Without question, HOUSE OF THE DEAD 2: DEAD AIM is one of, if not the most unwanted sequels of all time. The original HOUSE OF THE DEAD was universally panned by both critics and audiences, and is widely considered one of the worst horror flicks ever made by genre fans. So why a sequel? My guess is that the filmmakers figured since the first one was so hated, this time they could do a House of the Dead movie the right way in an effort to redeem themselves. If indeed that was their intent, they succeeded. HOUSE OF THE DEAD 2: DEAD AIM is everything the original wasn't: scary, decently acted, and well directed. Director Michael Hurst was clearly the right man for the job. Some may argue that the action scenes were directed too straight, but I am actually thankful they were considering that almost every action sequence in action pictures these days are severely over edited and overly stylized. While the directing was admirable, the screenplay wasn't as good. There's lots of funny dialog and a considerable amount of character development for this type of movie, but towards the end, the story gets bogged down in clichés and characters start saying such obvious statements as "this is not good." My only other complaint with 'DEAD AIM' is for the first 85 minutes or so the pacing is perfect yet for the remaining ten minutes, it refuses to end. It just drags on, taking its sweet time to get to the end credits sequence. So it may not be perfect, but HOUSE OF THE DEAD 2: DEAD AIM is nonetheless great entertainment that should satisfy video gamers and horror fans, especially if they have low expectations after seeing the original. My rating: 7/10.
Review of House of the Dead 2
