The Black Cobra 2 (1989) User Reviews

Please Hammer, don't hurt 'em!

[udar55 · 5/10 · 25 August 2005]

After blowing away a drug dealer, Lt. Robert Malone (Fred "The Hammer" Williamson) is sent to Manila to cool his easy tempered jets as part of a "deal worked out between our Government and INTERPOL." Naturally, Malone finds himself right in another mess when, minutes after arriving in the Philippines, a pickpocket steals his wallet. Teaming up with INTERPOL agent Kevin McCall (Nicholas Hammond), Malone sets out to find his wallet but gets mixed up with the pickpocket's daughter, a group of crazed terrorists looking for microfilm (aren't they all?) and school children held hostage.

Fans of Fred Williamson might end up hammering their heads against the wall if they check this cheesy Italian buddy cop variation. The film opens with what can only be described as a "unique" chase. Williamson confronts a motorcycle riding drug dealer in a parking garage, chases him down the street to another parking garage, loses him on the Chicago L entry way but finally catches back up to him in another parking garage where Williamson proceeds to nearly blow his head off (the film's best and goriest effect) with his pistol. Yes, more parking garages than you can shake a stick at. Sadly, it is downhill from there. The plot is particularly muddled, containing something about terrorists wanting microfilm (what it contains is never explained) from the pickpocket's daughter Peggy, who naturally isn't aware she has it. For the most part the film follows the clichéd LETHAL WEAPON routine until the end where a bit of DIE HARD is thrown in for good measure.

Regardless of the lack of plot, the film does have an unusual charm. Financed by the Italy based Imagine company, BLACK COBRA 2 provides a few laughs through its dubbing and horrid dialogue. Upon learning of her father's death Peggy reminisces, "I couldn't stand the stories he used to tell me but now how I wish I could hear them again." Later she performs one of the most embarrassing "seductive" musical numbers ever captured on film. And you haven't lived until you see Williamson lured into performing a native Philippine dance ceremony. The last third of the film is probably the best section, with Williamson (who appears to have done all his own stunts) blowing away lots of bad guys to some of the most insane 80s guitar riffs. As always, Williamson is his charismatic, cigar chomping self and carries what little of the film there is. Fans of down and out casting should take note of Nicholas Hammond (Yes, Frederick Von Trapp himself) as Malone's partner.

Crazy Fred goes Philippines!

[Coventry · 5/10 · 7 March 2010]

I know it's contrary to what we're used, but "Black Cobra 2" is a lot better than "Black Cobra 1". Hooray! We found a rarity: a sequel that surpasses the original. This wasn't very difficult to accomplish, however, as the original was a complete mess of a film! The first was just a cheap attempt to cash in on Stallone's violent action flick "Cobra", but this movie actually has an ambitious plot, a half-decent narrative structure, light bulbs to brighten up the film sets and Fred Williamson who looks at least somewhat interested in the script. He returns as the unorthodox Chicago copper Robert Malone. For some reason, the opening sequences really accentuate that the film takes place in Chicago. There are shots of the Chicago Sun Times, the central station and Williamson himself even wears a jacket of the Chicago Cubs baseball team. After another umpteenth showcasing of his ruthless – but highly effective – working methods, Malone is forced to participate in a police exchange program. He's sent to The Philippines, where he falls under the command of Manila Interpol lieutenant McCall. One day later, Malone finds himself in trouble already, when they discover the assassinated body of a pickpocket artist who stole his wallet at the airport. Before they properly realize, Malone and McCall are caught up in a web of deceit, kidnapping, extortion, hired mercenaries and even terrorism. In many ways this is a typically annoying 80's movie, because it features irrelevant padding footage (bamboo dancing, anyone?), a pathetic romantic compilation and a lot of painfully awful "comical" interludes. It's also incredibly slow in places, with overlong boring investigations and completely unexciting fight sequences. Fred Williamson perhaps looks very tough, with his gigantic mustache and even bigger cigars, but he really sucks at Kung Fu moves! The climax is laugh-out-loud hilarious, as it includes the preparation of something what appears to become the biggest and most adventurous operation in the history of action cinema, but eventually Malone and McCall are just set out to kill three guys in two minutes.

