Customer Reviews

8MM 2 - Unrated and Exposed

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

The original film 8 MM deals with the theme of why people commit horrendous acts of violence, as it deals with an 8MM film that contains a real murder. These films have been dubbed snuff films. Director Alejandro Amenábar even makes a better story of his terrific thriller called Thesis (1996) that portrays a female college student studying violence in media who also comes across a snuff film. Thus, when a title comes out with the name 8MM 2, the audience will make the logical deduction that it will also deal with a theme of why people commit vile murderous acts on film. In addition, to set the film in east Europe enhances this notion of brutal violence, as many films and news updates contain dreadful crimes in Eastern Europe that have links with organized crime. Thus, the implications of another tense and suspenseful cinematic event is set to bring viewers down the horror lane.

However, it would be complete miscalculation by the audience to make the inference that the sequel would follow the same theme. Here in 8MM 2, which does not even have any of the same actors, director, or theme, merely applies the title of a successful film in order to attract viewers. The film tries to evoke a similar atmosphere of depravity and immorality among the upper class, as Joel Schumacher's 8MM. It succeeds to some extent, but does not have the same grim and dark touch.

8MM 2 opens with a shot of a courtroom where a number of people are talking while the sound of a passionately active couple sexually pleasure one another. Here the story advertises the film's path, as David (Johnathon Schaech) tells his fiancé, Tish (Lori Heuring), about a sexual fantasy of his. They are on their way to a weekend vacation at a luxurious hotel where they intend to bathe each other in sinful lust, which enhances when Tish invites a woman to join them after a nightclub visit. Together they end up in a ménage à trios that they never are going to forget.

After the return from their wicked vacation, there are obviously some tense emotions underneath the surface. It bears the same sentiments that Threesome (1994) portrayed through three sexually experimenting college students. However, the emotional turmoil quickly evaporates when David receives an envelop with pictures of Tish, David, and the girl that they met in the club. Due to Tish's father's political position as an ambassador in Hungary and a potential candidate for the Supreme Court nominee and David's future in politics they cannot approach law enforcement. It leaves them dealing with the criminals themselves, which brings them on a journey into the Budapest red light district and the world of pornography.

The film provides a futile attempt to make it a political thriller, but this too fails. Instead, it provides an erotic thriller with non-existent suspense, but much erotica. In some aspects, the film will remind the audience about Wild Things (1998), but there is far more sexuality present in 8MM 2. The film tries to hide a poor story underneath the world of sex while dealing with a rather amusingly silly extortion affair. In addition, Tish and David also seem completely oblivious in regards to the threats that the underworld could pose on them if the criminal elements so desired. The many awkward moments within the film outweigh everything else, and leave the viewers with a hollow and empty cinematic experience.

8MM 2 was a rather disappointing film, as it had nothing to do with the original film with Nicolas Cage, and the story was a clichéd combination between Wild Things and an adult film. The question is whether the audience is better of with the latter, as the story does not capture the audience's attention in regards to suspense, or drama.

Even with a cursory perusal of the cover art and the use of a few excess brain cells not killed by drinking, it is obvious to the casual viewer that 8MM 2 - Unrated and Exposed bares no resemblance to the fantastic original starring Nicolas Cage & Joaquin Phoenix (get that out your head right away), and written by the dude, Andrew Kevin Walker, who wrote the earth-shattering "Se7en". The film-makers are using the "8MM" brand for recogniton-sake (i.e. they owned the rights, ergo - they can sell this "brand as something familiar). However, the movie manages to combine solid acting, nice locations and good production values to make a dark thriller that is both salacious and entertaining. The film is about an attractive young couple (played by gorgeous, fresh faces Johnathon Schaech and Lori Heuring) whose vacation "indiscretion" with a Euro-babe played by Zita Görög (a gorgeous girl who hosts Hungary's version of American Idol in real life) leads to big trouble, secret videos, back-mail, murder & the whole 9 yards. Nice twists and turns lead to some surprising outcomes - some may keep guessing (I did), some may figure it out, but still well-crafted entertainment.

