Finally, over a year after its domestic release, the sequel to the surprise hit of 2000 was released here in the UK and whilst it has had some negative reviews, I still thought that it was a very good film.
Stefan Ruzowitsky returned at the helm and did an equally excellent job, not to mention that from an aesthetic point of view it could not have been more different if he had tried.
This time the story centres on young Doctor Jo (Barnaby Metschuart) who, in his quest to find a cure for his disabled brother is targeted by the secret society known as the Antihippocrates.
This time the students perform unethical operations on themselves rather than others, but that doesn’t mean that they are any less dangerous!!
As Jo realises what is happening in the hospital, he is pursued by Federal Doctor Paula Henning (Franka Potente) who previously uncovered the society’s murderous tendencies at her University in Hidelberg, during the course of events in the first film.
Straightaway you could see that Columbia had given the Director an even bigger budget due to the success of it’s predecessor as the set design and the opening sequence were extravagant.
The visual style is drastically different as Ruzowitsky has very wisely decided to go gritty in contrast to the sterile look of the first film. We are shown a poor part of Germany here that made it look just like any other City in the world, something that is never usually shown in big budget films who usually show you breathtaking scenery.
Whilst the story is quite different, many scenes were merely re-adapted for this film (something that is becoming common in recent sequels, what with ‘Cruel Intentions 2’ and ‘Wild Things 2’ in particular merely working the best scenes from the original films into their storylines).
The film like the first, has an excellent cast and a good soundtrack and the camera work on the sex scene was amazing, very artistic.
So why have people been rather unfairly bashing the film you ask? Well the problem lies with the audience. Fans of the original will have been dying for more of the same, but they thankfully wont get it here!! Stefan Ruzowitsky did not want to do a sequel because he made Anatomy…why would he need to do it again?
The film is aesthetically amazing and the story has real heart, but it lacks the tension and atmosphere present in the original and that is why fans were disappointed.
OVERALL SUMMARY
Definitely a worthy sequel but it does feel like it would work better as part of ‘The Skulls’ series of films.