A little better than the first "Black Cobra", but that's faint praise

[gridoon2024 · 4/10 · 16 July 2008]

More easily viewable and audible than the first film, for starters (I'm not sure if it was shot more professionally, or if it was simply a better DVD transfer; and by "better" I mean not above VHS level, but at least not below it). But once again directed by Stelvio Massi in the same draggy, slow-as-molasses, uninspired style. The action scenes are mediocre at best: Fred Williamson is in good shape for his age (and I think we actually get to hear his own voice this time!), but a screen martial artist he is not. The climactic rescue operation has a 10-minute buildup for a 2-minute payoff. Sometimes the funky musical score is the only thing that drives this film forward. (*1/2)

Black Cobra meets Spider-Man!

[videomaniac · 15 December 2004]

Remember when you were watching the original Black Cobra and you thought to yourself "This is an okay flick but it would have really rocked if the guy who played Spider-Man on TV in the 70's was in it"? Well this happens to be your lucky day! Just give a gander to Black Cobra 2 and prepare to be knocked on your butt! Fred "The Hammer" Williamson is back and this time he's sent to another country to hang with the guy who played Spider-Man and together they battle bad guys when not hanging out with Spider-Man's creepy little slot car racing son who TALKS LIKE A GROWN WOMAN! Black Cobra and Spider-Man kick butt! What more could anybody ask for? And it's even better than the first Black Cobra (hard to believe I know)! What more can I say about Black Cobra 2? There's a Black Cobra 3 too!

Generic

[DrSatan · 2/10 · 17 April 2002]

If you'd like to see the most generic "buddy" cop movie possible, but with very low production values and a style that screams "Made without Care in Italy", then Black Cobra 2 is your film. Fred starts off with the same flat delivery of lines he had in the first (and much worse) Cobra film, then mysteriously puts a little feeling in in the second half. There's cliches galore here, from the chief yelling at Fred's cop to a pick pocket who got his scam from "Casablanca". Iranian terroist oil men are the villains, there's one of the least convincing hostage rescue sequences ever, and the disposable girlfriend comes in handy to drive Fred into "hero rage". The single stand out, laugh out loud scene in the film is when Fred loses a car race game to a kid, great for humilation ala the argument scene in "Mitchell".

Get some friends and some beverage of choice and make fun

[dbborroughs · 3/10 · 5 October 2009]

The second in the series has Williamson's Malone character going to the Philippines to learn some new police techniques. While at the airport his wallet is stolen and this leads to complications when what is in the wallet is used in ways it was never intended. Marginally better than the first film in the series this is still a lousy piece of exploitation film-making. Its just a bunch of silly nonsense, granted it can be fun in a "I can't believe that these people made this" sort of way, but its still a really a bad film. I'd only recommend it if you can do so with some friends and your favorite beverage since it's the sort of film that you'll want to pick on.

A below average addition to the buddy cop genre

[kevin_robbins · 4/10 · 20 September 2022]

The Black Cobra 2 (1989) is a movie that I recently watched on Tubi. The storyline follows Lieutenant Bob Malone being restationed from Chicago to the Philippines where his methods hopefully cause less issues. He arrives in Manila and immediately is targeted by a local gang and pick pocketed. He will need to work with a local police officer, ie his new partner, to track down his stolen wallet and the people behind the act.

This movie is directed by Edoardo Margheriti (Black Cobra 3) and stars Fred Williamson (Dusk till Dawn), Nicholas Hammond (Once Upon a Time in Hollywood) and Peter Ladkani (Delta Force 2).

This picture has fun 80s music throughout. I really enjoyed the soundtrack. The writing is very average, both the storyline and dialogue. The one liners were corny and not as witty as they hoped. There was too much about this film that was cliche and the end felt like a bubble gum commercial.

Overall, I would consider this a below average addition to the buddy cop genre. I would score this a 3.5/10 and recommend skipping it.