What separates 8MM 2 from most of the drek in this genre (you see these flicks all the time on late night Skin-a-max and just outside the"adult" section of your neighborhood video store) is that it is skillfully made, has talented actors and is filmed in Budapest, the real life sex capital of the world. These touches elevate the film above most of the low-budget, T&A soap operas being cranked out by auteurs looking to make a quick buck by titillating the audience. The settings are authentic, explicit and even a bit sleazy (many scenes have acres of leggy Penthouse Pet-like Euros, walking around naked, having sex, etc...). As a viewer, I really bought into the scenario that found this young couple entering a strange world and descending into a moral and sexual abyss (and liking it a bit). The actors are easy on the eyes and believable (particularly the low-key, girl-next-door-esque Lori Heuring). The production is exceedingly professional - spectacular Budapest exteriors; very competent and well-made. I even liked the DVD extras and "making of" material - it framed the film and revelaed clearly that the people involved took the project seriously and were not just attempting to cash in on another "Wild Things" sequel.

Some viewers may be disappointed that the film had nothing to do with the original. Seriously folks, how many flicks can you make about snuff films (which ironically have no sequels). If you're looking for some nice couples fun to get the old lady (or man) in the mood on a Saturday night, and want something that won't insult your intelligence, check out 8MM 2 - Unrated and Exposed.

I WAS VERY SURPRISED WITH THE ENDING. I LOVE GUESSING WHO DONE IT, BUT HAVE TO ADMIT; THIS ONE FOOLED ME! THIS IS THE FIRST MOVIE, I HAVE SEEN WITH JOHNATON SCHAECH. HE REALLY UNDERSTOOD HIS CHARACTER FULLY. ALSO, LORI HEURING, WAS VERY BELEIVABLE!

This movie has many twists and turns, quite a bit of graphic sex, it takes place in Budapest, which has an international reputation for all sorts of adult pleasures. But there's more to this than just a bunch of different sex scenes, there is a genuine thriller of a story and an ending that makes you say, "Now that was good flick."

My review title basically says it all. I was expecting this movie to just be a T & A extravaganza with no actual substance. I was wrong. I guess it could have turned out that way, except for the very good acting by the two leads. They carried the story through to the end; and the end was such a surprise... I'm usually pretty good at figuring out "whodunits" halfway through the movie. This one got me. By the end I had expected one of two people to be the perpetrator, but it was someone completely different. You'll have to watch it to find out who. Great ending to a good, but not incredible, movie

8 MM 2's biggest flaw is its title. I've heard that it was originally released as "The Velvet Side of Hell". The latter title would have done the film justice by correctly setting the audience's expectations. 8 MM 2 is a guilty pleasure that's the equivalent of making dinner out of a Chunky bar dipped in a jar of Skippy. This film is simply a competently filmed erotic romp with sexy leads and interesting scenery. Johnathon Schaech and Lori Heuring are gorgeous but not plastic...or silicon (remember this as you watch the film, ha ha). The erotic content is lavishly filmed and very sleazy but not cheesy.

In a miscalculated attempt to leverage a tie-in to 8 MM, the producers / distributors / studio reached the wrong audience and the scheme backfired. And "wrong audience" doesn't just mean the wrong individual viewers. It also applies to the cinematic appetite of the viewer at the time that she's considering a film. For instance, I very much enjoyed the original 8 MM. It was a well written, well made, well acted, relevant film. And surprise, I also very much enjoyed 8 MM 2. This "sequel" is fun and pretty good for what it is. When I first popped it in, thinking that it was a true sequel, I was put off, but also titillated. So I put 8 MM 2 aside, watched a more serious film and then enjoyed 8 MM 2 when I was in a lighter, more...um...adventurous...mood.

