Three out of
Five stars
Running time:
99 mins
Surprisingly enjoyable sequel with an intriguing premise and strong, likeable performances.
What's it all about?
After losing his wife and son in a tragic shooting, Abe Dale (Nathan
Fillion) attempts suicide and has a near death experience (or NDE). As a result, he finds that he can determine people who are going to die, indicated by a brilliant white light that surrounds them.
Realising that he has the power to save these people, Abe begins to do so, believing that he is making up for the deaths of his wife and child. However, when he investigates his wife's murderer (Britain's own Craig Fairbrass) he makes a terrifying discovery that has shocking consequences for his actions.
The Good
It's extremely rare for a sequel to be better than the original, although the first film was so unremittingly awful that it's not really that much of a surprise in this case. The sequel retains the original's fondness for acronyms (NDE, EVP, etc) and resorts to the same shock tactics of having ghosts jump out of TV static every few minutes, but it's a far superior film, thanks to an intriguing premise and a script that someone has actually thought about.
Nathan Fillion is excellent in the lead, although it's a shame that his character's less-than-cheery disposition means that the film is mostly deprived of Fillion's comic delivery. Katee Sackhoff is equally good as the female lead (as a nurse whose life Abe saves) and sci fi fans will derive a certain amount of pleasure from seeing Battlestar Galactica's Starbuck interact with Firefly Serenity's Captain Reynolds.
The Bad
The only real problems with the film are that Abe's wife and son aren't given enough screentime to make much of an impression.
Similarly, there's a moment of laughably bad acting when Fairbrass shows up, but it's not enough to ruin the film.
Worth seeing?
Don't be put off if you hated the original, because the sequel is a surprisingly enjoyable thriller.