This film actually made me angry. As a person who has a soft spot in their heart for many movies bad or good, this movie invoked a negative emotion that I couldn't shake. When something is bad or is done in an unnecessarily over the top way, I can usually find a way to make fun of it to make the bad not seem so bad. This movie lacked even that enjoyment except for maybe a few sequences.
Firstly, this movie isn't scary. While the last movie enjoyed psychological thrills as well as some well timed jump scares with horrifying images to boot, this film lacks those kind of scares for the majority. For example, when the Deputy is looking at a crime scene photo he clearly sees the Bughuul standing in plain sight(which is completely against what the Bughuul would do in the original) and then at exactly the moment the shot zooms in, the Bughuul steps forward. These scares, which are throughout the majority of the film, don't work because you know exactly when they are going to occur, making them extremely predictable.
Another problem with the scares in this movie is that the imagery is significantly more mundane. By that I mean the images that the movie shows aren't scary or creepy whatsoever, with the exclusion of the family killing scene but I'll get to that in a bit. Many of the jump scares are just of the Bughuul, who is utilized horribly in this movie, which just simply isn't very scary because by this point you're familiar with who he is and what he looks like.
The ghost children are another huge problem with this movie. They aren't scary at all. This is especially frustrating because the first shot with them is actually done very well. Done in a bedroom where the ghost is revealed via quick-shot to a different perspective. Sadly the ghost children in this movie don't live up to the first shot or even come anywhere close to it. This is mostly because, get this, they aren't even supposed to be scary. Yeah, in this film the children are supposed to be more of a focus in that we get some story from their perspective. Honestly I do have to give some props for the movie trying this as it is a very new and risky approach. But with all risks there is a chance of either success or failure, in this case it's the latter. This doesn't work because the children in the first film were such a huge factor in the scares and overall atmosphere of the movie. They never speak, they're in the shadows, their motivations are kept in the dark for the most part, and overall they're just plain creepy. In this film, all of those factors are taken away; they talk, they look like any other kids, and they don't do anything scary. In fact they're friends with our main character. Their motivations are a big problem too. In the first film, it kind of isn't really explained why the kids kill their families. Do they do it because the Bughuul tells them to? That's what it may seem like but if that's the case, then why do they run away from him? Were they forced into it? It's all kind of ambiguous and mysterious. In this movie, the children flat out enjoy what they do. They all talk, especially Milo, like little James Bond villains, it's just silly.
The acting in this film is awful as well. You really just have to watch the movie to know what I'm talking about. James Ransone, who did a good job in a bit part in the first film, is just awful as the lead. His line reading is confused and his emotions never make any sense. The rest of the acting is hokey between the insane asshole ex husband to the insane asshole son Zach who just out of the blue decides to kill his whole family(Wtf).
But there is one thing I found enjoyable in this movie and it's the "film" scenes. Even though the build up is awful with the terrible child actors building no atmosphere and the scene set up making no sense. The family killing scenes are very well done. My favorite has to be the scene where the family is being frozen to death in the snow. This scene is brilliant because the family, while they slowly die, is looking at their big, beautiful home, that they'll never be able to return to, even though it's just a few yards away. This scene is actually probably one of my favorites in horror movie history and is one of only two reasons this movie isn't a 1/10, instead I'll bump it up a whole point for this small stroke of genius. The other point comes from the scene with the rats, which references an ancient form of torture that I've always wanted to see shown on film. Well this movie did it and bravo, it was done very well.
In conclusion, don't see this movie even if you liked the first. Or better yet just watch the scenes with the kids killing their families, those scenes are the only bright spots in a movie that I would say otherwise isn't worth viewing.
Firstly, this movie isn't scary. While the last movie enjoyed psychological thrills as well as some well timed jump scares with horrifying images to boot, this film lacks those kind of scares for the majority. For example, when the Deputy is looking at a crime scene photo he clearly sees the Bughuul standing in plain sight(which is completely against what the Bughuul would do in the original) and then at exactly the moment the shot zooms in, the Bughuul steps forward. These scares, which are throughout the majority of the film, don't work because you know exactly when they are going to occur, making them extremely predictable.
Another problem with the scares in this movie is that the imagery is significantly more mundane. By that I mean the images that the movie shows aren't scary or creepy whatsoever, with the exclusion of the family killing scene but I'll get to that in a bit. Many of the jump scares are just of the Bughuul, who is utilized horribly in this movie, which just simply isn't very scary because by this point you're familiar with who he is and what he looks like.
The ghost children are another huge problem with this movie. They aren't scary at all. This is especially frustrating because the first shot with them is actually done very well. Done in a bedroom where the ghost is revealed via quick-shot to a different perspective. Sadly the ghost children in this movie don't live up to the first shot or even come anywhere close to it. This is mostly because, get this, they aren't even supposed to be scary. Yeah, in this film the children are supposed to be more of a focus in that we get some story from their perspective. Honestly I do have to give some props for the movie trying this as it is a very new and risky approach. But with all risks there is a chance of either success or failure, in this case it's the latter. This doesn't work because the children in the first film were such a huge factor in the scares and overall atmosphere of the movie. They never speak, they're in the shadows, their motivations are kept in the dark for the most part, and overall they're just plain creepy. In this film, all of those factors are taken away; they talk, they look like any other kids, and they don't do anything scary. In fact they're friends with our main character. Their motivations are a big problem too. In the first film, it kind of isn't really explained why the kids kill their families. Do they do it because the Bughuul tells them to? That's what it may seem like but if that's the case, then why do they run away from him? Were they forced into it? It's all kind of ambiguous and mysterious. In this movie, the children flat out enjoy what they do. They all talk, especially Milo, like little James Bond villains, it's just silly.
The acting in this film is awful as well. You really just have to watch the movie to know what I'm talking about. James Ransone, who did a good job in a bit part in the first film, is just awful as the lead. His line reading is confused and his emotions never make any sense. The rest of the acting is hokey between the insane asshole ex husband to the insane asshole son Zach who just out of the blue decides to kill his whole family(Wtf).
But there is one thing I found enjoyable in this movie and it's the "film" scenes. Even though the build up is awful with the terrible child actors building no atmosphere and the scene set up making no sense. The family killing scenes are very well done. My favorite has to be the scene where the family is being frozen to death in the snow. This scene is brilliant because the family, while they slowly die, is looking at their big, beautiful home, that they'll never be able to return to, even though it's just a few yards away. This scene is actually probably one of my favorites in horror movie history and is one of only two reasons this movie isn't a 1/10, instead I'll bump it up a whole point for this small stroke of genius. The other point comes from the scene with the rats, which references an ancient form of torture that I've always wanted to see shown on film. Well this movie did it and bravo, it was done very well.
In conclusion, don't see this movie even if you liked the first. Or better yet just watch the scenes with the kids killing their families, those scenes are the only bright spots in a movie that I would say otherwise isn't worth viewing.