3.5 out of 5.0 stars
“Smile 2” starts with a bang and never pumps the brakes. Fans of “Smile” (2022) will be delighted, as this sequel is an upgrade in every way. The horror is more horrible and the scares are scarier. The main character is a scandal-plagued pop star, desperate for a comeback following a car accident and the public meltdown that tanked her career. In every way, her story is bigger than the previous main character, Rose, who was a psychiatric hospital therapist.
The rules sound confusing, but “Smile,” with its many explanatory scenes, makes them understandable. “Smile” taught the basic rules of the Entity’s infection — it feeds off its host’s trauma for six days before forcing them to die in front of a witness. That witness is infected next. The only way to counteract the fatal infection is to brutally commit murder in front of a witness. The host lives, and the infection is transferred to the witness.
“Smile 2” opens only six days after the first film where police officer Joel (Kyle Gallner) was infected. He knows how to save himself, but the infection has warped his sanity. He tracks down a couple of drug-selling murderers, but his attempt to kill one in front of the other backfires in one long action-packed take that might be the film’s standout scene. Lewis Fregoli (Lukas Gage), a younger drug dealer, witnesses the exchange and is infected instead. It does, however, feel like a missed opportunity, as following a cop like Joel — who already knows the rules — could have made for a fascinating sequel.
Naomi Scott, who shot to fame as Jasmine in the 2019 live-action “Aladdin,” is Skye Riley, a somewhat-rehabilitated pop star still struggling with the emotional and physical repercussions of surviving the tragic car accident that killed her boyfriend, Paul Hudson (Ray Nicholson, son of Jack Nicholson), a year earlier. Of the many skeletons Skye has hidden in her closet, the troubled relationship with her best friend, Gemma (Dylan Gelula), seems to haunt her the most. Scott gives a fantastic performance that blends the trauma from being infected by the Smile Entity with survivors’ guilt and the mental health strain of musical stardom.
Most of the supporting performances are strong. Nicholson is not in the film much, but he channels his dad’s creepy and aggressive acting with a chilling smile and a show-stealing flashback argument scene with Scott. Rosemarie DeWitt plays Skye’s mother, Elizabeth Riley, balancing motherly love with manipulation. Gage is particularly engaging as Lewis, playing the role with a kind of dance between madness and bone-chilling sanity.
“Smile 2” shows just how much Parker Finn has grown as a director since “Smile.” He utilizes multiple long takes to increase the tension and keep viewers in one character’s point of view. While “Smile” was criticized for overusing sudden jump scares that came out of nowhere, “Smile 2” takes the time to marinate each frightening incident. There are still jump scares, but most are set up with eerie sequences that keep audiences on the edge of their seats. The scariest scenes involve taking Skye out of her hallucinations into a reality where she experiences a deep feeling of embarrassment. Public humiliation, whether you are a pop star or an ordinary person, is a horror of its own.
Skye is just days away from the opening show of her comeback tour in Manhattan when she gets infected by Lewis. All of a sudden, she is hallucinating, getting fake texts and seeing ghosts of Lewis and Paul. Initially, it is impossible to decipher what is real or not– making it a fun film to rewatch and try to further uncover. The Smile Entity’s powers are a little too vague though. Sometimes it affects people aside from its victim, but other times it cannot. It also seems to affect Skye more than Rose, the main protagonist of “Smile.” The sequel’s many hallucinations risk audience apathy as they grapple with whether each scene is real or just another hallucination.
Ultimately, “Smile 2” is a 127-minute thrill ride worth the price of admission. From creepy long takes to electrifying musical sequences, the film is always captivating. But the lack of originality across all the scares get a little repetitive as the film winds down. For those wanting an entertaining horror film to see in theaters before Halloween, “Smile 2” is just what the Entity ordered.
