Parker Finn, a first time director, Smile 2 amassed considerable returns on investment with over $217 million in gross earnings, from a film that was both effective and simple to execute, a horror film centered around a sinister quirky character that let out an evil smile. Surely enough, he has been awarded a chance to go all out and develop the sequel into something even bigger, greater, and more extravagant than the original. Setting out to continue the story from where the previous one left off, this directly follows the six day timeline where its predecessor ended, intending to spread the same sinister curse that the last one possessed.
Generally speaking, more financing being present in the sequel means it will most likely have additional story elements that will only serve true as a garnish to the original premises that were provided in the first movie, and accompanying those, compelling stories that are worth mentioning. This time however, for Parker, it is the complete opposite. The writer and director wont be aiming to elaborate or even attempt to explain his sinister validness as the grinning monstrosity instead in this sequel he switches his approach in a way that is almost a repeat of the first one just having a different perspective.
Instead of formerly having a psychiatrist be the main character, in an minimally unnerving examination of mental health and trauma treatment and being possessed by her own demon, this time around the focus shifts to the modern public as well as the ever so infatuated image surrounding celebrities.
Building off of the succinct prologue that smoothly connects the two films, Smile 2 is quick to tease with its big budget as it introduces us to a flamboyant Skye Riley (encapsulated on the stage alongside, and voiced over by, Naomi Scott, the pop sensation that made waves in the industry). Transitioning over to Riley wanting to go on to a mega tour a year after the car crash incident which left her deeply scarred (both mentally and physically). Despite her wishes, after seeing her dealer smash his skull with a free weight she’s bombarded with the image of dead-eyed rictus faces everywhere, a look that is a radical difference from the sycophantic ones that she stains. A Drew Barrymore cameo also makes an appearance to hint towards the bigger budget.
This time, the striking demeanor that brought her attention is now the reason Riley is required to perform on cue. This Riley doesn’t even care about the scrupulous conditions, physical and mental, she breaks down in despair behind the stage, chewing large chunks of her hair, demanding to be told, ‘Lights, Camera, Action be happy.’ It’s perplexing to see how for a performer who has exhibited signs of trauma, goes through bursts of performances expecting it to end just for her to derive an increasingly nightmarish experience out. The final outcome for the Riley is revealing, she’s seesaws between reality and unreality whose reality is on public display while she is left to wither away.
If you fit into the world where fake emotions became the unwritten rule, Riley morphing into a diva wouldn’t have been a surprise, during a rather chaotic photo session with eager fans she was surrounded with camera grips, aids, stalkers and even a venue burning demon. Of all the questions I was left wondering, one remained prominent, if performers are that demanding, what would force them to include a basket of kittens in the riders? The last example provided screamed extreme, however, the commentary while gritty, felt blunt due to the lengthy runtime spanning two hours, rather than assisting to foster the illusion, the extensive diversion from the point served better to switch it.
The scares, on the other hand, are appropriately foreshadowed, with Finn again recalling a gradual sense of overall discomfort combined with a number of gruesome, very close-up body-horror scenes (compound fractures, dislocated jaws and one particularly painful IV) and sound effects that coincide with the gruesome visuals. Some stunningly squelchy Foley work accompanied the discomfort. While the hallucinations’ fake outs are very much the norm, they do at times get fairly inventive (killing through backing dancers!), however, having some sense of what they are and also the possession that is transferred from the earlier movie, saps the tension and somewhat lessens the otherwise well done horror segments.
Smile 2 delivers a deafening blow, Scott’s impressive ragged performance significantly critiques the entertainment machine while also wrapping the film in a bulging and large sequel. Although this isn’t always the best approach, it isn’t on par with the original’s uncanny premise. It’s more of a delicate quaff as opposed to mouth wide grin.
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