Best of the Best 2: When the Best Gets Even Bester

I don’t know who invented the sequel formula that is used so often in Hollywood, but it can get to be a little unbelievable with what they will make a sequel of. Now today most sequels are made off of big-budget, successful movies, but occasionally a viewer is lucky enough to get their hands on the straight-to-video sequels. Best of the Best 2 is most definitely one of these movies. I had seen the original movie when I was young (which was what intrigued me to watch the sequel), but had no idea what I was getting in to for this film. First off, the film does star some notable actors; unfortunately, the actors are the black sheep of their families to superior stars. The movie stars the other Roberts, Eric Roberts, and Sean Penn’s recently deceased brother, Chris Penn.
One problematic issue with the movie is the fact that half of the stars of the original movie are not in the sequel. The movie producers figured they would replace this flaw with the addition of Wayne Newton cast as the evil club owning villain. Newton’s character is bizarrely fascinating due to him not only owning a profitable dance club, but also running a secret, underground death pit in which his friends can gamble on the brutal, death matches. Another fascinating issue is the fact that the original movie centers around a sports-oriented karate tournament, whereas the sequel is just all out killing and action. In short this movie was badly entertaining and at times did not even make clear since.

Final Note: One final movie flaw I thought I would end on is a moral position of one of the characters. Chris Penn’s character needs money, so he decides to fight in Newton’s death-pitt, but on the same night he promised to baby sit Robert’s son. So Penn decides the safest thing to do is to take the kid with him to the illegal, underground death match to watch him brutally die. It was an incredible display of babysitting.