Jump to content

Species II: Difference between revisions

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Browse history interactively
← Previous edit
Content deleted Content added
VisualWikitext
No edit summary
Tags: Mobile edit Mobile web edit
No edit summary
 
(46 intermediate revisions by 28 users not shown)
Line 19: Line 19:
| cinematography = [[Matthew F. Leonetti]]
| cinematography = [[Matthew F. Leonetti]]
| editing = [[Richard Nord]]
| editing = [[Richard Nord]]
| studio = FGM Entertainment
| studio = [[Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures]]<br>FGM Entertainment
| distributor = [[MGM Distribution Co.]]
| distributor = [[MGM Distribution Co.]]
| released = {{Film date|1998|4|10}}
| released = {{Film date|1998|4|10}}
Line 25: Line 25:
| country = United States
| country = United States
| language = English
| language = English
| budget =
| budget = $35 million
| gross = $19.2 million<ref name=boxmojo>{{cite web|url=https://boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=species2.htm |title=Species II (1998) |access-date=2009-10-30 |publisher=[[Box Office Mojo]]}}</ref>
| gross = $19.2 million<ref name=boxmojo>{{cite web|url=https://boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=species2.htm |title=Species II (1998) |access-date=2009-10-30 |publisher=[[Box Office Mojo]]}}</ref>
}}
}}
Line 31: Line 31:
'''''Species II''''' is a 1998 American [[Science fiction film|science fiction]] [[Horror film|horror]] [[thriller film]] directed by [[Peter Medak]]. The film is a sequel to ''[[Species (film)|Species]]'' (1995) and the second installment in the [[Species (franchise)|''Species'' series]]. The film stars [[Michael Madsen]], [[Natasha Henstridge]], [[Marg Helgenberger]], [[Mykelti Williamson]], [[George Dzundza]], [[James Cromwell]] and [[Justin Lazard]]. In addition to Madsen and Helgenberger reprising their roles, Henstridge also returned for the sequel as a new character. The plot has Patrick Ross, the astronaut son of a senator, being infected by an extraterrestrial organism during a mission to [[Mars]] and causing the deaths of many women upon his return. To stop him, the scientists who created the human-extraterrestrial hybrid Sil in the original ''Species'' try using a more docile clone of hers, Eve.
'''''Species II''''' is a 1998 American [[Science fiction film|science fiction]] [[Horror film|horror]] [[thriller film]] directed by [[Peter Medak]]. The film is a sequel to ''[[Species (film)|Species]]'' (1995) and the second installment in the [[Species (franchise)|''Species'' series]]. The film stars [[Michael Madsen]], [[Natasha Henstridge]], [[Marg Helgenberger]], [[Mykelti Williamson]], [[George Dzundza]], [[James Cromwell]] and [[Justin Lazard]]. In addition to Madsen and Helgenberger reprising their roles, Henstridge also returned for the sequel as a new character. The plot has Patrick Ross, the astronaut son of a senator, being infected by an extraterrestrial organism during a mission to [[Mars]] and causing the deaths of many women upon his return. To stop him, the scientists who created the human-extraterrestrial hybrid Sil in the original ''Species'' try using a more docile clone of hers, Eve.


The film was theatrically released on April 10, 1998. Compared to its predecessor, the film was panned by critics and was a [[box-office bomb]], only grossing $26.8 million worldwide, and $19.2 million domestically. Despite this, a [[made-for-television]] sequel, ''[[Species III]]'', was released in 2004.
The film was theatrically released on April 10, 1998. Compared to its predecessor, the film was panned by critics and was a [[box-office bomb]], only grossing $30 million worldwide, and $19.2 million domestically. Despite this, a [[made-for-television]] sequel, ''[[Species III]]'', was released in 2004.


== Plot ==
== Plot ==
Commander Patrick Ross leads a [[human mission to Mars]]. Soil samples collected by the [[astronaut]]s contain an alien substance which thaws aboard their capsule and contaminates them, causing a brief contact gap with [[mission control]]. The three astronauts return to Earth to public celebration, but an institutionalized former scientist, Dr. Cromwell, reacts to their return with violent panic. The three astronauts are examined and quarantined to prevent them from engaging in sexual intercourse for ten days. However, Patrick disregards the advice and sleeps with two women that night. Both women undergo an accelerated pregnancy in which their stomachs split open and half-alien children emerge, killing them. Patrick hides the rapidly growing alien children in a remote shed.
While participating in a [[human mission to Mars]], astronauts led by Commander Patrick Ross, Anne Sampas, and Dennis Gamble collect soil samples. While returning to Earth, the soil thaws and releases an alien substance that contaminates them and causes a brief contact gap with [[mission control]]. The trio return to Earth to public celebration, but an institutionalized former scientist, Dr. Cromwell, reacts to their return with violent panic. They are examined and quarantined to prevent them from engaging in sexual activity for ten days. However, Ross ignores this and has sex with two women. To his horror, the pair undergo accelerated pregnancies and die giving birth to human/alien hybrids, which he hides in his father's remote shed.


