With sequels being such an easy cash influx for studios, I was unsurprised to hear the announcement for “Black Phone 2.” This time around, the film has added a supernatural dimension to the franchise, expanding upon the premise of the first film. Fans may expect “Black Phone 2” to be much like the first — featuring lifelike characters, allusion to a life after death and the deceased communicating with the living — but while it kept some of these elements, it was also a totally different kind of horror, shifting further into the supernatural world.
The first film grappled with evil in human form as it followed Finney’s (Mason Thames, “Regretting You”) kidnapping by a sinister serial killer called the Grabber (Ethan Hawke, “Training Day”). Instead of a human villain this time, however, the second film chooses to breach the door of religion by exploring what life after death might be like and communicating with the dead through a black phone, wherever it may appear. Themes of hell, evil, Christianity and heaven are potent in the film, giving it a richer, more reflective feel than the first and making it seem as though the original movie was only laying a backstory for the true diegesis in the sequel.
The second movie opens with a haunting sequence: A young girl named Hope Adler (Anna Lore, “Final Destination: Bloodlines”) uses a black phone to call someone named Gwen (Madeleine McGraw, “American Sniper”) — Finney’s sister from the first film — who seems to have visions in her dreams just like Hope does. This film bends time, allowing a now-teenage Gwen, the woman on the other end of the phone, to connect with her mother Hope in her own dream world. While this dream world keeps others safe, as Gwen can see in both the future and past, she herself is unsafe in her mind’s universe as it merges with the real world. This unlocks a new, dangerous dimension where harm can be done to her real body even while inside the dreamscape.
Director Scott Derrickson (“Doctor Strange”) depicts these events with chilling visuals and thoughtful cinematography, making what began as a short-story adaptation into a completely realized horror universe. Early scenes in the movie and dream sequences use a grainy and nostalgic filter like that of old home movies, transporting the audience into Gwen’s dreams. While this difference was subtle, the cinematography made it very clear when Gwen was dreaming, carefully and intentionally building suspense. The visuals are haunting yet peaceful, like the shot of a lone phone booth in the blizzard, symbolizing a certain isolation and desperation to connect with the dead.
Yet while the movie’s aesthetic is enticing, some of the plot gets lost when Derrickson tries to incorporate various aspects of the horror genre. Clichés like prophetic dreams, newspaper montages and a snowstorm that conveniently traps everyone within close quarters all come up in “Black Phone 2.” While these have previously appeared in successful horror films, they are overdone within the genre and are now predictable. Similarly, the broader use of religion and Christian imagery distracted from the film’s core concern with the blur between spiritual and psychological realms.
With so many new concepts introduced, it was hard to determine whether there were endless plot twists or if the plot was simply convoluted. These intricate new plotlines may have elicited some curiosity from the audience, but they ultimately sacrificed some of the clarity of the overall piece. Because the first film only offered necessary context and delivered a satisfying ending to the original story, this addition feels comparatively lost in clichés. As a result, “Black Phone 2” struggles to stand on its own.
While the film may rely on tropes to deliver the promised horror elements, the story does still build on the original “Black Phone” in a way that feels relevant. It provides further context behind the relationship between the Grabber and siblings Finney and Gwen, and, despite any over-reliance on clichés and issues with the plot, the movie ends on a heartwarming note — with no sign of what’s to come next — and ultimately makes it worth a watch.
Daily Arts Contributor Sofia Padilla can be reached at sofiapad@umich.edu.
