In the ring, Randy Orton is close to being WWE’s most lethal idol. Being a third-generation wrestler gives him the DNA talent that makes him a legend in his own honorable way.
“The Viper” is his ring name for the way he can strike like a snake from nowhere. By the token of his talent in the ring, one would think his acting hits the mark as well.
Suspense, Violence, and Survival
Directed by Roel Reiné, The Condemned 2 is not the ringer WWE fans would like to see. The movie is a sequel to the Steve Austin movie released in 2007. It failed before the end of the first round.
Surprisingly, WWE Studios never throws in the towel and keeps making modicum movies with its wrestlers.
A Former Bounty Hunter on the Run
With the visceral of taking on the bad guys, Orton plays bounty hunter Will Tanner. Tanner and his team are on a mercenary mission to capture a leader, played by Wes Studi. He runs a tournament where he forces challengers to kill one another in televised games. Tanner’s operation hits a glitch right off the bat, and his team misses out on any potential cash reward for capturing the leader. Similarly, Will is in trouble with the law because they are unhappy with his day job as a bounty hunter.
A Deadly Tournament Returns
Tanner turns into more than a wanted man once a newcomer to the games, Raul, played by Steven Michael Quezada, recreates the televised games. Not only does he make Tanner the primary target, but Will is kidnapped not long after. He hurls Tanner into fighting for his life and survival against his former team. A flash of big shots betting on Tanner’s chance of survival among a lively cast of warriors places Tanner up against interesting fighting styles.
Reiné seems to do a decent job of directing with the budget available. He can blow things up with cookie-cutter choreography, mapping out a so-so plot. The hodgepodge, dull soldiers take whimsical shots at Tanner through rifle scopes. They even put him through a desert with land mines. Still, nothing seems to work for the movie because so much potential becomes lost in the acting and budget constraints