Williamson As Malone as Back and a Little Better from Last time

[Ronsin1976 · 3/10 · 24 May 2010]

OK, Williamson plays Robert Malone, a tough cop from Chicago in the Stallone/Eastwood mold. The start of the film, Malone is on a stakeout for a drug deal, which coincidently happens in front of his very eyes. His stakeout team catches one of the participants, but the other takes off. Now Malone makes chase on foot. We can see, that though to his credit he does his own stunts , his fitness isn't par as his NFL days, it is indicative in how the fleeing crook ( has to slow down to let Malone get closer). This comes to a head, when the bad guy grabs him a hostage. In perfect precision that defines Malone in the Black Cobra series, he takes an exact shot that blows the face off the bad guy while holding his hostage. Poor Malone for his trouble is harangued by his superior and sent to Phlilipines ("It's too hot in the Phillipines"-Malone). While only being in the country for 10 minutes, in the Manilla airport, he gets his wallet stolen by a con artist, masquerading as a friendly British expatriate. When he realizes and tries to go through airport security he is apprehended by the awesome security force at the airport. We need Lt. Mallory (played by Spiderman the action life series, Sound of Music alumnus and the infamous Marsha swollen nose episode). At first there's tension between the two. They pursue the con artist who stoled Malone's wallet. To their chagrin to find him laying dead in his apartment. Good news---Malone find his wallet, Bad News---we are going to have a horrible plot coming up. Now they find out in his apartment that the con artist has a daughter, Peggy, whose a lounge singer. They pay her a visit at her home. She's played by the forgettable Emma Hoagland, attractive, but horrible presence. In a horrible display of emotion, Peggy finds out the truth about her father's death. Now Malone is taken to Mallory's home to have dinner at meet his family. A cute and adorable kid, with horrible dubbed dialog Well he kicks Malone's butt in a rip roaring game of track racing with electronic matchbox cars. A few minutes of hammed dialog about how great the kid is, Malone leaves and goes to seek out Peggy. He arrives at the lounge and hears Peggy singing a song which in truth is sung by a Italian singer trying imitate Dionne Warwick, . Well, Peggy has cheered up from hearing about her father's death earlier. She needs to talk to Malone alone, so they walk at night in Manilla. She tells him that her father has provided her with $10,000 and a briefcase. He tells her to give it Lt. Mallory. She trusts him completely only after meeting him twice for less than a hour, Williamson's suave charm explains it all. Well they are suddenly accosted by Filipino thugs. In which we see Williamson's martial arts skills, OK, but he's 50...Well after being followed during the whole incident by Mallory and getting chewed out, they trace the departing vehicle carrying the Filipino thugs to an Iranian Shipping magnate. They visit the magnate, who gives them lip service pertaining to the car. Well, they only have supposition, therefore nothing can be done. Meanwhile Peggy is given police protection. She and Malone go on a semi-date and more Ham lines are delivered. No sexual activity takes place, just a nice peck on the cheek for Malone. Once Malone leaves, you can rightfully guess, she gets kidnapped. Malone angered for the blotch police protection, follows Mallory as they investigate the Iranian Shipping magnate. There Malone runs into a suspicious mechanic, whose guilty behavior, let's us visualize another cat-mouse chase between Malone and a bad guy. Malone catches the guy eventually and does some police brutality that can only be delivered by the Black Cobra. When chewed out again by the almost Ganhdi like non-violent Mallory who informs us he has bugged the telephone of the mechanic. The mechanic starts shooting with a saw off shotgun at Mallory/Malone. Well Malone initially without his trusty gun takes out the mechanic in true Cobra style. Now its on....They now go to the harbor to stop the Iranian's ships from docking off. Again, we are treated with more intense action, the typical our good guys can hit a needle from 1000 feet while the bad guys can hit a barn's side a mere 6 feet from them. This time Peggy is with the bad guys, remembered she kidnapped. We find out through the action that Peggy gets killed, which is merciful to the viewing audience no longer having to suffer from Hoagland's wooden acting. Now they have a witness (a bad guy they were able to capture). The bad guy is in the hospital. while there again under police protection, the Iranian Shipping magnate makes an attempt or succeeds..do not know exactly. Well after a brief interaction, he manages to pull a gun from the holster of Manila's finest, who for the 3rd time in the film foul up. In a brief stand off, Mallory dispenses with him coldly, probably the best acting segment that Hammond does in the whole film. While being interrogated, the Iranian guy tells Mallory that his son's school is being held hostage for the release of some Radical Iranian terrorist held in jail. Now in true form and art Malone and Mallory (dressed up and equipped as commandos) take out the bad guys in the building which were only 3, in true stop motion action sequences which makes Willamson the Black Cobra that he is. We never see the hostages- kids. We assume they are alive and well. Now we see the Mallory family send off Malone back to Chicago. The cheese and ham acting continues as Mallory admits he has learned from Malone. No longer a peace activist he is a shoot and ask questions later, Dirty Harry and the Manila PD is better for it.

