Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
Jason Statham | ... | Chev Chelios | |
Amy Smart | ... | Eve | |
Dwight Yoakam | ... | Doc Miles | |
Efren Ramirez | ... | Venus | |
Julanne Chidi Hill | ... | Dark Chocolate | |
Jose Pablo Cantillo | ... | Ricky Verona | |
Reno Wilson | ... | Orlando | |
Keone Young | ... | Don Kim | |
Art Hsu | ... | Johnny Vang | |
Joseph Julian Soria | ... | Chico | |
Bai Ling | ... | Ria | |
Clifton Collins Jr. | ... | El Huron | |
David Carradine | ... | Poon Dong | |
Corey Haim | ... | Randy | |
Geri Horner | ... | Karen Chelios (as Geri Halliwell) |
Chev Chelios survives a fall from the sky, sort of. He's in an unknown location, sedated, while various Chinese are harvesting his organs. His heart is gone, in an ice chest; a temporary in its place. Chev escapes, knowing only the name of the guy with the ice chest. He calls Doc Miles, an unlicensed cardiologist, who tells him there's only an hour's life in the artificial heart: keep it charged. Chev needs to find his own heart and get to Doc for a transplant. He starts his time-limited pursuit of shadowy figures, the ice chest, and his heart aided by Eve, Rei, and Venus - a stripper, a prostitute, and a pal with Tourette's - constantly needing an electric charge to keep going. Written by <jhailey@hotmail.com>
After surviving a fall from a helicopter, Chev Chelios is kidnapped directly from the spot he landed in and is taken to a place where they remove his heart. He is given an artificial one that requires an electrical charge to keep running, every hour or so. Now Chelios is on the run trying to find his old heart and to keep charged.
I had an appreciation for the first Crank, it was a live action Grand Theft Auto. Creating as much chaos as possible within the running time. It ended perfectly, with his death. Crank 2 comes around and ruins that. At least, for my own sanity, right from the beginning they have a telecaster look directly to the viewer and tell them how implausible all of this is. Could this be the writers and directors telling the audience that this was a studio decision?
Crank 2 doesn't hold any punches, it goes all out and doesn't stop. It somehow finds a way to be even more chaotic than the original, but it sacrifices any kind of logical straight forward story. The first, even though it was far fetched, seemed like it might possibly happen. Crank 2 doesn't seem to be based in any kind of reality. I do still like the city and world these characters live in. It's just like a video game/comic book come to life.
Statham once again shows us why he is the new face of the action genre. The Rock has moved on to Disney family films and Statham continues to be in films that he knows his fans will love. Crank 2 is violent and obscene. Just like it wants to be, Chelios is a despicable character, just like he wants to be. Statham plays the role with a bit of charm that makes him likable. Amy smart is here again, but she seems even more useless now than before. Was her purpose in this one just to re-enact the famous sex in public scene from original?
The Crank films are without a doubt a guys film. Crank 2 even more so. Sex, violence, harsh language and insane sequences like a shotgun shoved up a guy's ass or two characters transforming into Godzilla like creatures, it's something that requires a viewer to leave their brain not only at the door, but at the door of another house. The comedy is unique and in your face, it doesn't hold back with any subject matter. It's degrading to women and homosexuals and maybe even intellectuals. If you liked the first Crank, you'll like this one.
For what it is worth, I dug the craziness of the film. The style it was shot in was fast and dirty, that reflects the story and the characters in it. I can see a third film coming out, just wondering what they plan on doing with it makes my head hurt though.