Jin Yijian

I approached this sequel with high expectations, given that I rated the first movie 8.5/10. On paper, the director's concept seems captivating - transitioning from a prisoners vs system narrative to a prisoners' revolt against a cult within the prison. However, the execution falls short in several aspects. The storytelling process is horrendously flawed, failing to showcase the buildup of ideas in a smooth and emotionally engaging manner. Scenes feel haphazardly directed, lacking tact from the audience's perspective. Unlike the initial, I found myself emotionally disconnected from all aspects in the sequel. The semi-main characters make inexplicably poor decisions, seemingly to fit the current narrative rather than behaving like an average IQ individual. Any director would have identified and addressed these issues before filming began. The impact on the audience is - I frequently found myself skipping through cringe-worthy scenes, making the viewing experience mentally draining. The only reason I finished the movie was out of respect for its predecessor, which speaks volumes about the sequel's quality. As a former movie enthusiast, I'm disappointed to see another instance where a sequel killed the entire franchise. While the essence of the script had potential, the poor execution in storytelling, character development, and overall direction resulted in a disappointing sequel that fails to capture the magic I experienced in the initial. Ughhhh, another movie that makes me lose hope in new movies.

Feels like the film tries to be ambitious but Clooney failed to form emotional connection with its audiences

I expected more from a Liam Neeson movie where there is a hyper/tension build up, a series of exciting events and finally the unexpected ending. However, this movie seems like a Nicholas Cage movie where each part is simply mediocre or downright boring. This is probably the worst Liam Neeson movie I've ever seen. It's getting 2 star only because Liam Neeson is my 2nd favourite actor and I believe he will be back with better films.

The series got really bad in the second half where the plot is just illogical. I'm not sure what the writers had in mind initially but this is just painful to watch in the second half.