Now we do it my way

[nogodnomasters · 1/10 · 28 October 2017]

Robert Malone (Fred Williamson) has apparently left NYC is the first feature for Chicago which is immaterial because he winds up in Manila, with his wallet taken by a guy named Eddie. Along with his Interpol buddy they uncover a spy micro-film ring, Eddie's daughter, and a "Miami Vice" like soundtrack.

The film was straight forward, no twists with minimal action.

Guide: F-word. No nudity.

Fred goes to the Philippines

[Red-Barracuda · 6/10 · 2 October 2017]

Fred Williamson is back in the sequel to the previous year's Black Cobra, which in itself was a cheap knock-off of the Sylvester Stallone action flick, Cobra (1986). The story this time has Williamson, once again a cop who doesn't play by the rules, who begins the film pursuing a motorbike villain and then blowing him away. He gets shouted at by his angry police chief for this violent detective work and in order to learn the error of his ways…he is sent to the Philippines! A minute after arrival his wallet is stolen, this leads to a terrorist web, somehow.

A cop who doesn't play by the rules, an angry chief, middle eastern terrorists, a disk with things on it, two cops who don't get on then later do get on – this film is essentially a tick list of 80's action movie clichés. The truly random factor is the Philippines, although when you take into account that that country was a haven of low budget film-making between the 60's through to the 80's, it's maybe a little expedient that Fred was sent there. Forget Interpol, Fred was sent to the Philippines for budgetary reasons. Anyway, for what it's worth, I thought this sequel was no worse than the first instalment. It began really quite well but did become progressively more tedious in the second half, in other words the more action they added, the worse it seemed to get. But, overall, it was okay and Fred was admittedly pretty good value.

Surprisingly Entertaining

[JackoSuede · 8/10 · 28 November 2007]

So first of all, my 8/10 rating is in comparison to other movies of this league--no budget, 70's-80's action films.

I had always had in interest in seeing Black Cobra but never got around to buying the movie. So when I saw Black Cobra and Black Cobra 2 at Walmart a few days ago, I picked it up. I was most impressed with the second film. It's very entertaining considering:

1. Its Badassness counterbalances its cheesiness

2. Fred Williamson kicks ass for an hour and 33 minutes

3. There is one really good explosion

4. Fred Williamson crashes through a window and blows away six terrorists with a shotgun

5. Most of the dialog, surprisingly, is very decently written and pretty funny.

Synopsis: Fred "The Hammer" Williamson reprises his role as Robert Malone, a street-smart cop who likes to law down the law and blow sh*t up. Malone's police chief gets frustrated with him when he continues to stubbornly deal in his own brand of justice. So the chief sends Malone to Manilla, the Phillipines, in a foreign police exchange program.

Mallone then teams up with Lt. McCall in the Phillipines, who seems to be a tight wad, but ends up becoming his friend. When the two go to retrieve Mallone's stolen wallet, they stumble upon a murder and soon get pulled into a conspiracy. Together they kick a lot of *ss, and shoot a lot of criminals.

One of my personal favorite parts is when McCall's little boy (who for some reason has a really ridiculously dubbed voice) gets kidnapped, McCall approaches the man responsible for it. The man turns around to shoot McCall, but he shoots the man like eight times, point blank. And Fred Williamson, being a martial artist, beats those henchmen to sh*t.

