Smile 2: Iffy Sequel Turns Those Freaky Smiles into Frowns
By Thom Ernst
Rating: C+
The most unsettling and, perhaps, most confusing aspect of Smile 2 is the nagging sense that you need to rewatch the original just to confirm that this is a sequel.
The film drifts so far into a bizarre realm of disjointed ideas, eclectic set pieces, and genre nods that it's barely recognizable as part of the same universe. Yes, the unsettling grins return, but now they look less sinister and more like awkward victims of an embarrassing bathroom accident.
Parker Finn directed the original, blending horror, music video aesthetics, and surreal absurdity. Here, ideas drop into the story like ping-pong balls unleashed from an overstuffed cupboard. Finn briefly touches on body horror and toxic celebrity culture, only to veer into flashy musical sequences and otherworldly chaos.
Had Finn foreshadowed the success of The Substance and Pearl and had banked on the musical aspect of Joker: Folie á Deux to be more popular (which by rights it should be) when making his film? Not likely. Still, the result is a strange concoction of the grotesque, jump scares, and moments that are at one moment daring and the next, cringeworthy.
The story centres on Skye Riley (Naomi Scott), a pop star more Ariana Grande than Taylor Swift, on a comeback after a scandal and fatal accident derailed her career. Riley struggles beneath the weight of addictions, an overbearing stage-managing mother (Rosemarie DeWitt), and grueling cross-country tour.
But things spiral when Riley visits Lewis (Lukas Gage) a shady dealer for painkillers and ends up cursed with the sinister Smile virus. From there, the film delivers about 50 minutes of jump scares, most involving unexpected, jarring still images inserted into the frames that flash across the screen.
Despite the nagging push, I don’t revisit the first Smile. There is enough in Smile 2 that feels alien to its predecessor that I know this sequel veers wildly off-course — about as connected as Halloween III is to Halloween.
Smile 2 is a freakshow that will likely delight those willing to go all in, seeking a chaotic experience while others will be left to wonder not only where this is all going to but where did it come from?
By the time your own grin starts to fade, you’ll realize Smile 2 isn’t the ambitious throwback to 60s Giallo or 80s psychedelic horror it initially hints at. But, viewed through the lens of late-night cult potential, it starts to click.
Cult films aren’t born in the script or on set, and they can’t be declared in their opening week, but Smile 2 undeniably has the makings of one. Despite marking a significant drop in quality for this recent wave of horror films — following the disappointing Night Swim — it’s hard to entirely dismiss.
Smile 2. Directed and written by Parker Finn. Starring Naomi Scott, Rosemarie DeWitt and Lukas Gage. In select theatres October 18.