Under military supervision, scientists led by Dr. Laura Baker have created a more docile clone of Sil, named Eve, in an effort to understand the alien life form and prepare for defense should it ever arrive on earth. An isolated Eve, undergoing tests in the lab, shows signs of great physiological excitement every time Patrick has sex with women. At the space center, Patrick sneaks into the lab and kills Dr. Orinsky, who had been trying to contact Dr. Cromwell about the astronauts' blood samples. Analysis of the corpse reveals the presence of alien DNA, similar to, yet distinct from, Eve's. Baker is reunited with Press Lennox to contain the threat. The two contact Cromwell, who explains that Mars was rendered uninhabitable by an alien species, and that he was institutionalized to silence his opposition to the Mars mission.
Meanwhile, under military supervision, scientists led by Dr. Laura Baker have created a more docile clone of Sil named Eve in an effort to understand the alien life form and prepare for defense should it ever arrive on Earth. While in isolation and undergoing tests, Eve shows signs of great physiological excitement every time Patrick has sex. At the space center, Patrick sneaks into the lab and kills Dr. Orinsky, who was trying to contact Dr. Cromwell about the astronauts' blood samples. Analysis of the corpse reveals the presence of alien DNA, similar to, yet distinct from, Eve's. Baker reunites with former colleague Preston "Press" Lennox to contain the new threat and contact Cromwell, who reveals Mars was rendered uninhabitable by an alien species, he was institutionalized to silence his opposition to the Mars mission, and Orinsky tried to call him to confirm his fears.


Press and Laura find astronaut Anne Sampas, who is also infected with alien DNA. By the time they locate her, she has had unprotected intercourse with her human husband and has become impregnated with alien offspring. Press and Laura kill the creature, but not before it emerges and kills both Anne and her husband. Government agents analyze Dennis Gamble's blood, revealing that he was not infected, and he joins Press and Laura in their mission. After spending the night with his fiancée, Patrick wakes to find her mutilated body and another alien child. Horrified at what he has done, he shoots himself, but his head immediately regenerates and he is reborn as a whole alien. Patrick impregnates as many women as he can, killing them in the process, and burying them next to his shed where he accumulates a large, virulent brood of alien children.
Press and Laura find Sampas as she has sex with her husband, only to suddenly become impregnated with an alien newborn, which kills the Sampases before Press and Baker kill the creature in turn. After government agents determine Gamble was not infected, the latter joins Baker and Press in their mission. Concurrently, Ross awakens to find his fiancée dead, having given birth to another hybrid. Horrified, he commits suicide, but his alien DNA takes over and regenerates his body before going on a killing spree to produce more offspring.


At the lab, the scientists activate Eve's alien DNA to telepathically track Patrick. Patrick also locates Eve and, in order to get closer to her, gives himself up to Press and Dennis. As he enters the lab, Eve shows signs of being in heat. Patrick tries to enter her isolation cell but is chased off by Laura, Dennis, and Press. Patrick then helps his alien children to [[Pupa#Cocoon|cocoon]], awaiting their rebirth as adults so they can mate with humans, hoping to eventually destroy the entire human population. Meanwhile, Laura finds out that Dennis has resisted infection due to his [[sickle cell disease]], and plans to infect the alien species with Dennis' DNA, as the species lacks immunity to human genetic diseases.
The scientists activate Eve's alien DNA so she can telepathically track Ross. Picking up on this, he gives himself up to Press and Gamble to infiltrate the lab and reach Eve as she goes into heat. However, he is chased off by Laura, Gamble, and Press. That night, Ross commands his offspring to form a cocoon so they can reach their adult stages and repeat the cycle on a global scale. After Baker discovers Gamble resisted infection because of his [[sickle cell trait]], she plans to kill Ross with Gamble's DNA as the alien lacks immunity to human genetic diseases.


As the team prepares, Eve breaks free from the lab to find Patrick. The team tails her, finds the shed and kills Patrick's brood. Eve and Patrick start to mate and transform into their alien forms, but are interrupted by Press. Patrick fights off Press and Dennis, and overpowers Eve. He then seemingly kills her by forcing his tongue-tentacle down her throat. Press stabs Patrick in the back with a [[pitchfork]] coated with Dennis' blood, causing Patrick to disintegrate. The military arrives and escorts Press, Laura and the injured Dennis away. Eve's lifeless human body is loaded into the back of an ambulance. As the vehicle departs, Eve's womb begins to swell, indicating an imminent birth, as one of Patrick's children, who had not yet cocooned, looks on.
As Eve escapes to find him, the team track her to Ross's nest, where she and Ross mate until they are interrupted by Press. The team kill most of Ross's offspring. Baker pleads Eve to help them, but a betrayed Ross seemingly kills her. Press uses a pitchfork to draw Gamble's blood and use it on Ross, killing him. While the military arrive to escort the team away, Eve is loaded into an ambulance, where she is joined by Ross's remaining offspring while her womb rapidly swells, the screen the goes black, [[Species III|leading to the events of the third film]].


==Cast==
==Cast==
Line 56: Line 56:
* [[Myriam Cyr]] as Anne Sampas
* [[Myriam Cyr]] as Anne Sampas
* [[Peter Boyle]] as Dr. Herman Cromwell
* [[Peter Boyle]] as Dr. Herman Cromwell
* Nancy La Scala as Debutante sister Marcy
* Nancy La Scala as Debutante
* Raquel Gardner as Debutante sister Lucy
* Raquel Gardner as Debutante's sister
* Kim Adams as Darlene
* Kim Adams as Darlene
* Nicholas Vota as Portus, Boy In Ambulance
* Nicholas Vota as Portus, Boy In Ambulance