This movie is very reminiscent of Dirty Harry, if you dig that series. Fred Williamson has a lot of natural acting charm, Nicholas Hammond delivers and is very believable as well. This movie is a gem, don't miss out on it.

Prime Fred.

[tarbosh22000 · 7/10 · 29 January 2014]

Robert Malone (Fred) is back! This time around, his rogue ways make him a prime candidate to be part of an "exchange program" where American cops are sent to international locations. His BYC (Black Yelling Chief) Captain Marton (Santana) (who would re-appear in Black Cobra 3 - even though it looks like his scenes were shot at the same time) ships him from his beloved Chicago to Manila, the Philippines. When he arrives, his contact and partner is the straitlaced Lt. McCall (Hammond), and, wouldn't you just know it, they have trouble getting along at first. When Malone's wallet is stolen, it turns into a trek all around the Philippines to track down the baddies responsible. Eventually, a nightclub singer named Peggy Mallory (Emma Hoagland) becomes involved and Malone has to pull out all the stops to protect her and stop the baddies. Can he do it? We were happy to see Williamson return as Malone, and the two Edoardo Margheriti-directed sequels to the original Black Cobra (1987) are certainly worth seeing. Fred's charm exudes aplenty and it mixes in an entertaining way with his awkwardly funny way of kicking the baddies. It's always fun to watch The Hammer, and as he causes havoc in the Philippines, it's hard to lose. While there is the standard shooting-and-blow-ups combo, there was a pretty slow section in the middle where not a lot happens. But it recovers towards the end with a classic dockside confrontation with some goons. It's also nice to see a movie shot in the Philippines that actually is set in the Philippines, and isn't trying to hide it. Of course, it wouldn't be a Fred Williamson movie without a scene in a nightclub where a female singer belts out a song, and here is no exception. This time it's performed by Emma Hoagland, in her only screen credit to date.

For the first section of the movie set in Chicago, Fred wears a Cubs baseball jacket. When he arrives in the Philippines, that jacket is never seen again and he switches to a light blue Members Only number. This reminded us of the legendary Chuck Connors, who, in the latter part of his career, was rarely seen without his Brooklyn Dodgers jacket. Wouldn't it be awesome if the two men starred together in a "battle of the jackets"? It could be a Tough and Deadly (1995)-style situation where they argue about what music to listen to. Too bad it never happened. But, in classic style, Fred does say "we've got company!" so there's that. Also he plays slot cars with McCall's overly-sophisticated son in a movie highlight.

Featuring a very cool score by Aldo Salvi that alternates between keyboard synths and more guitar-based rock, Black Cobra 2 is a nice anchor between the other two entries in the series. It's hard not to like Italian-made, Philippines-shot Fred, and here is a prime example.

Hey, u toucha my car, I slappa ur wife!

[uds3 · 19 May 2002]

Its not so much that I WANT to review this film, I just feel that I ought to! In a word, unadulterated, almost dubbed, buddy-cop crap! (I know, that's several words!)

Financed incredibly after the failure of the first "Black Cobra" outing, Malone is back as the cop whose lips are as out of sync as they were in the original...only Michael Winslow could do better! As for Nicholas Hammond, the globally loved little Von Trapp, his future never took off. He made this shortly after a lengthy stint living in Australia and appearing in a few reasonable teleplays!

Hey, but what can you expect from Director Stelvio Massie who for reasons best known to himself, has helmed productions in many European countries as either himself, Max Steele, Stefano Catalano, Newman Rostel or Dan Edwards, amongst others?

If you thought Stallone's COBRA was less than Oscar material, you just gotta see this!

Malone goes back to action in the Philippines

[georgeszaslavsky · 7/10 · 4 February 2014]

The introduction scene of the second black cobra is very interesting, it begins by a drug exchange, one of the suspect gets arrested and another one flees by riding a bike. Malone chases him with his car and the chase is ending by foot in a parking lot where the biker takes a female in hostage, Malone shots him in the head and saves the life of the woman. He is then asked by his superior to go Manila in the frame of an an exchange program.The meeting Mc Call is somewhat cold before but after that they trust more each other and become friends. They both beat the crap out of the terrorists and kills them. The best scene is where Mc Call kills the Iranian leader by shooting him with 6 shots of cal 357magnum in the head and the chest. I give it a 7 out of 10 despite a somewhat cheesy and horrid dialog. But it is fast paced action and it is fun to watch.

