PopHorror Let's Get Scared
Everyone, the time has arrived to safeguard your children. Bughuul is back at it again in the 2015 highly anticipated sequel Sinister 2 . The evil spirit is stronger than ever and has a new selection of victims to recruit for his devious plans. Three years earlier, the first film succeeded in shocking viewers with its twisted finale. Did the sequel produce the same results that left us breathless last time?
Directed by Ciaran Foy, Sinister 2 opens with one of the homemade movies notorious from the first film. Three family members are tied up in a corn field resembling scarecrows. To our dismay, someone we cannot see proceeds to burn them alive. Then, nine-year-old Dylan Collins (Robert Daniel Sloan) wakes up. Despite being a dream, it is really hard to shake the feeling these events are meant to happen. Damn nightmares! We can cut Dylan a break though because he just moved into a new house with his mother Courtney Collins (Shannyn Sossamon) and brother Zach Collins (Dartanian Sloan). The first night in any new home is bound to cause some jitters. However, there are a million homes to choose from yet they pick the one riddled with Bughuul’s gaggle of demented ghost kids. To top it all off, Courtney is also on the run to get her two boys away from her abusive husband Clint (Lea Coco). Talk about shitty luck.
In my opinion, Sinister 2 did not live up to the first film. There are two specific reasons I feel this way. For one, the first movie had me in a trance-like state because I was not able to predict what was going to happen. Sinister 2 lost that charm as I already knew the back story. Secondly, where the hell is Bughuul in this film? I don’t think I saw him in more than two scenes. He is the villain responsible for all of the chaos happening. Therefore, why isn’t he given more credit here? Instead, the ghost children do his dirty work and it just isn’t effective. Successful sequels typically stay close to home when it comes to the story. Sinister 2 strays a little too far.
In all honesty, the movie was not a complete flop for me. There were elements I found to be enjoyable. Like Sinister, the same old-school home videos make their disturbing appearance. My eyes were immediately glued to the screen when one began playing. I told myself, “Ok Nikki, you know this isn’t going to end well”. Those blasted movies never do! Regardless, they were still created in a unique way where I was kept on my toes. What can I say? I thrive on surprise. In addition, I liked how the whole cast was not entirely brand new. The Deputy (James Ransone) returns with a starring role this time. He understands the wrath of Bughuul as no one else does. Thus, it made it easy for me to root for him due to his expertise. It would appear the only parts of the movie I enjoyed were the ones that stayed true to the original. Are you noticing a theme?
If Sinister 2 had been made before the first movie, I probably would have liked it more. I’m not saying the movie should have been a carbon copy of the first. I just think there were too many inconsistencies that made absolutely no sense. On the plus side, the death scenes were awesome and imaginative. They still evoked fear out of my inner being. That makes me sound like an alien, doesn’t it? Well, maybe I am. Aren’t we all?
