Dead kittens are not really a deterrent for me, so I'll continue.
1) The only thing good about the 1st movie was James Woods. The rest was bad acting, poor scripting, and proof positive that John Carpenter had lost what little he was pleased to call his "touch".
2) Okay, Los Muertos is not a good film, but it's nowhere near as abysmal as John Carpenter's. And, through the memory augmenting powers of vodka, I realize that neither movie is anything close to the book. I just think Los Muertos is a little bit closer to the spirit.