Film review: “Smile 2” | Moviefone

“Smile 2,” which hits theaters Oct. 18, aims to prove itself worthy on the horror sequel front by shaking up the character roster, but its core concept — a frightening, demonic curse that leaves its victims with a crooked grin leaves behind – keeps intact.

While one character switches (Kyle Gallner’s Joel) to further the spread of the demonic parasite, the focus this time is on Skye Riley (Naomi Scott), a Taylor Swift-esque pop star who is already dealing with some serious problems of her own .

Related article: Film Review: “Smile”

Will “Smile 2” make you happy?

How much you like “Smile 2” may depend on your appreciation for the 2022 original and, unlike the way that film conjured up most of its scares, your stomach for loud jump scares .

Because make no mistake – there are a lot of them in this film, and while the first few are effective, the law of diminishing returns quickly takes hold. It’s also a little disappointing that, despite finding a new destination full of possibilities, the sequel also suffers from feeling like a repeat of the first film, albeit in a way that we won’t spoil here.

Still, Finn finds some interesting angles on the tropes we’ve come to expect from the Smile films, and star Naomi Scott delivers a truly committed performance, less Scream Queen and more Trauma Queen, as Skye lives through a nightmare of very personal proportions.

Screenplay and direction

With Parker Finn returning as writer and director, he has managed to maintain his vision from the first film. The ethereal, invisible, parasitic demonic creature has made it to the pop star Skye, and it is her slow breakdown that drives the film.

On the verge of a big tour, Skye finds herself in a situation where she can’t figure out what’s real and what’s not, and it’s unlikely anyone will believe her. The script goes to some fun places, creates a suitably spooky atmosphere, and finds inventive ways to isolate Skye from those around her.

As a director, Finn has a real flair for finding great angles, and the film looks great – even if he sometimes wants to avoid the wrong shots. One or two are a trademark, but the sheer number of them seems boring here.

But he gets good work out of the cast and keeps a careful eye on how the whole thing is developing. In particular, a sequence involving Skye’s backup dancers (we won’t say exactly how) is one of the scariest scenes in a film this year so far.

performances

Naomi Scott as Skye Riley

Scott was better than some of her previous films deserved to be, and here she plays Skye with just the right amount of creeping desperation and paranoia. Whether she drinks water to get her former addictions under control.

While Skye is never entirely sympathetic, Scott gives her some much-needed personality and it’s exciting to see where her story goes.

Rosemarie DeWitt as Skye’s mother

DeWitt has a somewhat thankless role to play as the pushy but charismatic stage mother who loves her daughter but also has a driving interest in keeping the money flowing. Nevertheless, the actress does her best with a small role and is creepily convincing later in the film when Skye begins to see increasingly dark visions.

Peter Jacobson as Morris

As a character with a connection to one of the creature’s previous victims, Morris has a vested interest in bringing it down – and might have found a way to do so. Jacobson may be mostly concerned with delivering an exposition, but he does it well and is believable.

supporting actor

Much of the rest of the cast plays smaller supporting roles, but some certainly make an impression. Dylan Gelula is good as Gemma, one of Skye’s friends who has been estranged from her for about a year while the pop star descended into drugs and alcohol after sustaining serious injuries in a car accident. There is a sparkling interplay between the two women, and their shared history is adequately expressed through dialogue alone.

Miles Gutierrez-Riley also works well as Jacob, an assistant to Skye and her mother who provides the majority of the laughs with which Finn leaves the horror. And also think of the various, mostly uncredited people who must sport wide, creepy smiles as different incarnations of the demonic presence.

Final thoughts

Although there’s an attempt to play with the format a bit, Finn mostly plays the hits here, albeit with a nice twist to help you understand why “Smile” worked. It’s not a perfect horror film, occasionally relying on lazy scare tactics, but it’s a worthwhile sequel to the original and one that also includes a nice line of self-aware laughter to keep things interesting.

While we won’t go directly into how it all ends, the finale raises some interesting questions about where the world of “Smile” might go next – and we’d be interested to see exactly how the writer/director feels about it frees the corner he seems to have painted himself into.

“Smile 2” gets 7 out of 10 stars.

What is the story of “Smile 2”?

As global pop sensation Skye Riley (Naomi Scott) begins a new world tour, she experiences increasingly horrific and inexplicable events. Overwhelmed by the escalating horrors and pressures of fame, Skye is forced to confront her dark past to regain control of her life before it spirals out of control.

Who plays the main role in “Smile 2”?

Naomi Scott stars in Paramount Pictures presents a Temple Hill production of a Parker Finn film, “Smile 2.”

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