Sister Act 2: Back In The Habit (1993)

 

Sister Act 2: Back In The Habit - 1993

Coming up next is 1993's "Sister Act 2: Back In The Habit", the sequel to the highly-acclaimed and immensely popular "Sister Act".  In this story, we see singer Deloris Van Cartier head back under cover to help her nun friends save a school from closing.

The film's cast includes Whoopi Goldberg, Maggie Smith, Kathy Najimy, Wendy Makkena, Mary Wickes, James Coburn, Michael Jeter, Barnard Hughes, Lauryn Hill, Jennifer Love Hewitt, Alanna Ubach, Ryan Toby, Devin Kaman, Ron Johnson, Brad Sullivan, Thomas Gottschalk, Sheryl Lee Ralph, Ellen Albertini Dow, and Jenifer Lewis

After a group of nun's helped hide her from her mobster boyfriend and she turned them into a world-renowned choir, Deloris Van Cartier has become a very successful singer in Las Vegas.

On the final night of her show, Deloris's old friends come to see her and say that they have been sent by Mother Superior to get her because her help is urgently needed.

So, it's back to San Francisco for Deloris.  When Mother Superior sees her, the older nun welcomes her back with open arms.

Mother Superior wastes no time in getting down to business.  The nuns are now teachers, and the school they are teaching at is being threatened with closure unless its reputation can be improved.  Plus, the students are extremely unruly and undisciplined.  Mother Superior wants Deloris to teach music and help get things in order.

Reluctantly, Deloris agrees, and it's back in the habit she goes, along with having to cope with the austere living conditions of a nun.  Once again, Deloris becomes Sister Mary Clarence.

The school is headed by a group of very strict monks who would be very upset if they found out that Deloris wasn't really a nun.  Also, Mr. Crisp, a hostile man who is bent on the school's closure, makes things difficult.

Right away, Deloris is confronted with a group of unruly students.  Never fear, she can out-attitude any attitude they throw in her direction.

Once she gets their behavior under control, Deloris decides that the best way to work with the students is to turn them into a choir.  Naturally, the kids balk at the idea.

So, she takes them on a little field trip to see the famous singing nuns to give them a preview of what a proper choir could be.

An idea comes up that once the kids are in fine singing form, they should enter a choir competition in order to save the school.

The kids are definitely not without talent.  A couple of students sing "His Eye Is On The Sparrow" inside the school chapel.

Once they're ready, Deloris has the kids sing "O Happy Day" in front of the entire student body.

At the competition, the kids are pretty nervous once they see their competition.

The choir turns out a fantastic urban contemporary gospel performance of "Joyful, Joyful".

It should come as no surprise that the choir wins the entire competition, enabling the school to remain open.

At the close of the film, the kids find out that Deloris really isn't a nun and according to rumor she is a Las Vegas showgirl.  Deloris says in response that "I am not, nor have I ever been a Las Vegas showgirl.  I am a headliner."

Cast rundown:

   Whoopi Goldberg................................Deloris Van Cartier

   Maggie Smith.....................................Mother Superior

   Kathy Najimy......................................Sister Mary Patrick

   Wendy Makkena..................................Sister Mary Robert

   Mary Wickes.......................................Sister Mary Lazarus

   James Coburn.....................................Mr. Crisp

   Michael Jeter.......................................Father Ignatius

   Barnard Hughes..................................Father Maurice

   Lauryn Hill..........................................Rita Watson

   Jennifer Love Hewitt............................Margaret

   Alanna Ubach......................................Maria

   Ryan Toby...........................................Ahmal

   Devin Kaman......................................Frankie

   Ron Johnson.......................................Sketch

   Brad Sullivan......................................Father Thomas

   Thomas Gottschalk..............................Father Wolfgang

   Sheryl Lee Ralph.................................Florence Watson

   Ellen Albertini Dow..............................Choir Nun

   Jenifer Lewis......................................Vegas Backup Singer

And that's all for Sister Act 2: Back In The Habit.  The "Sister Act" films are enduringly popular.  In December 2020, Whoopi Goldberg announced that she would be reprising the role of Deloris Van Cartier in a film she will co-produce with Tyler Perry.  The soundtrack is also still popular.  In 2015, the arrangement for "Joyful, Joyful" was used at a royal wedding in Sweden.

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Jurassic Park III (2001)

 

Jurassic Park III - 2001

Our next film is the final installment in the original Jurassic Park trilogy.  2001's "Jurassic Park III" sees the return of humans to the islands in Costa Rica inhabited by the genetically engineered dinosaurs.  This time, a group of people headed by Dr. Alan Grant are looking for a missing boy and must find a way to get off the island after being stalked by some very intelligent reptiles.