== Development ==
== Development ==
Writer [[Chris Brancato]] was working with MGM on ''[[The Outer Limits (1995 TV series)|The Outer Limits]]'', and knew the studio was interested in making a follow-up to ''Species''. He pitched an idea to executive Greg Foster where this time two hybrid alien women would strike. Foster liked it, but once Brancato went to ''Species'' producer [[Frank Mancuso Jr.]], he asked to "approach this from a different angle, so that we don't have a tired retread of the original, as sequels often are". So with that in mind, Brancato took inspiration from ''The Manchurian Candidate'', where "somebody on a mission comes back, apparently a hero, but actually with some terrible demon inside", and as "the notion of a grand, unexplored place was the planet [[Mars]]", he made the first astronaut on Mars – as according to [[NASA]] scientists consulted by Brancato, human [[exploration of Mars]] was "a possibility – just a very expensive one" – be infected by alien DNA. Mancuso approved the idea, and thus Brancato explored how this new villain was one "for whom we can briefly feel a strange, [[Larry Talbot|Wolf Man]]-like sympathy – he's not responsible for having been turned into a monster" and had him face an alien woman similar to Sil, raising the doubt on whether they would battle or mate. As Natasha Henstridge was unconfirmed to return, Brancato wrote the new female, Eve, as if it was "either Natasha or a similarly beautiful woman".<ref name=brancato>{{cite journal|url=https://archive.org/details/starlog_magazine-251 |title=The Origin of Species|author=Howard Johnson, Kim|journal=Starlog|date=June 1998|pages=76–80}}</ref> Henstridge still liked the script enough and the idea of working with director Peter Medak to sign for the sequel.<ref name=eve>[https://archive.org/details/starlog_magazine-251 All About Eve], ''Starlog'' 251 (June 1998)</ref> Brancato decided to bring back two of the surviving characters from ''Species'', [[Michael Madsen]]'s Press Lennox and [[Marg Helgenberger]]'s Dr. Laura Baker feeling they "were essential to bring the audience back in", but knowing [[Forest Whitaker]] was probably too busy to return as Dan Smithson, he wrote a similar African American character in the one eventually portrayed by [[Mykelti Williamson]].<ref name=brancato /> Mancuso had another script done simultaneously to Brancato's, which reportedly explored the cliffhanger ending of ''Species'' where a rat was infected after eating Sil's remains.<ref name=eve /> Mancuso brought in [[Peter Medak]], responsible for the 1980 horror film ''[[The Changeling (1980 film)|The Changeling]]''.<ref name=brancato />
Writer [[Chris Brancato]] was working with MGM on ''[[The Outer Limits (1995 TV series)|The Outer Limits]]'', and knew the studio was interested in making a follow-up to ''Species''. He pitched an idea to executive Greg Foster where this time two hybrid alien women would strike. Foster liked it, but once Brancato went to ''Species'' producer [[Frank Mancuso Jr.]], he asked to "approach this from a different angle, so that we don't have a tired retread of the original, as sequels often are". With that in mind, Brancato took inspiration from ''The Manchurian Candidate'', where "somebody on a mission comes back, apparently a hero, but actually with some terrible demon inside", and as "the notion of a grand, unexplored place was the planet [[Mars]]", he made the first astronaut on Mars – as according to [[NASA]] scientists consulted by Brancato, human [[exploration of Mars]] was "a possibility – just a very expensive one" – be infected by alien DNA. Mancuso approved the idea, and thus Brancato explored how this new villain was one "for whom we can briefly feel a strange, [[Larry Talbot|Wolf Man]]-like sympathy – he's not responsible for having been turned into a monster" and had him face an alien woman similar to Sil, raising the doubt on whether they would battle or mate. As Natasha Henstridge was unconfirmed to return, Brancato wrote the new female, Eve, as if it was "either Natasha or a similarly beautiful woman".<ref name=brancato>{{cite journal|url=https://archive.org/details/starlog_magazine-251 |title=The Origin of Species|author=Howard Johnson, Kim|journal=Starlog|date=June 1998|pages=76–80}}</ref> Henstridge still liked the script enough and the idea of working with director Peter Medak to sign for the sequel.<ref name=eve>[https://archive.org/details/starlog_magazine-251 All About Eve], ''Starlog'' 251 (June 1998)</ref> Brancato decided to bring back two of the surviving characters from ''Species'', [[Michael Madsen]]'s Press Lennox and [[Marg Helgenberger]]'s Dr. Laura Baker feeling they "were essential to bring the audience back in", but knowing [[Forest Whitaker]] was probably too busy to return as Dan Smithson, he wrote a similar African American character in the one eventually portrayed by [[Mykelti Williamson]].<ref name=brancato /> Mancuso had another script done simultaneously to Brancato's, which reportedly explored the cliffhanger ending of ''Species'' where a rat was infected after eating Sil's remains.<ref name=eve /> Mancuso brought in [[Peter Medak]], responsible for the 1980 horror film ''[[The Changeling (1980 film)|The Changeling]]''.<ref name=brancato />


