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House of the Dead 2 (film)
Encyclopedia
House of the Dead 2 is the 2005 sequel to Brightlight Pictures
' 2003's House of the Dead
. The movie is directed by Michael Hurst and premiered at the Sitges Film Festival in Spain on October 14, 2005 and premiered in the United States on the SciFi Channel
on February 11, 2006.
A month later, the university has a full-fledged outbreak, which is confirmed by AMC reconnaissance teams. Ellis, an agent
for AMS, goes in search of his fellow agent, Alexandra Morgan, also known as Nightingale. He finds her on a date at a restaurant, but before his arrival, the cook was bitten by the infected professor while on break. Alexandra is forced to execute the zombies on site, and returns to base with Ellis. They are ordered by Colonel Jordan Casper to retrieve a blood sample from the originally infected specimen on campus, warning that missiles will level the campus at midnight, regardless of whether the agents are still present or not. She assigns a gender-mixed Special Forces
team of U.S. Marines to provide them with backup. Ellis openly questions the competence of the soldiers, leading to friction between the two units.
Upon arrival at Cuesta Verde University, the soldiers encounter zombies. Their newest member, an overweight private who has no combat experience panics and falls to the ground. A second member of his team engages the zombie, but his M16A4 is knocked away before he can fire. He and the zombie engage in hand-to-hand combat. The zombie is killed, but is able to bite the soldier on the hand. He attempts to hide the injury, but is discovered and his arm is severed in an attempt to stem the infection. He transforms into a zombie despite the amputation
, and bites the squad medic, before both are executed by Ellis. The team continues forward into the university proper.
They proceed to battle through the hordes of infected, splitting into two teams to search for the original zombie. Two female soldiers, Lieutenant Henson (despite being a commissioned officer, she is under the command of the lower ranking Sergeant Griffin) and Private Rodriguez, and a male soldier, Bart investigate the dorms. They break into a female dormitory where they find the deceased naked body of a zombie. Bart attempts to pose and have a picture taken with the corpse, and is bitten by a mosquito trapped in the room. Fearing contamination, but unwilling to execute Bart, who is threatening them with a handgun, Henson handcuffs Bart to a radiator and the two soldiers exit the room, falling back to the van. Meanwhile, the second team, including Ellis and Alexandra, are attacked multiple times. Eventually, every soldier escorting them is killed, including the leader of the unit, Sergeant Griffin. They fight their way to the professor's laboratory, and find the original specimen still imprisoned, as well as a pair of students who had survived. They enter the confinement room and extract blood from the zombie, but are forced to kill it when it breaks free. The two students who had allowed them into the confinement room are overrun and torn apart by zombies, and the two agents escape while the zombies are feeding on the bodies.
As this occurs, Henson and Rodriguez make it to the extraction vehicle, a van. There, they prepare to rescue the agents, but Rodriguez is bitten by a zombie who was locked in the back of the van by the soldier assigned to guard it. Henson executes Rodriguez, and the duo arrive in front of the science building as Ellis and Alexandra fight their way through a horde of zombies. The agents make it to the van, but the blood sample vial is destroyed in the process. They are forced to turn back, with ten minutes before missiles level the campus, and fight their way back to the confinement room. They retrieve a second vial, but Henson is bitten on the ankle. She remains behind and commits suicide, as the agents escape by smearing zombie blood and tissue on themselves, disguising themselves as zombies. They escape back to the van, where they find that Bart broke free from the dormitory by amputating his hand. He threatens Ellis at gunpoint, arguing that they could make millions from the vial of blood. Ellis is forced to give him the vial. Bart decides to kill Ellis anyway, but is shot in the back by Alexandra before he can. His dying action is to pull the pin on a hand grenade
, destroying the vial in the process. The two agents escape before the missiles level the campus. Alexandra is wounded, but uncertain of whether it's a bite or not. Ellis refuses to execute her, and the two leave the city, finding that the infection has spread to the rest of the city.
much more so than the previous film. Both feature some kind of medical facility overrun by zombies, and AMS agents are dispatched to contain it. This movie also shows the 4th game as the AMS agents struggle to break free from the zombies. In this film, AMS agents are dressed up as rogue commandos, and just like in The House of the Dead III
, some of them are killed or turned into zombies. Both AMS commandos survive in the ending of the movie, not in the game. The survivors are Ellis and Alex (AMS commandos).
The subtitle for which the film is known is also the name of one installment of another survival horror game: Resident Evil: Dead Aim
.
is replacing Uwe Boll
as the director of this movie, and Mark A. Altman said: "It's a completely different approach to the material than the first two films and I doubt it will even be called House of the Dead 3." Unlike House of the Dead 2, the producers aren't planning on releasing House of the Dead 3 direct to DVD, but to theatre.
