Smile 2 (2024)

​"Smile 2" stars Naomi Scott, Rosemarie DeWitt, Kyle Gallner, Lukas Gage, Miles Gutierrez-Riley, Peter Jacobson, Raúl Castillo, Dylan Gelula, and Ray Nicholson.  Released on October 18, 2024, the film has a famous pop star encountering a sinister supernatural presence.

The film is written and directed by Parker Finn, and it is a sequel to Finn's 2022 horror film "Smile".  They say that a smile can brighten everyone's day.  However, not every smile can be seen as a sign of relief and happiness.  In fact, it can make your life a living hell.  This unnerving sensation became the concept of Parker Finn's horror short film, "Laura Hasn't Slept", which was followed by its theatrical follow-up titled, you guessed it, "Smile".  "Smile" was one of the few surprises in the horror genre that utilizes its usual supernatural frights and body horror elements to evoke psychological terror in its audience.  While it's far from a horror masterpiece by most people's standards, the film is another case of a product being popular through its concept and execution.  Of course, it's also another horror movie that Hollywood seeks to milk out of via a sequel, which comes as no surprise.  But, instead of focusing on the first film's protagonist due to its conclusion, the sequel focuses on the entity's latest victim, who finds that going on tour isn't the only stressful thing to worry about.  Does it deliver a creepy follow-up worth smiling about, or make us frown with its unnecessary existence?  Let's find out.

The story centers on Skye Riley (Scott), a famous pop music sensation who's about to partake in her comeback tour following her struggle with substance abuse and a tragic accident.  However, her career hits a massive snag when she sees her friend Lewis (Gage) commit suicide right in front of her.  Traumatized by this unexplainable event, Skye also finds her life spiraling out of control when she experiences a series of disturbing hallucinatory events involving people creepily smiling.  She eventually discovers from a former nurse named Morris (Jacobson) that she's cursed with an entity that feeds on trauma, and it is now latched onto her.  This forces Skye to face her dark past before the entity consumes her sanity completely.

I wasn't expecting much from the first "Smile" movie when it came out two years ago, except it looked like another disposable supernatural horror film.  However, I found myself genuinely surprised that it was also not a bad movie.  Was it groundbreaking for the genre?  No, but it compensated with its impressive craftsmanship and the discomforting atmosphere that elevates its scares and themes involving trauma.  As a result, it became a decent feature-length debut by Parker Finn, who successfully expanded the world-building introduced in his short film.  I wasn't overly excited for its sequel, mainly because the marketing made it look like it would be the first film again, but with a different protagonist.  However, the return of Parker Finn as a writer and director gave me enough optimism to see if he could recapture lightning in the bottle with a smile.  After experiencing this traumatic experience, I can easily point out that Finn has the right stuff to make it big in the horror genre.  As for the film, it offered what I expected out of a "Smile" sequel, for better or worse.

One of the elements that both "Smile" and its sequel got right was the balance of supernatural terror and real-life psychological trauma and paranoia that resulted in the stress and pressures of one's career.  The first film had a therapist whose terrifying experience with a patient resulted in her "breakdown".  The sequel focuses on the life of a pop star whose comeback tour is disrupted by her tragic past, notably her substance abuse and a car accident that killed her boyfriend, Paul Hudson (Nicholson).  Both films depict these experiences in a relatable and unnerving way, adding to the film's horror and discomfort.  Of course, these scenarios are caused by a powerful entity that feeds on trauma.  Still, they fully capture the realism of how a traumatic experience can affect a person's psychological well-being while being tolerable yet by-the-numbers supernatural horror films.  

In regards to which film handles the concept best, I would have to go with "Smile 2".  The reason is that it's equivalent to specific pop stars winding up in bad spots during their careers, especially when making their comebacks.  It's stressful enough to get their popularity off the ground, but attempting to redeem themselves following their bad habits?  It takes a lot of willpower to pick themselves back up without any more issues interfering with their lives.  Another reason is that Skye Riley has the most interesting arc compared to Rose Cotter from the first film.  She's not only haunted by her mistakes that cost her her boyfriend's life but also strives to redeem herself by not losing her shit, especially regarding her estranged best friend Gemma (Gelula).  However, considering her traumatized state, her demanding mother/manager, Elizabeth (DeWitt), and a smiling entity, it's a lot harder than she thought.  With or without the supernatural elements, "Smile 2" delivered an enticing and easily unnerving depiction of this anxiety-ridden part of a musical career that'll probably make you think twice before embarking on that path.

Regarding Parker Finn's screenplay, "Smile 2" plays off some familiar narrative beats as its predecessor, especially its conclusion.  So, if you have watched its predecessor, you've seen "Smile 2".  Although, I have to admit that the ending was a bit more unsettling than the first film in terms of its grisly imagery.  The film was also over ten minutes longer than its predecessor, which may have helped with its build-up, but it can also be exhausting for those who can't stomach R-rated horror.  It's a simple case of the phrase "if it ain't broke, don't fix it", even in the horror genre.  Fortunately, the script's approach to its themes and concept had plenty of decent merits to prevent it from being a lackluster copy-and-paste cash grab, including Skye's character arc that I previously mentioned.  

"Smile 2" also benefitted profoundly from Finn's direction, which suitably combines the film's jump scares with slow-burn suspense and unnerving imagery.  It's not scary and gory just for show.  Instead, it provokes a sense of fear and distress in the audience, the same way Skye is experiencing.  In short, we're in Skye's shoes as she descends into madness.  This direction is why I enjoyed "Smile" more than I anticipated, and I'm happy the same applies to the sequel.  The cinematography by Charlie Sarroff was also superb for its dizzying shots and single-take sequences, and Cristobal Tapia de Veer's musical score was still uniquely crafted to give my bones chills, especially regarding its combination with the sound mixing.  The cinematic craftsmanship that worked in "Smile" still hit the correct notes in the sequel, even though the screenplay plays off some similar beats from the first film and other supernatural horror movies.

The cast also did very well with their performances, including Naomi Scott.  After being absent from the film industry for five years, Scott made her cinematic return as the latest victim of the entity whose smile is as creepy as the Joker's.  She had appeared on television during that absence with "Modern Love Tokyo" and "Anatomy of a Scandal", but outside of that, she took an understandable break from film to get herself back on her feet.  She also made a comeback with a movie called "Distant", but that hasn't been released in the United States yet.  So, for the time being, I'm notifying "Smile 2" as her massive comeback, and based on what I saw, it was certainly a comeback worth remembering.  Naomi Scott delivered a mesmerizing and unnerving portrayal of Skye that's filled with raw emotion and unrelenting anxiety, resulting in a career-best performance that outshines her earlier roles in the 2010s.  Rosemarie DeWitt was also great as Skye's controlling mother, who only cared about her daughter's success rather than her health.  In short, she's the selfish butthead of the group.  Lukas Gage and Peter Jacobson were also solid additions to the cast as Lewis and Morris, respectively.

Overall, "Smile 2" hits most of the creepy, grin-inducing notes from its predecessor, even if this second verse is the same as the first.  The script delivers the same narrative beats as the first film but is longer and more unnerving, leaving me concerned about it being a cheap cash grab that wastes Parker Finn's talents.  While that may be the case for some viewers, the sequel retains its predecessor's craftsmanship and effective terror to expand the smiley world Finn created with his 2020 short film.  Naomi Scott made a big comeback with her career-best performance, and Parker Finn's direction provided the proper amount of terror and discomfort in the film's horror elements.  Accompanied by its impressive cinematography, haunting musical score, and seamless sound mixing, this sequel will undoubtedly leave most horror fans smiling with glee this Halloween season.

B-