Watch Crimson Rivers II: Angels of the Apocalypse For Free

hyped garbage

This is a tender, generous movie that likes its characters and presents them as real people, full of flaws and strengths.

Fun premise, good actors, bad writing. This film seemed to have potential at the beginning but it quickly devolves into a trite action film. Ultimately it's very boring.

I enjoyed watching this film and would recommend other to give it a try , (as I am) but this movie, although enjoyable to watch due to the better than average acting fails to add anything new to its storyline that is all too familiar to these types of movies.

I rate this a SEVEN because the film is highly entertaining.The apartment fight scene with Reda is fantastic, and the mood of the film is somber. One feels drawn into the mystery of where it is going.But the reviewer on the main page has truly nailed the flaws of this film. What is this demonizing of religion all about? The Catholic Church has a far greater role in French society than in the US, and therefore appears more prominently in this film than in say an American flavor of it. In America, the hooded priest hooligans/angels of death would have been laughable. The attention paid to the Jesus-look-alike in the direction of the film is clearly reverential, to add to the legend of the "last days" theme. But this handling truly reveals a deep divide between American and French audiences.Then appears the sinister German relic in Christopher Lee, survivor of WWII, and even the Maginot line must echo they echo of German/French antipathy. He holds a secret in the mysterious order; so, subliminal message, the Catholic Church is co-opted by Nazis--the Vatican could NOT have been pleased. As the reviewer on the main page notes, the ending is outright theft of concept from Indiana Jones.The first Crimson Rivers ends in a muddled pool of pre-sentient Christian/Catholic dogma; Empire of the Wolves, while very good, refuses to take on the real Turkish threat, but instead pursues "right wing Turks" who trade in women, drugs, and train terrorists--right and left wing Turks? Hello, Islamists, which are they? The only French Reno film I have seen that is devoid of this French PC/Religious fear/animus is WASABI. Wasabi is a wonderfully funny film, and well worth seeing.Angels of the Apolcalypse is very entertaining, but comes whimpering to fin.

This sequel is just disappointing. It starts with the great Vincent "Dobermann" Cassel not being in the second part anymore, but he wouldn't save that stupid story anyway. There are many interesting ideas, but when it comes to tie them all together, the end is mostly stolen from "Raiders of the Lost Arch". But there's even more fun in that flick: Nazi monks on 60 year old steroids, which make them invulnerable to bullets... Gimme a break! I wonder if Besson will ever learn that world war 2 is over (remember those evil German villains in "Taxi"?). Part 1 was far better, the story, and especially the appearance of Vincent Cassel. I really wonder how Besson/Reno can make masterpieces like "Leon" on the one hand, and junk like that movie on the other hand.

Looking back at my one-line summary for the first "Crimson Rivers", I wrote "stunningly well-directed film...if only it made sense!". For "Crimson Rivers 2", the same description can be used...except for the "stunningly well-directed" part. The script of this movie is hopelessly muddled and hole-filled (as others have mentioned, since when does taking amphetamines make you immortal?), and the direction relies on clichéd, tired imagery to build atmosphere (crucifixes, blood, heavy rain, underlit rooms, religious symbols, etc.). Occasional use of MTV-style over-editing does not help, either. Apparently not learning anything from the mistakes of the original, the filmmakers also included yet another totally gratuitous martial-arts fight. Are there any good points to this film? Well, there is an entertaining gravity-defying foot chase, Reno is always a dependable lead, Magimel has a physical enough presence, Natta is pretty...and you get the rare opportunity to hear Christopher Lee speak only in French! (**)

Like the first film I had high hopes for this, mainly because I am a big fan of Jean Reno. Most of the signs weren't good though, with Vincent Cassell and Mathieu Kassovitz both being absent. However Christopher Lee joins the cast and the dark atmospherics in the trailer were promising. It begins like many a religious murder mystery thriller, well not quite but still. A monk enters a room in a monastery and hammers a crucifix into the wall. He screams as blood begins to pour out. Niemans is called in, because like he says later whenever a strange case comes up he is put in charge. It is discovered that a body lies behind the wall. Reda is a young cop investigating a completely different case, and beating up a drug dealer. Quite how a French policeman trained in martial arts just so happens to come across a drug dealer who is trained in the same martial arts is quite amazing. Especially since Vincent Cassell's character also knew martial arts, one might think that the part is essentially the same character just with a new name and back story. Maybe so. Reda happens to run into a Jesus lookalike, and Reda and Niemans join forces. More people start to die, all who have the same names and jobs of the apostles. Some very tense scenes such as a chase with a superhuman monk. Another sort of chase sequence in a supermarket add to the action side of the film. Sometimes they seem as though they come out of nowhere and are just shoved in. They are very good action sequences though. Finally after a long time Christopher Lee comes in and is criminally underused, it transpires he is searching for a book, but the book is a trap and that is it. The film certainly has potential, Reno is good but seems to just be on automatic pilot. Unfortunately no characters are developed and the story is interesting but can't be pulled off while it is littered with boring people. The atmosphere is excellent though, with the dark brooding style adding to the dark nature of the film. In action terms the film has a lot, however by the end the cringe worthy joke between the two cops, and the drinking of a 'magic potion' that gives you super strength is laughable. The plot is also sort of skimmed over, and nobody questions the fact that these people might very well be Jesus and the apostles. At points you will probably be left confused. No matter though you will be entertained, and you may forget about the film soon after watching it. But it wont matter.P.S. You don't have to see the first film to see this.