Brightlight Pictures
Brightlight Pictures Inc. is a Canadian film production and television production company based in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. The company was founded in 2001....
' 2003's House of the Dead
House of the Dead (film)
House of the Dead is a 2003 action-horror film adaptation of the successful 1996 light gun arcade game of the same name produced by Sega. The film was directed by Uwe Boll. The film was universally panned by critics.-Plot:...
. The movie is directed by Michael Hurst and premiered at the Sitges Film Festival in Spain on October 14, 2005 and premiered in the United States on the SciFi Channel
Sci Fi Channel (United States)
Syfy , formerly known as the Sci-Fi Channel and SCI FI, is an American cable television channel featuring science fiction, supernatural, fantasy, reality, paranormal, wrestling, and horror programming. Launched on September 24, 1992, it is part of the entertainment conglomerate NBCUniversal, a...
on February 11, 2006.
Plot
Taking place shortly after the original, a professor at the fictional Cuesta Verde University has managed to subdue and contain a "Hyper sapiens" (a scientific inaccuracy, as the species, not the genus, would be changed for two organisms as similar as humans and dead humans) specimen (revealed to be a survivor from the previous film, who was given the infection when her ex-boyfriend tried to bring her back from the dead). He experiments, trying to determine the source of her immortality, with apparent disregard for the rotted state of her body. When he has created a serum that he believes will bring back the dead and grant immortality, he murders one of his students and brings her back to his lab. He cuts off all of her clothes and then he injects her with the serum. She returns to life and infects the professor, then breaks out of the building and begins infecting students when they try to help her (as she was stripped naked by the professor).A month later, the university has a full-fledged outbreak, which is confirmed by AMC reconnaissance teams. Ellis, an agent
Special agent
Special agent is usually the title for a detective or investigator for a state, county, municipal, federal or tribal government. An agent is a worker for any federal agency, and a secret agent is one who works for an intelligence agency....
for AMS, goes in search of his fellow agent, Alexandra Morgan, also known as Nightingale. He finds her on a date at a restaurant, but before his arrival, the cook was bitten by the infected professor while on break. Alexandra is forced to execute the zombies on site, and returns to base with Ellis. They are ordered by Colonel Jordan Casper to retrieve a blood sample from the originally infected specimen on campus, warning that missiles will level the campus at midnight, regardless of whether the agents are still present or not. She assigns a gender-mixed Special Forces
Special forces
Special forces, or special operations forces are terms used to describe elite military tactical teams trained to perform high-risk dangerous missions that conventional units cannot perform...
team of U.S. Marines to provide them with backup. Ellis openly questions the competence of the soldiers, leading to friction between the two units.
Upon arrival at Cuesta Verde University, the soldiers encounter zombies. Their newest member, an overweight private who has no combat experience panics and falls to the ground. A second member of his team engages the zombie, but his M16A4 is knocked away before he can fire. He and the zombie engage in hand-to-hand combat. The zombie is killed, but is able to bite the soldier on the hand. He attempts to hide the injury, but is discovered and his arm is severed in an attempt to stem the infection. He transforms into a zombie despite the amputation
Amputation
Amputation is the removal of a body extremity by trauma, prolonged constriction, or surgery. As a surgical measure, it is used to control pain or a disease process in the affected limb, such as malignancy or gangrene. In some cases, it is carried out on individuals as a preventative surgery for...
, and bites the squad medic, before both are executed by Ellis. The team continues forward into the university proper.
They proceed to battle through the hordes of infected, splitting into two teams to search for the original zombie. Two female soldiers, Lieutenant Henson (despite being a commissioned officer, she is under the command of the lower ranking Sergeant Griffin) and Private Rodriguez, and a male soldier, Bart investigate the dorms. They break into a female dormitory where they find the deceased naked body of a zombie. Bart attempts to pose and have a picture taken with the corpse, and is bitten by a mosquito trapped in the room. Fearing contamination, but unwilling to execute Bart, who is threatening them with a handgun, Henson handcuffs Bart to a radiator and the two soldiers exit the room, falling back to the van. Meanwhile, the second team, including Ellis and Alexandra, are attacked multiple times. Eventually, every soldier escorting them is killed, including the leader of the unit, Sergeant Griffin. They fight their way to the professor's laboratory, and find the original specimen still imprisoned, as well as a pair of students who had survived. They enter the confinement room and extract blood from the zombie, but are forced to kill it when it breaks free. The two students who had allowed them into the confinement room are overrun and torn apart by zombies, and the two agents escape while the zombies are feeding on the bodies.
