There will be another.
Believe in the power of another.
In a world where the forces of darkness rule, justice is about to take flight.

I thought Eric was the last. I never dreamed there would be another.

opening narration

This very yellow movie - don't see it if you're feeling queasy, and not after you've eaten either! - doesn't come close to the quality of the original. It tries hard (and loudly) but it has no heart and no passion, and prevents emotional participation in its story. There is too much motorbike-riding, too many shots of Ashe merely looking down-in-the-mouth and feeling sorry for himself. The film is too disjointed. Between the action set-pieces the movie drags to a halt, starting up again as Ashe rides off to kill someone else. Can anyone tell me what role the little girl is supposed to play? She disappears without a trace after fulfilling no discernable function.

The acting is uninspired and even awkward. Iggy Pop is the best thing in the movie, though I hesitate to say that since his character is so thoroughly dislikable. He is responsible for several comedic moments however. A major drawback is the main villain who is acted very weakly. It makes one wish for Tony Todd, who was the villain's sidekick in The Crow and would have shone in this one. I suppose the actors couldn't do much with their roles as they were written. Vincent Perez lacks the sheer physical presence Brandon Lee brought to the role of Eric Draven. Ashe even runs clumsily. Draven had the audience's sympathy and understanding, Ashe does not. In fact, Ashe is a wimp. Lee invested his performance with such attention to detail - his commitment to the character was very evident. As for Sarah, she has grown up into a cypher, far removed from the moving figure in the first film.

City of Angels lacks Brandon Lee, the young Sarah, Alex Proyas, Ernie Hudson, and Michael Wincott. As was the case with The Crow director Alex Proyas, this was director Tim Pope's first feature, and he also has a background in music videos. Unlike Proyas, Pope can't tell a story - the film's resemblance to a music video means that it is simply disjointed, merely an assault on the senses. On the up side, there are quite a few memorable images, and the production design and colour scheme belong firmly to this picture as opposed to being borrowed from the first one. The source music is great as well, and the CD worth buying. Graeme Revell's music for the film is also available on CD.

The film was voted one of the 100 Worst Films of the 20th Century by visitors to The Stinkers: The Ultimate Bad Movie Award' - "Hollywood's Annual Academy Awards Parody". Oh dear ...