The nature of the alien species is explored to a slightly greater extent in the second film. A professor claims that they originated in the [[Large Magellanic Cloud]] (also called the Magellanic Galaxy), due to it apparently being the only other place carbon-based life forms have been discovered. It is also stipulated that they were a "cancerous" race that visited Mars millions of years ago and annihilated all life on its surface (which is described in the film as being Earth-like at that time) before leaving a remnant of their own DNA in its soil. This DNA was intended to be picked up by other visitors so that their species could continue to infect other inhabited planets.
The nature of the alien species is explored to a slightly greater extent in the second film. A professor claims that they originated in the [[Large Magellanic Cloud]] (also called the Magellanic Galaxy), due to it apparently being the only other place carbon-based life forms have been discovered. It is also stipulated that they were a "cancerous" race that visited Mars millions of years ago and annihilated all life on its surface (which is described in the film as being Earth-like at that time) before leaving a remnant of their own DNA in its soil. This DNA was intended to be picked up by other visitors so that their species could continue to infect other inhabited planets.
Line 74: Line 74:
== Reception ==
== Reception ==
=== Box office ===
=== Box office ===
The film ranked number four on its opening weekend behind ''[[City of Angels (film)|City of Angels]]'', ''[[Lost in Space (film)|Lost in Space]]'' and ''[[Titanic (1997 film)|Titanic]]'', with earnings of $7.4 million.<ref>{{cite news|title= City of Angels' Takes Wing in Heavenly Opening Weekend|work= [[Los Angeles Times]]|date=13 April 1998|url= https://articles.latimes.com/1998/apr/13/entertainment/ca-38767|access-date=2010-12-29}}</ref> Domestically, the film grossed only $19.2 million<ref name=boxmojo/> from its $35 million budget.{{cn|date=April 2023}} It grossed $26,817,565 worldwide,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.the-numbers.com/movies/franchise/Species|title=Species Franchise Box Office History - The Numbers|website=www.the-numbers.com|access-date=25 February 2019}}</ref> making the film a major [[box office bomb|commercial failure]].{{cn|date=April 2023}}
The film ranked number four on its opening weekend behind ''[[City of Angels (film)|City of Angels]]'', ''[[Lost in Space (film)|Lost in Space]]'' and ''[[Titanic (1997 film)|Titanic]]'', with earnings of $7.4 million.<ref>{{cite news|title= City of Angels' Takes Wing in Heavenly Opening Weekend|work= [[Los Angeles Times]]|date=13 April 1998|url= https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1998-apr-13-ca-38767-story.html|access-date=2010-12-29}}</ref> Domestically, the film grossed only $19.2 million<ref name=boxmojo/> from its $35 million budget.{{citation needed|date=April 2023}} It grossed $26,817,565 worldwide,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.the-numbers.com/movies/franchise/Species|title=Species Franchise Box Office History - The Numbers|website=www.the-numbers.com|access-date=25 February 2019}}</ref> making the film a major [[box office bomb|commercial failure]].{{citation needed|date=April 2023}}


=== Critical response ===
=== Critical response ===
The film received worse reviews than its predecessor. On [[Rotten Tomatoes]], it has an approval rating of 9% at based on 33 reviews. The site's critical consensus reads: "Clumsily exploitative and sloppily assembled, ''Species II'' fails to clear the rather low bar set by its less-than-stellar predecessor".<ref>{{cite web |title=Species II (1998) |url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/species_2 |website=[[Rotten Tomatoes]] |access-date=2021-01-01}}</ref> On Metacritic the film has a score of 19% based on reviews from 13 critics, indicating "overwhelming dislike".<ref>{{cite web |title=Species II |url=https://www.metacritic.com/movie/species-ii |website=[[Metacritic]] |access-date=2021-01-01}}</ref> Audiences polled by [[CinemaScore]] gave the film an average grade of "C" on an A+ to F scale.<ref name="CinemaScore">{{cite web |url=https://www.cinemascore.com/ |title=CinemaScore |publisher=[[CinemaScore]] |access-date=April 16, 2022 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20220413083139/https://www.cinemascore.com/ |archive-date=April 13, 2022 |url-status=live}}</ref> At the 1998 [[Stinkers Bad Movie Awards]], the film was nominated for Worst Sequel but lost to ''[[I Still Know What You Did Last Summer]]''.{{citation needed|date=March 2021}}
The film received worse reviews than its predecessor. On [[Rotten Tomatoes]], it has an approval rating of 9% at based on 34 reviews. The site's critical consensus reads: "Clumsily exploitative and sloppily assembled, ''Species II'' fails to clear the rather low bar set by its less-than-stellar predecessor".<ref>{{cite web |title=Species II (1998) |url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/species_2 |website=[[Rotten Tomatoes]] |access-date=2021-01-01}}</ref> On Metacritic the film has a score of 19% based on reviews from 13 critics, indicating "overwhelming dislike".<ref>{{cite web |title=Species II |url=https://www.metacritic.com/movie/species-ii |website=[[Metacritic]] |access-date=2021-01-01}}</ref> Audiences polled by [[CinemaScore]] gave the film an average grade of "C" on an A+ to F scale.<ref name="CinemaScore">{{cite web |url=https://www.cinemascore.com/ |title=CinemaScore |publisher=[[CinemaScore]] |access-date=April 16, 2022 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20220413083139/https://www.cinemascore.com/ |archive-date=April 13, 2022 |url-status=live}}</ref> At the [[1998 Stinkers Bad Movie Awards]], the film was nominated for Worst Sequel but lost to ''[[I Still Know What You Did Last Summer]]''.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://theenvelope.latimes.com/extras/lostmind/year/1998/1998st.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070103155058/http://theenvelope.latimes.com/extras/lostmind/year/1998/1998st.htm|url-status=dead|archive-date=January 3, 2007|title=Past Winners Database|date=January 3, 2007}}</ref>