Fred Williamson is back as Detective Robert Malone...Oooh Yeeah!

[legendaryunderdog · 10/10 · 1 July 2008]

I loved the first installment of this series and the sequel is just as good and maybe even a touch better than the previous installment but for me it is just all about Fred Williamson's character Detective Robert Malone, bringing justice to the streets, nailing the bad guys, he's bad, he's mean, he's gotta past that he'd love to forget and now he's gotta go to the Phillippines and work with INTERPOL to capture some terrorists. The character study between Hammond's character and Williamson's character and the reversal of their respective personalities that takes place towards the final shootout of the film is very interesting. The soundtrack to this film is awesome, really encompasses the creepy street vibe ala Jimmy Page's "Death Wish 2" score. Again I would recommend this film to anyone that doesn't judge films too harshly and would just rather sit back and watch some low budget action. 10 out of 10 stars any day of the week.

Action sequel is just as good as the first

[Leofwine_draca · 7/10 · 20 November 2015]

Fred Williamson returns in the titular role in this follow up to the derivative, low-budget Italian answer to COBRA. This time around, Chicago cop Malone shoots one too many criminals dead, so he's sent to the Philippines to holiday – except he instead gets involved in a kidnap plot involving a valuable bit of micro film and a gang of international terrorists, all when his wallet is stolen at the airport! BLACK COBRA 2 doesn't have one single film to slavishly follow as did the original film in this series, so it's more open and just as fun, with inspiration coming from all over the place. It's still derivative, low budget and cheesy, but boy is it a lot of fun too!

One of the things I enjoyed about this film was the Filipino setting. All the time I see movies shot in the Philippines where the cheap-to-shoot location is used as a stand-in for a more expensive locale: typically Vietnam, but any one of a dozen Asian countries at times. Not so BLACK COBRA 2. From the very beginning it makes a virtue of being set in the Philippines, so realism is a little stronger than most. Plus, real-life locations like the Manila Gardens Hotel are able to be put to good use, something we don't usually see.

Much of the fun in this film comes from the 50-odd Fred Williamson, still acting and doing the kind of stunts we'd expect from a man twenty years younger, although a stand-in occasionally replaces him here. Williamson is as hard-assed as ever, with lots of wonderful dialogue and a greater number of hand-to-hand combat situations with the bad guys here than in the first film. As an actor he's more relaxed while at the same time putting in more of an effort than he did in the first. This time he teams up with '70s SPIDER-MAN star Nicholas Hammond, and sparks fly as the two work together in LETHAL WEAPON-style buddy/buddy exchanges. I could have done without Emma Hoagland's extended nightclub routine, but the rest of the cast are stock Filipino extras, including a briefly-seen Mike Monty right at the end. Watch out for the little blond boy whose voice is dubbed by an older woman! While the plot is as nonsensical and non-existent as ever, this film seems to have a greater number of action scenes, all of which are extended. We're re-introduced to Williamson as he puffs and pants, chasing a crim through the Chicago streets before blowing apart his helmet's visor in one cool slow-mo shot. After that it's business as usual, with laboured fist-fights (Williamson's "karate" is a real hoot, all posturing and hot air), gun battles and bloody squib shots everywhere.

I really liked the cheesy action in this film, which goes way over the top; watch out for the extreme slow motion shots of Williamson in a couple of instances, which totally cracked me up. The film's ending seems to have been inspired by DIE HARD, which must have been released around the time of this film. It sees our heroes tackling a high-rise building where terrorists are holding schoolchildren (?!) hostage. With Williamson as the cigar-chomping, leather trousers-wearing indestructible hero, this is pure '80s schlock, nothing more, nothing less. Roll on BLACK COBRA 3, the next release in the surprisingly popular series.

Stinks, but better than Black Cobra #1

[peterc-8 · 1 July 2003]

Malone (Fred Williamson) is back (good gawd!).

