Phantasm II

I can't say I really liked Coscarelli's follow up to "Phantasm" much, at least I can't say I enjoyed the first hour a whole lot. Where the original film is like a waking nightmare, this is a pretty routine horror action flick filled with weird plot gaps and silly ideas. But then the last half hour happened, and I have to say I begrudgingly endorse this flick ... but only for the gleefully outrageous gory climax.

While it isn't the iconic horror film it's predecessor was, Phantasm II is backed by better production values, a cool apocalyptic premise and a stand-out improvement in James LeGros replacing Baldwin. There is a reason why LeGros has appeared in a great deal more than Baldwin (including a hilarious parody of Brad Pitt in Living in Oblivion) and shows it here in spades. Frankly I feel this was as good or better than the first but the required shock ending that punctuates each of the films in this series has grown tiresome and makes each feel like they do not truly stand on their own as their own experience. Nevertheless, the entire series is original, imaginative and involving. Phantasm II really should have capped off the series with it's big budget backing, as the very next film in the series felt a lot like Alien 3 where the film picks up characters from the second film discarded in a very unfortunate and disappointing manner...but I digress. Phantasm II is solid, quad barrel shotgun monster blasting fun and a must see for monster movie fans everywhere!

WELL.... You GET.... What You PAY for!

You will HAVE TO INVEST an Hour and a 1/2 of Your life in PHANTASM II.... I would say.... OK... Fair Enough!

BUT BEFORE DIVING IN....

FIRST... Let us FOCUS on the Title's Content and Context:

When I saw PHANTASM in a theater in 1979, I liked it so much (9*), I went back a week later and saw it again! I missed Phantasm II while I was living in Colombia, So I decided to take a delayed-by-25-years look! My psyche was all set to enjoy PHANTASM II to the max! I hadn't seen much in the horror/terror genre in recent years, because I really don't like the direction the genre has been going in throughout the past 1/4 century. 8 to 9* was what I was hoping for...I was somewhat disappointed, but will give it 7.5*.

Let's talk about P-2 for a moment...The whole film is based around sustaining a mood of imminent danger, a foreboding atmosphere. If you agree to go along with it, providing suspension of disbelief, you'll probably get a nice kick out of P-2. IMHO elements of the film, music, sound effects, lighting, pacing, etc., all contribute well to that end. So if you are genre-friendly , let's bump my 7.5* UP to 8*! If the horror/terror genre usually isn't your cup of tea, well let's round DOWN to 6*...Fair enough? In this case, I'd say having seen the original PHANTASM would add tend to add a Star to rating P-2, so it does help, but isn't absolutely indispensable.

I really had forgotten how much gruesome gore there was in the original. There's probably even more here, but a lot less than in recent offerings, undoubtedly influenced by PHANTASM 1 and 2, like the SAW franchise (YECH!) As is typically the case in "B" movies, the acting and dialog usually leave a lot to be desired, but, hey, we don't watch these scouting for potential Oscar-nominees, now do we?!?

Bottom-line: ALL of you who are, or have been horror/terror film buffs; a semi-cult classic you won't want to miss, or that you'll want to REDUX! If not in the above group...MAYBE NOT!

In either case...ENJOY! / DISFRUTELA!

Any comments, questions or observations, in English o en Español, are most welcome!

I saw "Phantasm II" before watching any of the other Phantasm movies, and despite its shortcomings, it converted me into a fan of the series. While it has an effective atmosphere and an interesting array of characters, the plot certainly could have been more carefully written. There is one part where Mike risks his life handling a very dangerous flying sphere and uses it as a key to open some weird door, but the movie fails to show the purpose of opening that door. Sure, it shows you what lies behind the door, but that's it! Mike and his friends don't really do anything in there! Also, the Tall Man goes through the trouble of luring Liz into a trap, but he just throws her against a wall once he catches her. If Liz was such a threat to his evil plans (as the plot asserts), then wouldn't the Tall Man want to make sure she's dead? Still, when you have a couple psychics, an ex-ice cream vendor, a mysterious hitchhiker, an army of dwarves, flying spheres and a rather omnipotent--and scary-looking--old guy called the Tall Man rolled into one picture, the movie promises to be interesting, and it delivers for the most part.

Compared to the other Phantasm movies, I liked "Phantasm II" better than "Phantasm III" and "Phantasm: Oblivion," but it's not quite as good as the original Phantasm.

It's been many years since the events of the first film, and the now grown Mike (James Le Gros) reunites with old friend Reggie (Reggie Bannister) to wage war against the otherworldly Tall Man (Angus Scrimm) and his plot to harvest the dead for nefarious purposes. Mike is also aided by psychic girl Liz (Paula Irvine), with whom he has a mental connection.

In the 9 years between the first and this sequel, Phantasm had developed quite a cult following, and with the horror market booming, Universal gave director Coscarelli a much larger budget to work with. The result is an entertaining, if derivative, continuation. The narrative is much more linear but no less outlandish, as the Tall Man and his minions lay waste to entire towns. This being an 80's film, stuff has to blow up real good, with several giant fireballs exploding into the air, as well as a fetishistic weaponry montage. There's also some gratuitous nudity on display, and inventively gory effects from Greg Nicotero and Robert Kurtzman, among others. Coscarelli had obviously watched Sam Raimi's Evil Dead films a few times, as this lifts some camera shots from those, as well as emulating their horror-meets-black-comedy tone. Still, as far horror sequels go, this is one of the better ones, in my opinion, and it has developed its own cult following, as well as influencing future efforts from others (Eric Kripke, the creator of the long-running TV series Supernatural, borrowed a few things from this.