As this occurs, Henson and Rodriguez make it to the extraction vehicle, a van. There, they prepare to rescue the agents, but Rodriguez is bitten by a zombie who was locked in the back of the van by the soldier assigned to guard it. Henson executes Rodriguez, and the duo arrive in front of the science building as Ellis and Alexandra fight their way through a horde of zombies. The agents make it to the van, but the blood sample vial is destroyed in the process. They are forced to turn back, with ten minutes before missiles level the campus, and fight their way back to the confinement room. They retrieve a second vial, but Henson is bitten on the ankle. She remains behind and commits suicide, as the agents escape by smearing zombie blood and tissue on themselves, disguising themselves as zombies. They escape back to the van, where they find that Bart broke free from the dormitory by amputating his hand. He threatens Ellis at gunpoint, arguing that they could make millions from the vial of blood. Ellis is forced to give him the vial. Bart decides to kill Ellis anyway, but is shot in the back by Alexandra before he can. His dying action is to pull the pin on a hand grenade
Hand grenade
A hand grenade is any small bomb that can be thrown by hand. Hand grenades are classified into three categories, explosive grenades, chemical and gas grenades. Explosive grenades are the most commonly used in modern warfare, and are designed to detonate after impact or after a set amount of time...
, destroying the vial in the process. The two agents escape before the missiles level the campus. Alexandra is wounded, but uncertain of whether it's a bite or not. Ellis refuses to execute her, and the two leave the city, finding that the infection has spread to the rest of the city.
Cast
- Emmanuelle VaugierEmmanuelle VaugierEmmanuelle Vaugier is a Canadian film actress, singer, songwriter and television actress who has had recurring roles as Detective Jessica Angell on CSI: NY, Mia on Two and a Half Men, Dr. Helen Bryce on Smallville, and FBI Special Agent Emma Barnes on Human Target...
as Alexandra 'Nightingale' Morgan - Ed QuinnEd QuinnArthur Edward "Ed" Quinn is an American model and actor who has appeared in several film and TV roles, including Eureka, Starship Troopers 2, Young Americans and True Blood.-Early life:...
as Ellis - Sticky Fingaz as Dalton
- Steve MonroeSteve MonroeSteven "Steve" Monroe is an American actor who has a number of television credits to his name. His guest starring TV credits include, 7th Heaven, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, Charmed, Grey's Anatomy, JAG, NYPD Blue, Veronica Mars, Zoey 101, iCarly and The Suite Life on Deck...
as O'Conner - Victoria PrattVictoria PrattVictoria Ainsle Pratt is a Canadian actress and fitness model. Her television roles include Xena: Warrior Princess, Once a Thief, Cleopatra 2525, Mutant X, and Day Break. Her film roles include House of the Dead 2.-Early life:Pratt attended Chesley District High School in Chesley, Ontario...
as Henson - James ParksJames ParksJames Parks was a freed slave who is prominently buried in Arlington National Cemetery and is the only person buried there who was born on the grounds....
Bart (as James Jean Parks) - Billy BrownBilly Brown- People :*Billy Brown , English professional footballer*Billy Brown , football player who played as a right half, right back, outside right for Luton Town, Huddersfied Town, Brentford and Leyton Orient in the Football League*Billy Brown , Scottish football player and coach*Billy Brown - People...
as Griffin - Nadine VelazquezNadine VelazquezNadine Velazquez is an American actress and model known for her role as Catalina Aruca on My Name Is Earl.-Early life:...
as Rodriguez - Mircea MonroeMircea MonroeMircea Monroe is an American actress and model.Monroe's first professional acting job was in the New Line film, Cellular. Since then, Monroe has appeared in various films, and pilots for The WB and Fox, starred in the Fox show Drive, and guest starred on TV shows, including Freddie, Scrubs, and...
as Sarah Curtis - Ellie CornellEllie CornellEllie Cornell is an American actress and movie producer, known primarily for her roles in horror films. After her marriage to producer Mark Gottwald, she is sometimes credited as Ellie Gottwald.-Career:...
as Jordan Casper - Jonathan CherryJonathan CherryJonathan Cherry is a Canadian actor known for playing Rory Peters in Final Destination 2 and also had a lead role in the video game film adaption House of the Dead. All his training was done at Thornlea Drama Classes. In addition, he was also in a low budget movie called Marker and a few CSI...
as Rudy Curien (archives) - Ona GrauerOna GrauerOna Grauer is a Mexican–Canadian actress, best known for her portrayal of the Ancient Ayiana and later Emily Young in the science fiction television franchise Stargate.-Life and career:...