The film's cast includes Sam Neill, William H. Macy, Tea Leoni, Alessandro Nivola, Trevor Morgan, Michael Jeter, and Laura Dern.

Dr. Alan Grant is something of a celebrity since his foray at Jurassic Park.  He enjoys giving lectures about raptors, a passion of his.  He doesn't not, however, enjoy answering any questions to do with Jurassic Park.  This severely limits his audiences questions, because that is all they want to ask about.

Dr. Grant and his assistant Billy have come up with a 3D model of the resonating chamber of the velociraptor.  When Billy blows into it, Dr. Grant is immediately reminded of his experiences at Jurassic Park.  He tells Billy he's very impressed with the model.

Paul and Amanda Kirby arrive on the scene and present themselves as wealthy benefactors.  They want Dr. Grant to give them an aerial tour of Isla Sorna, a dinosaur inhabited island, in exchange for funding his research.  Dr. Grant very reluctantly agrees to the proposal.

Once they're flying over Isla Sorna and dinosaurs come into view, Dr. Grant is very confused by the fact that no one seems to be paying attention to them.  They seem to be focused on something else.

It all becomes clear when they land.  Dr. Grant is very against the idea of landing.  He gets knocked out by one of the Kirbys' hired men.  When he comes to, it's explained to him that the Kirbys are searching for their son, who had come to the island with a friend.  They haven't been able to make contact and the Costa Rican government won't help them.  What's more, they aren't the rich benefactors they portrayed themselves to be.  "Great, just great.  Here we are in the worst place in the world and we're not even being paid," moans Dr. Grant.

It quickly becomes apparent how dangerous their situation is.  A hungry Spinosaurus attacks and kills two of the Kirbys' hired men.  The dinosaur also wrecks their plane, basically shredding it.

A run-in with a T-rex provides the distraction the group needs to escape from the Spinosaurus.  The two dinosaurs battle it out, with the Spinosaurus emerging as the victor.

As they journey deeper into the island, Dr. Grant is extremely alarmed when they come upon multiple nests belonging to velociraptors.  It's later revealed that Billy has taken a couple of the eggs in secret.

And that theft comes back to haunt them when the group is trailed by some very angry velociraptors.  The dinosaurs even set a trap to lure the group out by killing one of their men.

When he's separated from the rest of the group, Dr. Grant is rescued by the Kirby's son, Erik, who has proven to be quite adept at navigating life in the hostile environment.  When Dr. Grant asks him how he got T-rex pee to scare off some dinosaurs, Erik just shakes his head and says, "You don't want to know".

Eventually, the Kirbys and Dr. Grant are brought together, but their reunion is short-lived.  That pesky Spinosaurus seems to be following them, too.

And things don't let up when they find themselves in the Pteranodon enclosure.  These flying reptiles seem to be very hungry.  Young Erik is even dropped in a nest for some babies to feed on.  With the exception of Billy, the group makes it out safely.

The group is given a brief respite from the terror they've been experiencing.  As they boat towards the coast, they marvel at the peaceful dinosaurs they see when they come to a clearing.

But once again they're quickly back in danger.  After a close call with a carnivorous dinosaur, the Kirbys and Dr. Grant come face to face with that Spinosaurus once again.  This time, though, they are successful in defeating it.

A call made on a newly discovered satellite phone is put through to Dr. Grant's old friend and partner, Dr. Ellie Sattler, who jumps into action when the line goes dead and she hears Dr. Grant's frantic voice calling for help.

Before that help can come, they are ambushed by the group of velociraptors that has been trailing them.  They want the eggs that were stolen from their nests.

Dr. Grant uses the 3D model that Billy made to distract the raptors.  They pick up the eggs and leave the group as they run off in the director of their nests.

Once they make it to the coast, the Kirbys and Dr. Grant are met by the help sent by Ellie Sattler: the Navy and the Marines.  Once they board a helicopter, Dr. Grant is delighted to see that they found Billy.  He's injured, but alive.  As they head home, the group notices some Pteranodons flying near them towards a new-found freedom.

Cast rundown:

   Sam Neill................................Dr. Alan Grant

   William H. Macy.......................Paul Kirby

   Tea Leoni................................Amanda Kirby

   Alessandro Nivola....................Billy Brennan

   Trevor Morgan.........................Erik Kirby

   Michael Jeter...........................Udesky

   Laura Dern..............................Dr. Ellie Sattler

And that's it for Jurassic Park III.  The Spinosaurus used in the film was, at that time, the largest animatronic every built.  It was 25 feet high, 40 feet long, and weighed 24,000 pounds.  For a scene involving Spinosaurus droppings, the effects crew used 250 gallons of oatmeal to simulate the smelly substance.

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