As evidenced by 2012’s “Sinister” and 2021’s “The Black Telephone,” director Scott Derrickson has a present for mixing realism with the supernatural — and for conjuring a way of dread that the viewer can’t assist however share with the movies’ characters.
‘The Black Telephone’ a satisfying slice of dread-inducing terror | Film evaluation
That present is on show within the sequel to the latter, “Black Telephone 2,” in theaters this week.
“Black Telephone 2” is about 4 years after the occasions of its predecessor, which earned greater than $160 million on the worldwide field workplace and has scored myriad followers because it landed on Peacock. The follow-up sees franchise villain The Grabber (Ethan Hawke) out to actual revenge on his slayer, the now-17-year-old Finney (Mason Thames), from, nicely, hell. It’s silly-but-standard-enough horror-movie stuff, and Derrickson and his filmmaking collaborators promote it nicely.
For some time.
That palpable dread — earned from myriad efficient filmmaking parts, together with cinematography (Pär M. Ekberg), manufacturing design (Patti Podesta), enhancing (Louise Ford) and the unsettling musical rating (Atticus Derrickson, son of the director) — finally give approach to over-the-top horror spectacle as our heroes desperately try to perform the objective that one way or the other and for some purpose will defeat the Grabber.
The director and his co-writer and producing accomplice, C. Robert Cargill, additionally deserve credit score for straying greater than you will have anticipated from the components of “The Black Telephone.” We see that titular, unconnected telephone that was key to the 2022 movie’s occasions, hanging within the basement the place the Grabber held Finney hostage, however solely a few occasions and solely briefly.
“Black Telephone 2” begins with a ringing black telephone, however this rotary quantity resides in a sales space in a snowy, mountainous a part of Colorado. We’ll study the identification of the woman who speaks into it quickly sufficient.
We then lower to Denver within the film’s current day, 1982, the place and when Finney is introducing his fists to a schoolmate who’d razzed him about his expertise with the Grabber — a lot to the disapproval of his youthful sister, Gwen (Madeleine McGraw).
Refreshingly, the foul-mouthed 15-year-old takes heart stage on this intermittently scary affair, the woman affected by extremely disturbing desires, accompanied by sleepwalking, that connect with her household’s previous.
Finney, in the meantime, is haunted by ringing telephones, the younger man repeatedly answering and rapidly telling the individual on the opposite strains that he’s sorry however that he can’t assist them.
Ultimately, Gwen, Finney and Ernesto (a returning Miguel Mora) — a goofy-but-sweet love curiosity for Gwen whose brother was one of many Grabber’s victims speaking with Finney 4 years in the past — all find yourself at a winter camp that Gwen needs to analyze.
In fact, a blizzard that made it almost inconceivable for them to reach in a single piece implies that, in the interim, it’s simply them and some people who run the Christian-focused camp, together with its chief, Mando (Demián Bichir, “A Higher Life”) and his succesful niece, Mustang (Arianna Rivas, “A Working Man”). A camp is a traditional horror-flick setting, and this one is house to the aforementioned, long-not-operational telephone sales space, which rings nearly anytime Finney is inside earshot.
As Gwen works to unearth the connection between the camp and her nightmares, the Grabber seems to have Finney the place he needs him.
On the plus aspect, add to the checklist of strengths of “Black Telephone 2” the performances by its leads, beginning with McGraw (“Secrets and techniques of Sulphur Springs,” “Ant-Man and the Wasp”). She does a pleasant job as Gwen, who’s each weak AND comfy firing again at adults who query her with extremely offensive phrases. Plus, she and Mora share a fully hilarious scene at night time on the camp. (It feels a little bit wedged-in, actually, however we get the necessity for a little bit of levity at that time within the proceedings.)
And whereas he’s now extra of a supporting participant, Thames — delivering sturdy work earlier this yr because the step by step heroic Hiccup within the live-action model of “Methods to Prepare Your Dragon” — stays compelling as Finney, who, regardless of his resentment over his father’s alcoholic previous, ceaselessly turns to marijuana to cope with his Grabber-related trauma.
A point out of the efficiency of Hawke (“Coaching Day,” “The Purge”) feels compulsory, however he’s requested to do one-note work right here. The Grabber is little greater than the embodiment of evil this go-round.
After the extremely efficient setup and a primary main encounter with the vengeful Grabber, “Black Telephone 2” begins to lose steam.
Whereas incorporating a number of concepts from Derrickson and Cargill — a tandem whose writing credit additionally embody the Derrickson-directed “Physician Unusual,” a better-than-average Marvel Cinematic Universe entry from 2016 — “The Black Telephone” was primarily based on a brief story by Joe Hill, son of horror nice Stephen King. Missing that sort of basis, the storytelling isn’t as compelling in its sequel, which loses greater than the “The” from the primary characteristic.
And the movie’s frenzied climax, as the nice guys struggle the Grabber on two supernatural fronts, has an excessive amount of occurring, together with — watch for it — ice skating. (We couldn’t assist however consider a line spoken by Rick Moranis’ Darkish Helmet from 1987’s “Spaceballs”: “Too unhealthy this isn’t the ‘Large World of Sports activities’!”)
“Black Telephone 2” boasts sufficient causes to reply its name, however because the powers that be seemingly might resurrect the Grabber anytime they like for what, you worry, might be more and more unimpressive efforts, you might wish to block its quantity transferring ahead.
‘Black Telephone 2’
The place: Theaters.
When: Oct. 17.
Rated: R for sturdy violent content material, gore, teen drug use, and language.
Runtime: 1 hour, 54 minutes.
Stars (of 4): 2.5.