Dwayne E. Leslie from ''[[Boxoffice (magazine)|Box Office Magazine]]'' gave the film 1 out of 5 stars calling it "a sequel that doesn't measure up", also heavily criticizing the film's predictable and open ending.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://boxoffice.com/reviews/2008/08/species-ii.php |title=Species II review | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100106234140/http://boxoffice.com/reviews/2008/08/species-ii.php |archive-date=2010-01-06 |url-status=dead |work=Boxoffice.com}}</ref> [[Joe Leydon]] from ''[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]'' magazine called the film "a half-baked rehash". He praised the special effects and technical aspects of the film but added "that's not nearly enough to camouflage the inherent crumminess".<ref>{{cite web |date=13 April 1998 |last=Leydon |first=Joe |author-link=Joe Leydon |title=Species II |url=https://variety.com/review/VE1117467370 |website=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]}}</ref> [[James Berardinelli]] described the film as awful but added "there's enough blood, gore, simulated sex, and bare flesh to prevent it from ever becoming boring".<ref>{{cite web |date=1998 |author=James Berardinelli |author-link=James Berardinelli |title=Review: Species II |url=https://preview.reelviews.net/movies/s/species2.html |website=ReelViews.net}}</ref>
Dwayne E. Leslie from ''[[Boxoffice (magazine)|Box Office Magazine]]'' gave the film 1 out of 5 stars calling it "a sequel that doesn't measure up", also heavily criticizing the film's predictable and open ending.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://boxoffice.com/reviews/2008/08/species-ii.php |title=Species II review |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100106234140/http://boxoffice.com/reviews/2008/08/species-ii.php |archive-date=2010-01-06 |url-status=dead |work=Boxoffice.com}}</ref> [[Joe Leydon]] from ''[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]'' magazine called the film "a half-baked rehash". He praised the special effects and technical aspects of the film but added "that's not nearly enough to camouflage the inherent crumminess".<ref>{{cite web |date=13 April 1998 |last=Leydon |first=Joe |author-link=Joe Leydon |title=Species II |url=https://variety.com/review/VE1117467370 |website=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]}}</ref> [[James Berardinelli]] described the film as awful but added "there's enough blood, gore, simulated sex, and bare flesh to prevent it from ever becoming boring".<ref>{{cite web |date=1998 |author=James Berardinelli |author-link=James Berardinelli |title=Review: Species II |url=https://preview.reelviews.net/movies/s/species2.html |website=ReelViews.net}}</ref>


In a 2004 interview, co-star [[Michael Madsen]] expressed his opinion on this film saying that "''Species II'' was a crock of shit. There are a number I'm not very proud of. The movie studios can't mind that much, as they haven't contacted me to tell me off about it. I'm honest – if I've made a bad movie, I want my fans to know what they're letting themselves in for".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.metro.co.uk/fame/interviews/article.html?in_article_id=1020&in_page_id=11 |title=Michael Madsen review |author=Tim Inghman |date=18 June 2004 |publisher=Metro.co.uk |access-date=13 January 2010}}</ref>
Co-star [[Michael Madsen]] was displeased with the film according to his statement in a 2004 interview.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.metro.co.uk/fame/interviews/article.html?in_article_id=1020&in_page_id=11 |title=Michael Madsen review |author=Tim Inghman |date=18 June 2004 |publisher=Metro.co.uk |access-date=13 January 2010}}</ref>


In the DVD commentary director [[Peter Medak]] praised the films' special effects. He expressed his opinion that audiences had too much expectation as this was a very different sequel due to not continuing from the story with the alien-infected rat that survived the finale, which hinted at a sequel in the 1995 original. Medak also admitted being uncomfortable with the amount of nudity in the film but said it was for the purpose of the story.{{citation needed|date=November 2018}}<!-- cite DVD and timestamp -->
In the DVD commentary director [[Peter Medak]] praised the films' special effects. He expressed his opinion that audiences had too much expectation as this was a very different sequel due to not continuing from the story with the alien-infected rat that survived the finale, which hinted at a sequel in the 1995 original. Medak also admitted being uncomfortable with the amount of nudity in the film but said it was for the purpose of the story.{{citation needed|date=November 2018}}<!-- cite DVD and timestamp -->
Line 92: Line 92:
== Novelization ==
== Novelization ==
{{Unreferenced section|date=February 2015}}
{{Unreferenced section|date=February 2015}}
As with the first film, [[Yvonne Navarro]] wrote a novelization based on the original screenplay which gives plot and character details not seen in the film.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.yvonnenavarro.com/offerings.htm|title=Yvonne Navarro: Writer & Illustrator -- Stuff for Sale|work=yvonnenavarro.com}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.yvonnenavarro.com/specdoc2.htm|title=Species II: The Official Page for the novel by Yvonne Navarro|work=yvonnenavarro.com}}</ref> For example, the book tells how, due to limited knowledge of the outside world, Eve does not know if Superman is a real life personality or not. It is also hinted that she was able to learn a degree of martial arts by watching old action movies.
As with the first film, [[Yvonne Navarro]] wrote a novelization based on the original screenplay which gives plot and character details not seen in the film.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.yvonnenavarro.com/offerings.htm|title=Yvonne Navarro: Writer & Illustrator -- Stuff for Sale|work=yvonnenavarro.com}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.yvonnenavarro.com/specdoc2.htm|title=Species II: The Official Page for the novel by Yvonne Navarro|work=yvonnenavarro.com}}</ref> For example, the book tells how, due to limited knowledge of the outside world, Eve does not know if Superman is a real life personality or not. It is also hinted that she was able to learn a degree of martial arts by watching old action films.


