Director: Tibor Takács
Year: 1992
Country: USA/Canada
Alternate Titles: N/A
Genre: Creature Feature
Plot:
Realizing the gateway hasn't been closed, a teen ventures back to his friends' house to perform the proper closing spell inadvertently causes a mischievous demon to break through and disrupt his friends' lives forcing him to put his skills to the test to send the demon back once again.
Review:
This was a rather obvious lower-quality sequel. One of the few enjoyable elements about this one is the rather fun connection to the supernatural and occult that pops up sparingly throughout here. This starts out nicely with the ceremony at the abandoned house where the black magic ceremonies and rituals they engage in are quite fun as well as getting in the bright colors that show up nicely in the Gothic manor. The setup of taking the summoned creature back home and setting up the main storyline about the captured demon being kept and studied in the house which shows the effects of them wishing for different items and initially appearing to be beneficial only to turn out to have a shelf-life for their effectiveness which drives the second half of the film as they end up watching their friends deteriorate due to their exposure to the creatures. As well, with the fun rousing finale set in the abandoned factory where the demonic friend is loose hunting them down with all the noise and growls off in the distance setting the stage for the fun of the practical monster being shown in somewhat decent detail.
The cast here isn't bad but doesn't hold up to the original. Again, bringing Louis Tripp back as Terry isn't really asking for much as he's a lot more mopey and downbeat this time around which shouldn't be too surprising considering the events and actions which took place yet doesn't make for all that appealing a character. The far more grieving he does in the second half makes him a total downer to be around and he isn't as action-ready as he was before so he comes off as the weak point. The two thugs, Simon Reynolds as Moe and James Villemaire as John are far more likable and engaging, with a fine character change for Moe who is clearly under John's controlling thumb but wanting to come free with a paying job and being far more open to the black magic he performs. They are perfectly fine as a pair of friends who are clearly caught up way over their heads and they become somewhat sympathetic as a result. The girlfriend Liz, played by Pamela Adlon, is the best character here who is the cliched love interest who has an interest in the occult before turning allegiances into the final girl. Still retaining a little bit of sass and yet capable of holding a sympathic relationship with him, she's a definite highlight here and really scores nicely in their scenes together. These here are what hold it up over it's main flaws.
The main issue holding this one back is the fact that so little of the film is actually horrific that it's rather boring for much of the running time. The main focus on the family drama between him and his father is a typical subplot in these efforts which is placed so heavily in the narrative that it doesn't really have any kind of impact due to the cliche nature of it all, a facet sadly repeated in the romance between the two kids due to the adventures they share. The softer focus on these scenes throughout the first half of the film really lessens the impact of the horror scenes here which are reduced in quantity considerably. In turn, that even slows the pacing down rather significantly as well, making for a wholly bland and boring entry that has so few finely developed horror scenes it crams it all into a tonally out-of-place finale that really sticks out badly here. The traveling into another dimension and battling with the creatures serves as a wash in the end when it is forced into the episode to deal with the lack of horror throughout the remaining parts of the movie. Along with the patently obvious low-budget nature of the special effects, these are what hold this one back.
Overview: *1/2/5
A watchable effort in the least and a rather forgettable affair overall, there's not much to this one which makes this one a truly bland sequel entry. Only give this a chance if you're a completist for these kinds of demonic genre films or are a hardcore fan of the original, while those that aren't should just save time and stick with the first film.
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