In the Name of the King 2: Two Worlds Blu-ray Review

A sequel pretty much in name only, Uwe Boll’s In the Name of the King 2: Two Worlds is a slapdash made-for-video fantasy-adventure with mostly tepid action, ghastly acting, and underwhelming special effects. Made on an obviously limited budget, the film’s treatment of medieval times is laughably bad, and while the germ of a story present had some aspects to it that might have been fashioned into a genuinely interesting fantasy, what’s here is ludicrous and instantly forgettable.

In the Name of the King 2: Two Worlds (Blu-ray)
Directed by Uwe Boll

Studio: 20th Century Fox
Year: 2011

Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1   1080p   AVC codec  
Running Time: 96 minutes
Rating: R
Audio: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 English
Subtitles: SDH, Spanish

Region: A

MSRP: $ 29.99

Release Date: December 27, 2011

Review Date: December 27, 2011

The Film

2/5

Former mercenary now karate instructor Granger (Dolph Lundgren) is whisked back through a time portal to the Middle Ages and is deemed “The Chosen One” by King Raven (Lochlyn Munro). He and his forces are constantly battling the dark soldiers who have the power of the Holy Mother (Christina Jastrzembska) in their quest to wipe out the King’s men. Granger is given two assignments to help quash the opposing side and bring peace to the land. He must, of course, do away with the Holy Mother, and then he must enter the Black Forest and retrieve an object known only as the  “catalyst” which will put an end to the dark soldiers. Along with him are the king’s strong right arm Allard (Aleks Paunovic) and a medieval physician Manhatten (Natassia Malthe) who grows to love him. The dangerous quest does bring Granger face-to-face with the Holy Mother, but what he learns from her will change not only his plans but possibly his entire future.

Michael Nachoff’s screenplay contains some entertaining twists in the storytelling (the introduction of the sorceress Elianna played by Natalia Guslistaya at the beginning of the film is unexpected, and other surprises await), but the time travel element is handled clumsily in the writing and in the directing by Uwe Boll, and the story’s conclusion seems abrupt and completely unsatisfying, as if the writer and director tired of the entire enterprise and just stopped shooting. The tiny budget makes the film’s outdoor locations look just what they are, a park in Vancouver, and the CGI landscapes and one creature are never very convincing and not especially frightening either. Machoff  and Boll dispatch the film’s most interesting character Allard halfway through the film, and what was developing as a very interesting bond of kinship between soldiers both past and present is distinctly destroyed in an altogether unnecessary fashion. Though the character of Granger is completely a loner in the present, three major female presences in the Middle Ages throw themselves at him with abandon (and a fourth one does as well but with ulterior motives). Obviously the filmmakers are doing what they can to establish their hero’s heterosexual credentials, but then they don’t actually develop a romance of any consequence to spice up their tale of derring-do. The R-rating is solely due to some appalling, clumsily shot battle scenes that feature uninteresting fight choreography and little to no ebb and flow in the battles.

Dolph Lundgren is there in body (though he moves stiffly and thickly; the commentary corroborates that he was injured on the first day of shooting and was limited in movement during the shoot), but he’s been stuck with ridiculous slang dialogue which he doesn’t try to curb once he’s whisked back seven or eight hundred years. The costumer doesn’t bother giving him a different wardrobe for the scenes in the past, so he wanders around the forests of old in an army jacket. Lochlyn Munro, who’s played the charlatan in a long list of film and television roles, does the same here, also burdened with being a medieval ruler without looking or sounding particularly medieval. Natassia Malthe has been made up for the disc cover art to resemble Anjelina Jolie (she doesn’t actually look like her at all) perhaps in a desperate attempt to sell a few more copies of the movie, but she’s undoubtedly the best of the actresses in the movie through her skills are limited and her delivery a little stiff. But she’s a great actress compared to the awkward line deliveries of Natalia Guslistaya as the sorceress, Michaela Mann as the cunning (Valley Girl) vixen,  and Christina Jastrzembska as the Holy Mother. Thankfully, all of their roles are of limited duration. Aleks Paunovic gives dignity and solemnity to the film’s best character Allard.

Video Quality

4/5

Shot digitally, the film has been framed at 1.78:1 and is presented in 1080p using the AVC codec. The film has a somewhat digital look with the landscapes looking far too clean and antiseptic to pass as medieval England. Flesh tones can look reasonably realistic on occasion but can also take on something of a purplish hue from time to time. Color otherwise is solid if unsensational. Clarity of image does make the CGI shots stand out as artificial in the extreme, and black levels are only average. The film has been divided into 24 chapters.

Audio Quality

3.5/5

The DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 mix draws most of its surround envelopment from the score by Jessica De Rooj. For all of its battles and a flying dragon creature late in the film, little is done to fill the rears with the kind of enveloping sound that would place the action all around the listener. Much of the ambient noise remains rooted to the front soundstage. Use of the LFE channel is fair but mostly underwhelming. Dialogue has been placed in the center channel.

Special Features

2.5/5

There are two audio commentaries. Director Uwe Boll alternates between describing on-screen action with offering some production anecdotes along the way. (He also takes cellphone calls during the commentary.) Writer Michael Nachoff does a better job describing the changes from script to screen necessitated by casting and location and by the director’s love of spontaneity while shooting.

“Behind the Scenes of In the Name of the Father 2: Two Worlds” features comments from director Uwe Boll, actors Dolph Lundgren, Natassia Malthe, and Lochlyn Munro about the making of the film. It’s in 1080p and runs 6 ½ minutes.

“From Page to Screen: Writing In the Name of the Father 2: Two Worlds” allows Michael Nachoff the chance to talk about his story and how it ties into the first film. This 1080i featurette runs 5 minutes.

There are promo trailers for There Be Dragons, Another Earth, The Mechanic, and the Fox World Cinema series.

In Conclusion

2.5/5 (not an average)

Not interesting dramatically or esthetically, In the Name of the King 2: Two Worlds will be disappointing to those who enjoyed the first film in the series, and a much lower budget and lesser actors also diminish its appeal.

Matt Hough

Charlotte, NC