In the film, Eve is shot by soldiers, but after being briefly incapacitated her body regenerates and she continues to escape. Soldiers continue to shoot at her, but Eve manages to run past them; why she is unharmed is left unexplained. The book explains that her skin adapts (in a way similar to how her body adapts to the gas test earlier in the film), becoming bulletproof.
In the film, Eve is shot by soldiers, but after being briefly incapacitated her body regenerates and she continues to escape. Soldiers continue to shoot at her, but Eve manages to run past them; why she is unharmed is left unexplained. The book explains that her skin adapts (in a way similar to how her body adapts to the gas test earlier in the film), becoming bulletproof.
Line 98: Line 98:
Other details in the book that do not appear in the film include an earlier escape attempt by Eve, and Patrick discovering new senses in a restaurant with his fiancé. In the novel, the debutante is a young, sexy, brown-eyed blonde, whereas in the film, she is an older woman who is a brunette. The debutante's sister in the novel isn't her sister but her best friend from college who often engaged in sexual games that involved seducing men.
Other details in the book that do not appear in the film include an earlier escape attempt by Eve, and Patrick discovering new senses in a restaurant with his fiancé. In the novel, the debutante is a young, sexy, brown-eyed blonde, whereas in the film, she is an older woman who is a brunette. The debutante's sister in the novel isn't her sister but her best friend from college who often engaged in sexual games that involved seducing men.


The order of events in the novel differs from their order in the movie. For example, Patrick does not encounter the debutante at the fundraiser until after Orinsky is killed by him, and Cromwell is not visited by Laura and Press until they discover Orinsky's corpse.
The order of events in the novel differs from their order in the film. For example, Patrick does not encounter the debutante at the fundraiser until after Orinsky is killed by him, and Cromwell is not visited by Laura and Press until they discover Orinsky's corpse.


== See also ==
== See also ==
{{Portal|1990s|Horror|Science fiction|Film}}
* ''[[Alien (film)|Alien]]''
* ''[[Alien (film)|Alien]]''
* ''[[Life (2017 film)|Life]]''
* ''[[Life (2017 film)|Life]]''
Line 129: Line 130:
[[Category:American splatter films]]
[[Category:American splatter films]]
[[Category:Films scored by Edward Shearmur]]
[[Category:Films scored by Edward Shearmur]]
[[Category:Films set in 1998]]
[[Category:Films about astronauts]]
[[Category:Films about astronauts]]
[[Category:Films about cloning]]
[[Category:Films about cloning]]
Line 135: Line 137:
[[Category:Mars in film]]
[[Category:Mars in film]]
[[Category:Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer films]]
[[Category:Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer films]]
[[Category:Patricide in fiction]]
[[Category:Films about patricide]]
[[Category:American monster movies]]
[[Category:American monster movies]]
[[Category:Biological weapons in popular culture]]
[[Category:Biological weapons in popular culture]]
Line 143: Line 145:
[[Category:1990s American films]]
[[Category:1990s American films]]
[[Category:Films produced by Frank Mancuso Jr.]]
[[Category:Films produced by Frank Mancuso Jr.]]
[[Category:English-language action thriller films]]
[[Category:English-language science fiction horror films]]
[[Category:1998 science fiction films]]

Latest revision as of 11:06, 7 November 2024

Species II
Theatrical release poster
Directed byPeter Medak
Written byChris Brancato
Based onCharacters
by Dennis Feldman
Produced byFrank Mancuso Jr.
Starring
CinematographyMatthew F. Leonetti
Edited byRichard Nord
Music byEdward Shearmur
Production
companies
Distributed byMGM Distribution Co.
Release date
  • April 10, 1998 (1998-04-10)
Running time
93 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$35 million
Box office$19.2 million[1]

Species II is a 1998 American science fiction horror thriller film directed by Peter Medak. The film is a sequel to Species (1995) and the second installment in the Species series. The film stars Michael Madsen, Natasha Henstridge, Marg Helgenberger, Mykelti Williamson, George Dzundza, James Cromwell and Justin Lazard. In addition to Madsen and Helgenberger reprising their roles, Henstridge also returned for the sequel as a new character. The plot has Patrick Ross, the astronaut son of a senator, being infected by an extraterrestrial organism during a mission to Mars and causing the deaths of many women upon his return. To stop him, the scientists who created the human-extraterrestrial hybrid Sil in the original Species try using a more docile clone of hers, Eve.

The film was theatrically released on April 10, 1998. Compared to its predecessor, the film was panned by critics and was a box-office bomb, only grossing $30 million worldwide, and $19.2 million domestically. Despite this, a made-for-television sequel, Species III, was released in 2004.

Plot

[edit]

While participating in a human mission to Mars, astronauts led by Commander Patrick Ross, Anne Sampas, and Dennis Gamble collect soil samples. While returning to Earth, the soil thaws and releases an alien substance that contaminates them and causes a brief contact gap with mission control. The trio return to Earth to public celebration, but an institutionalized former scientist, Dr. Cromwell, reacts to their return with violent panic. They are examined and quarantined to prevent them from engaging in sexual activity for ten days. However, Ross ignores this and has sex with two women. To his horror, the pair undergo accelerated pregnancies and die giving birth to human/alien hybrids, which he hides in his father's remote shed.

Meanwhile, under military supervision, scientists led by Dr. Laura Baker have created a more docile clone of Sil named Eve in an effort to understand the alien life form and prepare for defense should it ever arrive on Earth. While in isolation and undergoing tests, Eve shows signs of great physiological excitement every time Patrick has sex. At the space center, Patrick sneaks into the lab and kills Dr. Orinsky, who was trying to contact Dr. Cromwell about the astronauts' blood samples. Analysis of the corpse reveals the presence of alien DNA, similar to, yet distinct from, Eve's. Baker reunites with former colleague Preston "Press" Lennox to contain the new threat and contact Cromwell, who reveals Mars was rendered uninhabitable by an alien species, he was institutionalized to silence his opposition to the Mars mission, and Orinsky tried to call him to confirm his fears.