as Alicia (archives) - Sid HaigSid HaigSid Haig is a American actor. His roles have included acting in Jack Hill's blaxploitation films of the 1970s as well as his role as Captain Spaulding in Rob Zombie's horror films House of 1000 Corpses and The Devil's Rejects...
as Professor Curien
Critical reaction
Like the first film, House of the Dead 2 was panned by critics.- "While there are one or two intriguing moments spread throughout the film's interminable 95 minutes — i.e., the zombie virus can be spread by mosquitoes — House of the Dead II is undoubtedly one of the worst horror sequels to come around in a good long while." — Reel Film
- "Whereas [the first] film was so bad it was almost good (at least we could laugh at it), this straight-to-video sequel is just flat-out bad, and unfortunately, it's flat-out dull. ... House of the Dead II commits the ultimate celluloid sin – it's boring." — DVD Talk
- "If you were looking for a movie to show you how generic and formulaic horror movies in America have become lately, you needn't look any further than [House of the Dead II]. ... [It's] indeed an improvement over Boll's original [but it] would have worked better had it stuck to camp and not taken the whole zombie thing too seriously." — Beyond Hollywood
- "House of the Dead II is not as bad as the original by any stretch of the imagination. Is it a good film? Not really. But at least the filmmakers can always claim that it joins an elite selection of sequels which are better than their predecessors. ... It's still a sub-par zombie flick which is too monotonous for its own good." — Popcorn Pictures
- " I'll be kind enough to say that some of the cheeky lines and goofy acting had me at least mildly entertained, but this is all kiddy-level play acting, with a few zombies shambling around in befuddlement. ... I love me some zombies, but this is a redundant exercise in running a video game franchise into the ground." — Mutant Reviewers From HellMutant Reviewers From HellMutant Reviewers from Hell is a website devoted to reviewing offbeat or "cult" films. Founded in 1997 by college students Justin Olivetti and Kymberlie McGuire, the site's stated goal is to provide an alternative to stuffy, pretentious movie critics by offering humorous reviews from a more...
- "[It's] the cinematic equivalent of a rectal exam. Uncomfortable, embarrassing, painful, disconcerting, you just want it to end already, and when you're done you're bitter and sour. And you can't shake that feeling that you've been violated." — Cinema Crazed
Connection to games
The movie is based on the video game series The House of the DeadThe House of the Dead (arcade game)
The House of the Dead is a first-person, light gun arcade game developed in 1996 and released in 1997 by Sega.Players assume the role of agents Thomas Rogan and "G" in their efforts to combat the products of the dangerous, inhumane experiments of Dr. Curien, a madman.-Gameplay:The House of the Dead...
much more so than the previous film. Both feature some kind of medical facility overrun by zombies, and AMS agents are dispatched to contain it. This movie also shows the 4th game as the AMS agents struggle to break free from the zombies. In this film, AMS agents are dressed up as rogue commandos, and just like in The House of the Dead III
The House of the Dead III
The House of the Dead III is a 2002 light gun arcade game with a horror zombie-survival theme, and the third installment to the House of the Dead series of video games, developed by Wow Entertainment and Sega. It was later ported to the Xbox in 2003, Microsoft Windows in 2005, and the Wii in 2008,...
, some of them are killed or turned into zombies. Both AMS commandos survive in the ending of the movie, not in the game. The survivors are Ellis and Alex (AMS commandos).
The subtitle for which the film is known is also the name of one installment of another survival horror game: Resident Evil: Dead Aim
Resident Evil: Dead Aim
Resident Evil: Dead Aim, known as in Japan, is the fourth release in a series of light gun shooter video games by Capcom. It is also the first in the franchise to feature first-person shooting alongside the third-person movement seen in its predecessors in the Resident Evil series...
.
Sequel
A third movie, currently titled House of the Dead 3, with the name subject to change, has been discussed since late 2006. Michael HurstMichael Hurst
Michael Eric Hurst, ONZM is a New Zealand actor, director and writer, mostly on stage and television. He is probably best known internationally for playing Iolaus in the television programs Hercules: The Legendary Journeys and companion series Xena: Warrior Princess...
is replacing Uwe Boll
Uwe Boll
Uwe Boll is a German director, producer and screenwriter, whose work includes several films adapted from video games. He finances his own films through his Boll KG production company. He is often cited as the worst director of all time.-Early life:...
as the director of this movie, and Mark A. Altman said: "It's a completely different approach to the material than the first two films and I doubt it will even be called House of the Dead 3." Unlike House of the Dead 2, the producers aren't planning on releasing House of the Dead 3 direct to DVD, but to theatre.