Highlander II: The Quickening

While the first one suffered from a dubious premise, but still excelled in spite of it, it was more of a fantasy than a sci-fi movie. This one is a train wreck of an idea, attempting to flesh out the origin of the immortals while throwing in a grab bag of other dumb future ideas. Try as one might, though, it's just as hard to take your awestruck eyes off this movie as one would witnessing an actual train wreck. Morbidly intriguing, but intriguing nonetheless.

There should have been only one.

Writer to Studio Exec: "OK, so the Immortals are actually Aliens." Exec: "What about the first movie?" W: "What first movie? Anyway, it's the future, and McLeod is old, but he has to fight an evil corporation from hiding the ozone layer from them." Exec: "He's old? Isn't he immortal?" W: "He is immortal!" Exec: "OK, I'll give you $35 million. Just steal more ideas from Blade Runner and Logan's Run if you need anything."

It's terribly fun in parts (random hover board fight scene, Lamberts insane old man voice, Virginia Madsen) but it's like having your bully make you laugh before he goes back to dunking your head in the toilet. Watching this right after the first film is a whiplash - what the hell were they doing lmao. I'm such a sucker for highlander and using an orchestral version of Who Wants to Live Forever over every moment Lambert talks about the past or wants to fuck a lady I watched the Renegade vers

For a series that started so great, it sure turned to total crap quickly.

They sent a guy to get them cool pyrotechnics, but the guy spent the money on these blue sparkler fountains, so they had to use them everywhere for everything

Goddammit, as soon as I find a franchise I like.

Viewed January 31, 2022. Functionally, this is just as strange as the first Highlander, if not more so, which makes it hard to figure out why people hate it so much more than that first movie. The dystopian setting doesn't allow for the offbeat romanticism and beauty that popped up throughout Highlander, but the use of miniatures and painted backdrops and practical effects is often glorious, and tied together well by Russell Mulcahy's operatic and overblown style.

I LOVE THIS FILM.

I saw the Renegade version, so no Zeist and fewer bizarre continuity errors for me. It's still totally incomprehensible of course, but at least in this version one can appreciate the cast putting in the most bizarre performances they can. Michael Ironside is probably the most fun, but who can deny Christopher Lambert's weird wheezy attempt at being old?

"I am Connor Macleod of the clan Macleod and I come from the planet Ziest." Oh, thought immortals were just really cool mythical figures? Wrong! Apparently they're just exiled aliens. Never before has a sequel come so close to completely ruining an original.

This is an utter failure as a film, having seen the original 'Immortals as Aliens' cut, but continuing my growing love for these disastrous genre films from the 1990s, this was still great in the continuous and charming ill-advised combination of environment issues, sci-fi/neon coloured set designs and squashing together of any pop cultural objects at hand, hoverboards and all. The result is awful for anyone else, a candy treat for my whimsical and perverse sense of entertainment.

One of the essential 'so bad its good' movies. Every single scene involving Sean Connery is hilarious and awesome.

Highlander II: The Shitening.

No.

Ardent fans will try and gloss over the flick which is a bit more fantastical than its predecessor. I liked it but you may have a different opinion if you enjoyed the first one in a particular way.

Not wretchedly unwatchable, but always skittering close to that line – come here to savour Mulcahy’s eccentric, distinctive eye behind the camera, and the bizarre, campy highlights: Lambert’s gravelly old man voice and Connery’s “PRETTY WOMAN” montage, plus a solid McGinley freak-out as well as Ironside at full throttle (literally). If the film lacks the more solid and secure construction of Part 1, more resembling different scenes sown together than a solid narrative, it’s still passable.

Terrible sequel to a good movie.

This seems like they were really suprised the first one did well, threw together whatever bullshit they could think of the night before filming began and just went with it.

In August 1994, news broadcasts announce that the ozone layer is fading, and will be completely gone in a matter of months. In Africa, millions have perished from the effects of unfiltered sunlight. Among the dead is Connor MacLeod's wife, Brenda Wyatt MacLeod. Before dying, Brenda extracts a promise from Connor that he will solve the problem of the ozone layer. By 1999, Connor has become the supervisor of a scientific team headed by Dr. Allan Neyman (Allan Rich), which is attempting to creat

It's hard to say what this film would have been without the last minute retcon of the Highlander legend, but the results are almost entertaining in their sheer insanity. An overstuffed, confusing, campy mess which has to be seen to be believed.

Fun.

I watched the Renegade Cut, and you know, it was nonsense but it was fun nonsense, absolutely better and more fun than the original. There is so much silly bullshit thrown in in every scene.

All points for comedy value. I just hope you didn't like the original as a kid.

It really is true. There CAN be only one. This craptacular movie proves the point even though it's not the focus of that phrase. Aliens??

Truly one of the most under-rated movies ever, I really don't get all the shit that it receives. It has an interesting and different story, the only drawback I find is the effects aren't the greatest. The action is great and the film movie moves along at a good pace. The acting is top notch with Connery and Lambert really getting into their roles, Ironside plays a great villain and Madsen is also very good.

My score is for the second edited edition. for the original version, my score would be about 55.

Highlander II is an absolute insult to its predecessor. The original is one of my favourite films and there was absolutely no purpose for a sequel. But it's as if the filmmakers where completely surprised by the success of the original and then threw together any old ideas just so they could churn out a sequel for a money spinner. Lambert returns, bafflingly as does Connery. The whole film is completely nonsensical and most confusingly it seems to ignore the entire concept of the original.

There can be only one.

(Reviewing the "Renegade Version" here) This is largely a disappointment after the entertaining first movie, but it still manages to be just worth watching, thanks to some very entertaining performances by Michael Ironside and Sean Connery (who really doesn't need to be here but has some damn funny scenes). I hear the original cut of this movie is incomprehensible, and the director's cut still definitely has its share of WTF moments, but it's at least not a total waste of a sequel.

Cheesy but nice :)

ok

The ultimate 'what the fuck!?' sequel, and THE major rival to the Star Wars prequels, in terms of seriously messing up the internal logic of the respective series' original universe. So bad that I saw it twice in a row just to make sure it really was as incoherent as originally conceived, the questions raised are too numerous to mention here, save: Who the HELL builds a room in a giant Earth shield power plant, that is basically a deathtrap made out of a giant descending ventilator?

32.000

One of those sequels that just pisses off the premise of the original entirely

My word this is one boring, boring film.

Bad, bad, bad.

The only reason this gets more than 10 is because Seans Connerys lines at the Hamlet performance managed to crack me up.

Very very bad sequel.

A laugher of epic proportions

I wish I could have seen the theatrical cut, but that turns out to be hard to find. This cleaned-up 'renegade' cut is certainly bad enough on its own; a bafflingly bad sequel to a really fun fantasy movie, albeit one with some fun performances and enjoyably campy moments.

not so good

Inferior.

What a horrible sequal. It ignores the story of the first movie to bacially start anew with the same characters.

2- avoid at all costs, bad

Watched the Renegace Cut. Movie is still a mess storywise, but has some cool operatic sequence and a cool neon coloured sci-fi production design. Cannot recommend to anyone else but a Highlander film series completist.

Utter horseshit, and I saw the apparently improved Directors Cut. This is another We Hate Movies episode or I wouldn't subject myself to this

Dumb as a post kitchen sink delirium. This thing must have cost a bundle, because it looks like Blade Runner, but with flying skateboards. Also: Virginia Madsen. Worth having in your library because it is coated with teflon and manages to almost entirely slip from your memory -- making it endlessly rewatchable!

terrible sequel