Press and Laura find Sampas as she has sex with her husband, only to suddenly become impregnated with an alien newborn, which kills the Sampases before Press and Baker kill the creature in turn. After government agents determine Gamble was not infected, the latter joins Baker and Press in their mission. Concurrently, Ross awakens to find his fiancée dead, having given birth to another hybrid. Horrified, he commits suicide, but his alien DNA takes over and regenerates his body before going on a killing spree to produce more offspring.

The scientists activate Eve's alien DNA so she can telepathically track Ross. Picking up on this, he gives himself up to Press and Gamble to infiltrate the lab and reach Eve as she goes into heat. However, he is chased off by Laura, Gamble, and Press. That night, Ross commands his offspring to form a cocoon so they can reach their adult stages and repeat the cycle on a global scale. After Baker discovers Gamble resisted infection because of his sickle cell trait, she plans to kill Ross with Gamble's DNA as the alien lacks immunity to human genetic diseases.

As Eve escapes to find him, the team track her to Ross's nest, where she and Ross mate until they are interrupted by Press. The team kill most of Ross's offspring. Baker pleads Eve to help them, but a betrayed Ross seemingly kills her. Press uses a pitchfork to draw Gamble's blood and use it on Ross, killing him. While the military arrive to escort the team away, Eve is loaded into an ambulance, where she is joined by Ross's remaining offspring while her womb rapidly swells, the screen the goes black, leading to the events of the third film.

Cast

[edit]

Development

[edit]

Writer Chris Brancato was working with MGM on The Outer Limits, and knew the studio was interested in making a follow-up to Species. He pitched an idea to executive Greg Foster where this time two hybrid alien women would strike. Foster liked it, but once Brancato went to Species producer Frank Mancuso Jr., he asked to "approach this from a different angle, so that we don't have a tired retread of the original, as sequels often are". With that in mind, Brancato took inspiration from The Manchurian Candidate, where "somebody on a mission comes back, apparently a hero, but actually with some terrible demon inside", and as "the notion of a grand, unexplored place was the planet Mars", he made the first astronaut on Mars – as according to NASA scientists consulted by Brancato, human exploration of Mars was "a possibility – just a very expensive one" – be infected by alien DNA. Mancuso approved the idea, and thus Brancato explored how this new villain was one "for whom we can briefly feel a strange, Wolf Man-like sympathy – he's not responsible for having been turned into a monster" and had him face an alien woman similar to Sil, raising the doubt on whether they would battle or mate. As Natasha Henstridge was unconfirmed to return, Brancato wrote the new female, Eve, as if it was "either Natasha or a similarly beautiful woman".[2] Henstridge still liked the script enough and the idea of working with director Peter Medak to sign for the sequel.[3] Brancato decided to bring back two of the surviving characters from Species, Michael Madsen's Press Lennox and Marg Helgenberger's Dr. Laura Baker feeling they "were essential to bring the audience back in", but knowing Forest Whitaker was probably too busy to return as Dan Smithson, he wrote a similar African American character in the one eventually portrayed by Mykelti Williamson.[2] Mancuso had another script done simultaneously to Brancato's, which reportedly explored the cliffhanger ending of Species where a rat was infected after eating Sil's remains.[3] Mancuso brought in Peter Medak, responsible for the 1980 horror film The Changeling.[2]

The nature of the alien species is explored to a slightly greater extent in the second film. A professor claims that they originated in the Large Magellanic Cloud (also called the Magellanic Galaxy), due to it apparently being the only other place carbon-based life forms have been discovered. It is also stipulated that they were a "cancerous" race that visited Mars millions of years ago and annihilated all life on its surface (which is described in the film as being Earth-like at that time) before leaving a remnant of their own DNA in its soil. This DNA was intended to be picked up by other visitors so that their species could continue to infect other inhabited planets.

The Species basically appear to be bipedal (humanoid) forms. Unlike other aliens in the Species series, however, Patrick Ross has two types of alien forms: mating form and combat form.[4]: 30–31 [5]: 59  Patrick's alien form for copulation is bipedal, humanoid, and male version of Eve's,[5]: 55 [4]: 24  while Patrick's alien form for combat (so-called 'Fighting Patrick') is quadrupedal, bigger, and more 'brutish' in appearance than Eve.[4]: 30  His second stage appearance is also similar to the xenomorphs of the Alien films; both were designed with input from H. R. Giger.