8 MM 2 has an attractive professional cast, expensive sets, competent camera work, good lighting and compelling scenery. The plot is as trivially functional as a plot should be in a film subtitled "Unrated and Exposed". (At some points, the film seems to be poking fun at itself and even if it's not, you sure can.) So just mentally edit the title to "The Velvet Side of Hell" before you decide whether or not such a film will satisfy your current cinematic appetite.

This lurid, sex-gorged nudy has nothing to do with the Nicolas Cage thriller; instead it's more a soft porn peep show. The characters who are not likeable in the least do stupid thing after stupid thing, and what's worse, seem bored doing it. Johnathon Schaech and Lori Heuring, who are usually adept in their performances, are tepid and listless in this inane story about an aspiring politician, his nympho wife and a threesome that gets them into all sorts of trouble. Poor Bruce Davison who is so good in KINGDOM HOSPITAL is lost in the role of Heurings judicial aspiring father, and the twist ending is unresolved so we've actually had no reason to want anything good to happen to anyone. A waste of celluloid.

Jonathan Schaech (The Doom Generation, The Forsaken) plays David Huxley and him and his fiancee Tish, played by Lori Heuring (Taboo, Mulholland Dr.) have a steamy threeway with a young model played by Zita Gorog (Underworld, upcoming Underworld: Evolution). Later, Schaech gets pictures in the mail which leads to being that someone filmed the 3 of them doing the deed and then Schaech and his fiancee Heuring find themselves in a underground world of peep shows, nude clubs and live Internet sex trying to find this model and try to get the tape. Also, they got a detective on their trail, a money drop goes sour...two money drops go sour and Schaech is kidnapped which puts Heuring towards getting more money for him...yeah, that's how this deeply boring movie is...the nudity kinda gets tiresome after awhile. The actors arent that great in this either...this is failure at its best and its a name only sequel to the 1999 movie that had Nicolas Cage which was better that this stuff. Also starring Julie Benz (Tv's Angel and Buffy The Vampire Slayer) and Bruce Davison (X-Men, X2: X-Men United) who is wasted here.

First off, this movie has absolutely nothing to do with the Nicolas Cage movie called 8MM. Nothing. Not even anything that uses 8mm film. That movie wasn't good but it had an intriguing idea: Cage plays someone tracking down the killers of a girl murdered in a snuff film. (If you haven't seen it, don't bother: it's not good. For a concept with a sex/violence theme, the original 8MM is a dark, lame movie where Nicolas Cage mugs in a dark, lame scenario populated with sleazy perverts and dirty grotesques. It is easily the unsexiest movie about a sexual crime ever).

I just caught 8MM 2 on late night cable (where it belongs). It might as well have been NIGHT EYES 9. Or any of the other late night, "Skin-a-max" softcore films.

This one only excels at how dumb a script can get. The characters are so stupid that you will laugh at their ideas about solving their problems. A couple needs to find a stripper/porn actress so they get the brilliant idea of getting the girl to apply as a stripper--keep in mind she is the daughter of the U.S. Ambassador. She goes through the process of becoming a stripper, even being led back to do some Internet porn (which she chickens out of) before the guy (who works for her Ambassador dad) forces his way back and beats up a bouncer.

Why go into this? Because as they escape the strip club, the guy says all he had to do was ask another stripper where the porn actress was they were looking for and he got her address...which was the most logical way to get it that they didn't think of ten minutes ago.

Every sequence feels like it came from another movie...where it made more sense.

Good excuse to have copious footage of beautiful nude girls.
Just makes for a incredibly stupid story.

Lori Heuring is wrongly identified in the Amazon summary review of this so-so movie as starring Mulholland Drive. No, that was Laura Harring, who played the central character in MD and is as different from Lori as night and day.

An interesting movie, kind of lumbers along, Tom Berenger is convincingly befuddled but the ending twist is a bid incredible.