A synthetic 99 minutes

DARKMAN II: THE RETURN OF DURANT

Reviewed by Jerry Saravia

Sam Raimi's "Darkman" was a wicked, demonic ride of a movie - a relentless superhero movie engineered by a shot of humanity and a tinge of madness from Liam Neeson as the Shadow-like Darkman. It was so supercharged and it left you with such sadness about the main character that I felt there was nothing left to say - the scarred scientist would roam the streets forever, never to reunite with his lost love (played by Frances McDormand). "Darkman II: The Return of Durant" is the typical sequel - it sacrifices everything that made the original so unique. Rather than create a new story, it practically replicates the original film.

Arnold Vosloo (replacing Liam Neeson) is the scarred Darkman, still looking for that synthetic skin that will last longer than 99 minutes when exposed to sunlight. He finds a bright, young scientist named Dr. Brinkman (Jesse Collins) who is working on a revolutionary synthetic skin. Unfortunately, Dr. Brinkman is working in a spacious lab that Durant (Larry Drake) wants to use for manufacturing a deadly, particle beam weapon with plutonium batteries. An ambitious reporter (played by Kim Delaney) from the show Street Copy finds out from Darkman that Durant, the resident crime boss, is back. And there is a nutty, wild-haired scientist (Lawrence Dane) who knows a thing or two about deadly weapons. In a nod to "Silence of the Lambs," the scientist is in a prison cell that is identical to the one Hannibal Lecter was kept in. Before I go further, I must point out that Durant, who clearly died in a helicopter explosion in the first "Darkman" film, is back with only a minor scar and bad headaches. This is not just contrived and stupid, but also in the tradition of Shamelessly Inane Resurrections with examples like Dr. Sam Loomis in "Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers" for one. If Durant had come back from the explosion scarred and mad as a bulldog and seeking a synthetic skin to make him look like the man he was, I might have accepted it.

"Darkman II" has too many characters, too many contrivances, too many car explosions and no real build-up. Vosloo lacks the madness tinged with regret that Neeson brought to the original film. And even worse, the movie has no fun with the idea that Darkman can use various skins to look like anyone! One scene at a board meeting is so shabby and poorly conceived that you wish Sam Raimi was back on board to shape this mess. There was some potential here for a decent sequel but it is made to look like any of those synthetic skins that Darkman wears - a carbon copy that you will forget 99 minutes after it is over.