The intro/beginning of this film is actually pretty funny. See a crummy car keep up with a Suzuki racing motorcycle looping through a parking garage! See a harrowing 2 MPH motorcycle crash! See the running bad-guy actor slow down to let a winded Williamson catch up to him - several times!

After Malone blasts this evil motorcyclist into oblivion, he gets shipped off to the Philippines until Chicago cools down. Apparently to help Interpol (huh? wha?). At this point the film becomes incomprehensible and boring like BC#1. Malones wallet is pinched, there are some sinister Iranians, microfilm, then there is a surreal hostage taking/rescue which belongs in a DADA performance art happening rather than in an action film.

Fred Williamson is a bit more awake in BC#2 than he is in BC#1. His acting is a little better, more relaxed, more focused. There are more laugh-out-loud lines in this film.

The soundtrack is better than BC#1. Decent Jan Hammer/Miami Vice ripoff sound. The film is also full of whacky 1980's artifacts. Williamson is constantly wears a powder blue Members Only jacket with the sleeves rolled up. Leather pants, The women in the film have some pretty scary haircuts. The sets/props/hair-do's blend seamlessly with the cheese-ball soundtrack.

Even with all the faults, if the pacing was better this could have been a watchable flick. Unfortunately the film is clunky and boaring at points when it needs to be exciting. Worth watching just the goofy intro and then F.F. to some of the more absurdist scenes.

Apparently there is a Black Cobra #3.

The Hammer in Manilla

[HaemovoreRex · 6/10 · 20 August 2007]

The effortlessly cool Fred Williamson returns as hard hitting cop Robert Malone in this rather enjoyable sequel to the original film.

Boasting a cool, driving soundtrack, some rather amusing dialogue, a fair bit of shooting and plenty of cigar chomping this proves to be undemanding fun from beginning to end.

On the negative side however, as with it's predecessor there sadly just isn't enough action present and what is here isn't exactly original stuff. Nonetheless, it's good to see Williamson performing his own stunts and let's be entirely honest here; Anything with The Hammer in it is always worth a watch at least once.

Overall, whilst far from Wiliamson's best effort, for fans of the great man, it's certainly worth checking out.

Badass with a badge

[Nakrophile · 10/10 · 9 May 2012]

Interesting fact: there are several posts on the original film's message board, but as of this writing there none (other than my own which is just a copy of this review) on this film's board. You have to wonder why that is. I mean the first one is enjoyable trash but, and let's be honest, it is a real piece of crap and most likely only Hammer fans and lovers of bad films will sit through to the end. Besides the opening hostage negotiation and a couple of amazing moments of sexism, it is the kind of film you put on and then go and do something else, perhaps opening a book and occasionally looking over the edge of the page to remind yourself that, yes this is still happening. But dammit it's enjoyable enough, and I have certainly seen worse in all qualities.

Black Cobra 2, though (and forgive me if I am misremembering, but I think the 'the' preface is a new addition), is just a fantastic little film. Yes, it's still trash but it easily stacks up against similar fare Hollywood were putting out around the same time and for a while afterwards. The Hammer is back and his entrance, while not quite as hilarious as before, is arguably better. Certainly it establishes the recurring motif of the cigar which, correct me if I am wrong, was not in the original (and if it was, certainly not to this degree). I don't know, maybe I missed it in-between the book I was reading. It's fine though, because as well as the probable increase in the cigar factor, the cast is great, the action is great, the script is brilliant and the score is amazing.

Now when I say the cast is great, what I really mean is this. Naturally the Hammer is great, and he seems a lot more into the proceedings this time around. Then we have Nicholas Hammond who was a great surprise, and made me want to dig out the Spidey episodes I have recorded somewhere. I really can't seem to remember who the villains were besides generic thieves, I'm sure Scorpion or Doc Ock may have been in one episode; I will have to do some research into this important matter. As for the rest, Emma Hoagland was alright when her hair wasn't a repulsive distraction (which to be fair only happened once), and I am shocked to see that Edward Santana has, according to this website, only appeared in three films. And one of them is probably archive footage. Now I haven't yet seen Black Cobra 3 (I am saving that for the weekend), but he delivered everything one could hope for from a angry police chief. I would have enjoyed it even more if he had asked for Malone's badge and gun and shouted "now cut that s**t out!" when Malone slammed his fist on his captain's desk demanding to be put back on the case, but I understand why this classic scene didn't make it as the plot had other ideas. I also very much doubt he has only appeared in three films. Lastly, Oscar Daniels - who portrayed the pick-pocket at the airport who later winds up dead - looking at his resume makes me want to watch Among Thieves, a short film he appears to have written, edited and directed.

