Arrival II (The Second Arrival) (1998)

Film review #692

Director: Kevin Tenney

SYNOPSIS: Two years after an alien invasion was thwarted by Astronomer Zane Zaminsky, his half-brother Jack receives news of his death. Jack receives the information that his Brother had gathered on the alien invasion, but is sceptical until he meets like-minded individuals who are working to uncover the aliens plans. With the aliens hot on his tail, Jack goes on the run with reporter Bridget Riordan to expose the secret plans of the invaders…

THOUGHTS/ANALYSIS: Arrival II (also known as The Second Arrival) is a 1998 sci-fi film and a direct-to-video sequel to the 1996 film The Arrival. The film opens up with a brief recap of the events of the first film, as computer programmer Jack Addison receives news that Zane Zaminsky, his half-brother, has died in a remote Inuit colony in Alaska. Immediately, we can see the tropes of direct-to-video films come out: main character killed off-screen and replaced by a family member (played by a much cheaper actor), the original film’s ending of the alien’s plans being exposed amount to nothing, as no one seems to have believed him. Thus, not only does this film not have any of the characters from the first one, it also undoes the accomplishments of the first and renders the hero’s actions null and void. Again, just like a classic direct-to-video sequel.

And so, Jack Addison proceeds to essentially re-enact the plot of the first film, wit him being on the run from the aliens as he tries to expose their plan once again of warming up the planet via artificial climate change to make it habitable for their species. Unfortunately, it lacks any of the mystery and intrigue of the first one because, obviously, it’s already been done. We get a bunch of mediocre chase scenes and find information we already knew and that’s about it: there was no reason for this film to be made. It doesn’t evolve or expand the premise in any way, it negates the accomplishments of the original, and it is just a boring and lifeless affair. The first film was not incredible, but it had a decent amount of suspense and action. It did, however, get completely eclipsed by Independence Day, which came out a month after it’s release. This sequel feels like it was made to cash in on the hype of alien invasion films that overshadowed its predecessor. There really is so little to say on the subject of the film itself: it’s a poor rehash of the first one, consisting of poorly-paced chase sequence after chase sequence. The acting is dire, the characters have no personality, and a lot of the finale is just running about in front of very obvious greenscreens. Even if you were a fan of the original, there’s nothing to really offer in this sequel, as either a continuation of the story, or as a decent, entertaining film. There was a 1997 video game based on the franchise that was also released, so maybe that will provide something more of interest. It can’t be much worse.