Release

[edit]

Home media

[edit]

Species II was released on VHS and DVD on October 20, 1998.[6]

Reception

[edit]

Box office

[edit]

The film ranked number four on its opening weekend behind City of Angels, Lost in Space and Titanic, with earnings of $7.4 million.[7] Domestically, the film grossed only $19.2 million[1] from its $35 million budget.[citation needed] It grossed $26,817,565 worldwide,[8] making the film a major commercial failure.[citation needed]

Critical response

[edit]

The film received worse reviews than its predecessor. On Rotten Tomatoes, it has an approval rating of 9% at based on 34 reviews. The site's critical consensus reads: "Clumsily exploitative and sloppily assembled, Species II fails to clear the rather low bar set by its less-than-stellar predecessor".[9] On Metacritic the film has a score of 19% based on reviews from 13 critics, indicating "overwhelming dislike".[10] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "C" on an A+ to F scale.[11] At the 1998 Stinkers Bad Movie Awards, the film was nominated for Worst Sequel but lost to I Still Know What You Did Last Summer.[12]

Dwayne E. Leslie from Box Office Magazine gave the film 1 out of 5 stars calling it "a sequel that doesn't measure up", also heavily criticizing the film's predictable and open ending.[13] Joe Leydon from Variety magazine called the film "a half-baked rehash". He praised the special effects and technical aspects of the film but added "that's not nearly enough to camouflage the inherent crumminess".[14] James Berardinelli described the film as awful but added "there's enough blood, gore, simulated sex, and bare flesh to prevent it from ever becoming boring".[15]

Co-star Michael Madsen was displeased with the film according to his statement in a 2004 interview.[16]

In the DVD commentary director Peter Medak praised the films' special effects. He expressed his opinion that audiences had too much expectation as this was a very different sequel due to not continuing from the story with the alien-infected rat that survived the finale, which hinted at a sequel in the 1995 original. Medak also admitted being uncomfortable with the amount of nudity in the film but said it was for the purpose of the story.[citation needed]

Merchandise

[edit]

To coincide with the film, McFarlane Toys released an Eve and Patrick (in their alien form) action figure as part of their inaugural series of Movie Maniacs action figures. Both action figures came with a replica of the film's poster with skulls and bones base. Eve came with an alternate head.[17] Two Eve action figures were produced which was dubbed the PG and R rated version. The R rated Eve action figure (in her alien form) had nipples on her breasts while the PG figure didn't. The R rated figure was released only in comic book and other collectable stores while the PG figure was released in toy stores.[18]

The film's soundtrack on CD includes a track by B.B. King, one by Apollo 440, and 9 score pieces composed by Edward Shearmur.

Novelization

[edit]

As with the first film, Yvonne Navarro wrote a novelization based on the original screenplay which gives plot and character details not seen in the film.[19][20] For example, the book tells how, due to limited knowledge of the outside world, Eve does not know if Superman is a real life personality or not. It is also hinted that she was able to learn a degree of martial arts by watching old action films.

In the film, Eve is shot by soldiers, but after being briefly incapacitated her body regenerates and she continues to escape. Soldiers continue to shoot at her, but Eve manages to run past them; why she is unharmed is left unexplained. The book explains that her skin adapts (in a way similar to how her body adapts to the gas test earlier in the film), becoming bulletproof.

Other details in the book that do not appear in the film include an earlier escape attempt by Eve, and Patrick discovering new senses in a restaurant with his fiancé. In the novel, the debutante is a young, sexy, brown-eyed blonde, whereas in the film, she is an older woman who is a brunette. The debutante's sister in the novel isn't her sister but her best friend from college who often engaged in sexual games that involved seducing men.

The order of events in the novel differs from their order in the film. For example, Patrick does not encounter the debutante at the fundraiser until after Orinsky is killed by him, and Cromwell is not visited by Laura and Press until they discover Orinsky's corpse.

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b "Species II (1998)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 2009-10-30.
  2. ^ a b c Howard Johnson, Kim (June 1998). "The Origin of Species". Starlog: 76–80.
  3. ^ a b All About Eve, Starlog 251 (June 1998)
  4. ^ a b c "Making Species 2" (PDF). Cinefantastique. May 1998. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2018-07-12. Retrieved 2018-07-12.
  5. ^ a b "Origin of the Species" (PDF). SFX. May 1998.
  6. ^ "'Mercury Rising' and 'Deep Rising' due on video". The Kansas City Star. September 11, 1998. p. 106. Archived from the original on April 8, 2023. Retrieved April 8, 2023 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  7. ^ "City of Angels' Takes Wing in Heavenly Opening Weekend". Los Angeles Times. 13 April 1998. Retrieved 2010-12-29.
  8. ^ "Species Franchise Box Office History - The Numbers". www.the-numbers.com. Retrieved 25 February 2019.
  9. ^ "Species II (1998)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 2021-01-01.
  10. ^ "Species II". Metacritic. Retrieved 2021-01-01.
  11. ^ "CinemaScore". CinemaScore. Archived from the original on April 13, 2022. Retrieved April 16, 2022.
  12. ^ "Past Winners Database". January 3, 2007. Archived from the original on January 3, 2007.
  13. ^ "Species II review". Boxoffice.com. Archived from the original on 2010-01-06.
  14. ^ Leydon, Joe (13 April 1998). "Species II". Variety.
  15. ^ James Berardinelli (1998). "Review: Species II". ReelViews.net.
  16. ^ Tim Inghman (18 June 2004). "Michael Madsen review". Metro.co.uk. Retrieved 13 January 2010.
  17. ^ "SPAWN.COM >> TOYS >> MOVIES >> MOVIE MANIACS 1". archive.org. 2 January 2010. Archived from the original on 2 January 2010.
  18. ^ Squires, John (9 September 2016). "Remembering McFarlane's Movie Maniacs Toy Line". Bloody Disgusting!. There were even "rated R" variants of Leatherface, Jason, and Eve
  19. ^ "Yvonne Navarro: Writer & Illustrator -- Stuff for Sale". yvonnenavarro.com.
  20. ^ "Species II: The Official Page for the novel by Yvonne Navarro". yvonnenavarro.com.
[edit]
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/enwiki/w/index.php?title=Species_II&oldid=1255940146"