When I say the action was great, I mean it was better than the first film but was pretty generic I suppose (apart from the Hammer doing his own bad ass stunts, and also it was pretty cool when he snapped that dude's neck). Oh well, I still liked it, and the AWESOME guitar and synthesiser score complimented it superbly. Oh and on that score, yes it was great but holy crap the repetition. Oh well, I didn't get sick of it when it looped for the fifth time, so I guess that's something.

But probably the biggest improvement (other than the transfer on the copies of Black Cobra 1 and The Black Cobra 2 I have) was the script. As in, it was actually good. Well, I say good, but it definitely was loads better and obviously a vast improvement over the stale or often non-existent dialogue of the first film. There were a lot of fun lines, and also nice little touches like the old maid grumbling to herself in the hotel before Hammer and Nick find the pickpocket's corpse.

And how can you not enjoy the two man assault on the school at the end. Sure, there was absolutely no kids, teachers, classrooms or signs of learning whatsoever, but just watching them climb up the elevator shaft was more exiting than a dozen Die Hards. Okay that is the praise on the cover of the region 2 Tartan release of Hard Boiled, but when the Hammer smashed through the window and blew like six guys away with a shotgun you got to admit that was pretty bad ass.

About my only complaint was that the tom hits in the score never really amounted to any real sense of musical progression, that the crappy love ballad the girl sings in the club was used as the end credits son instead of a cheesy rock ballad (even the same song from the first film would have been better), and lastly that at no point that I can recall did the Hammer end a statement with, "ya dig." Also it would have been nice to see his cat again. Maybe Malone has leaned to clear away those red tins so Pervis doesn't get mad again.

Al in all top class entertainment.

A slight - repeat, slight - improvement over the first movie

[Wizard-8 · 4 February 2010]

"Black Cobra 2" is one of those rarities - a sequel that is better than the original. Actually, considering how awful the first movie was in just about every aspect, it wouldn't take anyone much effort to crank out a better movie. This time, Chicago cop Malone (actually, he was a NEW YORK cop in the first movie!) is sent to Manila, and the fact that making movies there is pretty cheap probably explains the improvement. The cinematography is more colorful, the lighting is better, the indoor shooting locations look less impoverished, and there are some colorful outdoor locations. The action scenes are also an improvement, though some of this comes from the unintentionally hilarity of the martial arts sequences. However, the movie still suffers from the fact that it's mostly DULL. It's a slow-moving story, with the investigation going on forever and taking half an hour from the opening action scene to get to the next action scene. And while they got more out of their dollar for production values, the movie still suffers from cheapness, like the fact the hostages at the climatic scene are never seen. Anyway, I'll see you again when I review part 3...

Blah Williamson vehicle

[lor_ · 11 May 2023]

My review was written in April 1990 after watching the movie on South Gate Entertainment video cassette.

Fred Williamson is on automatic pilot in the direct-to-video feature release from Italy, "The Black Cobra 2".

Carrying his trademark stogie, he plays a Chicago cop sent to Manila under an Interpol exchange program. Once in the Far East he teams up with Inspector McColl (Nicholas Hammond) to go after some terrorists, who end up kidnapping the heroine and McColl's son.

Uneventful film lacks the usual exploitation elements. Even the interracial theme involving Williamson's romantic exploits is extremely tame.

Tech credits are so-so, with poor dubbing of several of the supporting players. Edoardo Margheritit takes over directing the series from Stelvio Massi, with contradictory anglicized names (A. J. Dawson vs. Dan Edwards) displayed on the box versus the screen for this video.