Hot Shots Part Deux

Being a sequel to a film that parodies everything from war films to action films to sequels, you can be rest assured that it’s going to contain yet more parodies of everything from war films to action films to sequels. Especially sequels.

Hot Shots Part Deux takes up where we left the first film, which was, of course, a more Navy oriented parody. This time it’s the Rambo films in particular in which we see Topper Harley (Charlie Sheen) creating mayhem amidst the massed enemies of the US of A. Valeria Golina again appears as Topper’s love interest, though she is now an agent working with her husband somewhere in Asia. In the gap between films, she has disappeared and it turns out her missing husband of many years has shown up and reclaimed her, breaking Topper’s heart without an explanation. Then he gets sent into Asia somewhere and she turns up as the love interest and I think there’s more in which the blood runs free and the over the top theatrics of the war film is taken for a spin.

"Thank you, Topper! I can kill again! You’ve given me a reason to live!"

With films of this nature, who can care a rat’s rump about the plot anyway? This is straight-shooting humour that makes the most fun of the genres involved, the landmark films around the time of release and the art of filmmaking itself. It’s mostly good fun with political incorrectness having its last fling before being firmly taped together for eternity in the latter half of the 1990s.

There’s little else to say about such a film other than those who like this style will find much to enjoy here, though those who aren’t so keen won’t find anything that will change their minds. And that’s that.

Apart from some early film jitter in the opening moments, there’s really nothing to fault this 1993 cinema release. Colours are fresh and even, the picture quality is suitably clear and the flesh tones are natural. The blacks are mostly true, though unaccountably go quite bluish around 56:30, and the limited shadow detail is well delivered. We also get to see the film in its original 1.85:1 aspect ratio with 16:9 anamorphic steroids.

A crisp and occasionally very busy soundscape is delivered here in good old Dolby Digital stereo. A surround package would have been much sweeter, but I guess we can’t have everything. The dialogue is fairly clear, though at times is drowned by the slightly out-of-whack balances of the sound effects channel. Notably it’s gunfire and explosions, but these include more than their fair share of sight gags so it can be sorta overlooked (haha).

Basil Poledouris has created the score, though I can’t be sure that name isn’t a concoction. Made to emulate and parody scores of other films, the soundtrack is accommodating to those films with similar themes and so on. It’s a deliberate soundtrack of course, and it does suit the film nicely.

Sorry, but these are being held captive in a stinking slophole inside a bamboo cage and having insects thrown at them. Except for the trailer, which looks like it escaped because it’s dirty and flyblown. And given us in 4:3 for 2:16.

If you’re a fan of the genre, this hardly needs any recommendation. There are some good laughs here, some giggles and more than a few groans, but overall it’s a funny, lighthearted take on the action film genre. It would be a good film to play with all your weirdo mates around next time you have a chess night or something, and looks fairly good for its 11 years age.