dreadfully routine TV movie. Director Louis Morneau has made some decent movies in the past. With the high-octane action comedy MADE MEN to the fun time travel thriller RETRO-ACTIVE, he has delivered excellent movies on shoe-string budgets, allowing his style and sharp sense of pacing drag you through even the dumbest of scripts. However, on this occasion his directorial style works against him. With this kind of film, mood is the key. The first movie had it in spades - lush cinematography, expert editing and a dark screenplay that set it apart from the rest of the 80s slasher led dreck. On this sequel however, Morneau shoots it like it were an action film. With his camera zooming all over the place and cutting scenes within an inch of their TV movie life, he never allows the viewer to become engrossed in the proceedings and care about any of the characters. Which is a shame as the cast are making an effort, even if the 'dime store, seen it all before' script isn't. Universal's disc has NO extras. Not even a trailer. Which hurts even more, after you've seen the movie. The picture and audio quality are however, fine. With cinematographer George Maroodian's stylish (if fast moving) camerawork exhibited in full. So, to sum up - after seeing the original film, you already know that there isn't a need for a sequel to THE HITCHER. That movie had a beginning, a middle and an end. Why Universal decided to make an awful sequel to a classic 80s thriller is anybody's guess. And, why I had the curiosity to spend [money]to see this unnecessary exercise in tedium is also, anybody's guess. I just hope you can learn from my mistake, keep your money firmly in your pocket and stick with the original.
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