Vampire... vous avez dit vampire ? II

After three years of therapy Charley Brewster, now a college student, is convinced that Jerry Dandridge was a serial killer posing as a vampire. But when Regine, a mysterious actress and her entourage move into Peter Vincent's apartment block, the nightmare starts again - and this time it's personal!

Fright Night is my favourite 80's horror film, which blended vampires, humour, thrills and special effects with great ease- of course, the main attraction were Roddy McDowell, Williams Ragsdale and Sarandon, and only two return in this sequel, and their chemistry and interaction is on fire - Julie Carmen plays the sister of the vampire in the first instalment and she looks sinister enough.

How did this sequel measure? When I first saw it years ago, I was disappointed, finding it uneven with the first half really good but the rest quite flat. Yes, it had great special effects, a seductive but sinister lead vampire, a memorable sequence of a vampire in skates, and good climax, but it didn't impress me on the whole. I found it dragged in the second half and was slower paced.

Now? With a second viewing my opinion has changed a bit. It's quite watchable, entertaining with a good plot and some good scary atmosphere, however I still think it lacks the energy and humour of the first film. But then that's hard to achieve. Fright Night 2 stands on its own merit and a worthy sequel.

Follow up to the 1985 horror hit isn't quite as good as the original, but is an amusing enough sequel.

Charley Brewster is now in college, when Dandridge's sister rolls into town with her entourage.

Fright Night Part 2 benefits from a well written story that has some of the spirit of the original film and plenty nicely gruesome special FX. Sure, it's not as charismatically done as the first movie, but it's a sequel with big shoes to fill! Director Tommy Lee Wallace does pretty well with giving the movie some style and solid action. The sequel also has a share of dark humor. Brad Fiedel's beautiful rock score is used once again and Deborah Holland does a great cover on the song 'Come to Me'.

Roddy McDowall and William Ragsdale both make welcomed returns as their original characters and come off as the best of the cast. Julie Carmen does make a fairly decent vamp villain though, while Jon Gries, Brian Thompson, and Russell Clark make for some good freak geeks.

Again, it's not the original, but as sequels go it certainly isn't bad either!

*** out of ****

Three years after killing the vampire in the original, Charlie has started to believe it was all his imagination and starts to forget that vampires truly exist - until four strangers lead by Regina, a noted actress, arrives at Peter Vincent's house and starts to have an unhealthy interest in Charlie, Peter and Charlie's new girlfriend Alex. It becomes clear that Regina is Jerry's (the vampire in the original film) sister and she is determined to get revenge on the friends and plans to turn Charlie into a vampire - so that he can face his punishment for all eternity. Though not as good as the original, I still enjoyed this film. The cast of the first returns and the script is still sprinkled with plenty of tongue-in-cheek humor, but it's not as fun as the first was. it was just missing that special "Umph". The strongest aspect of this film is the various special effects incarnations, which look great. These range from a man's face turning translucent and melting to stop-motion bat-like monsters. The special effects in this film look much better than in the first and are delivered in moderation (The ending notwithstanding) so they are effectively used and not their just to dazzle us. Fairly gory at times, and the effects-packed finale is certainly fun to watch. Julie Carmen is also really good as the vampiress. Pretty enjoyable sequel, rent it but don't buy it before you see it.

There are so few sequels that do work, and have something a bit more to say from the original. Fright Night 2 is one of those. It has more to say on the idea of the supernatural in real-life (Charlie's inability to deal with the events of the original movie, Vincent's trying to avoid the whole thing), and gives us a decent follow-up to the original with Dandridge's sister on a revenge kick. There are more nods to Stoker and the original vampire mythology (the reference to wild roses, for instance), and the new vampire's sidekickers are equally as weird as Jonathan Stark's Billy Cole in the original. See it if you can: it doesn't seem to be a movie that shows up very often.

McDowall, Ragsdale and company join again for more vampire fun. Thanks Mr. Tom Holland for creating these movies.

The sequel to one of the most important vampire movies of the past 20 years delivers expectations by entertaining and making the audience laugh. The charm of the original is present but just in half. We still enjoy the Roddy McDowall - William Ragsdale duo now in better shape. Although the Jerry Dandridge character is not present, it's present through all the movie because he's mentioned and remembered.

Four years have passed since the frightening events that led to the death of 10,000 year old vampire Jerry Dandridge. Charlie Brewster has a hot new girlfriend, Alex and now he attends college and isn't a geek anymore. Things seem to be perfect for him. Through therapy, Charlie tries to forget what happened and tells to himself that everything came out from his mind. Nothing really existed to him. Peter Vincent still hosts "Fright Night" and his life is also good.

Harmony abruptly breaks when Charlie believes in vampires again. He still has vampire related nightmares, his mind plays tricks on him and one of a sudden, the events of the original "Fright Night" happen again. Regine Dandridge (yes, Jerry's sister) finds Charlie and Peter Vincent and swears to take revenge for her brother's death. This time the vampires are more and will do everything possible to torture Charlie for eternity and kill Peter Vincent. Once again the Brewster-Vincent duo teams against the blood sucking gang in a fierce battle that will make you want more of Fright Night!

I truly LOVE the original "Fright Night" and to me, none sequel or vampire flick will match it's coolness. "Fright Night part II" is the vampire movie that I was looking for. The movie is filled with horror, action, cool f/x, great acting, sensuality, gore, black humor, and a good soundtrack. What else could you ask for in a horror movie from the 80's?! Part II does the things correctly and almost tops the original.

ACTING. Roddy McDowall and William Ragsdale are my favorite duo in horror movies. Both actors are at their best in this sequel. Seems that both enjoyed acting together and fighting vampires. McDowall gives a strong performance based on his maturity and fine humor. He's the man! No one like him can challenge vampires. Ragsdale improves his performance from the original and gives a great performance. Julie Carmen (Regine) could fill the great Chris Sarandon's shoes in the role of the lead vampire. Her performance totally hypnotized me and I enjoyed it. Vampires were never this seductive and hot. I praise her for wearing tight and short outfits. She's super hot and gives a great performance. She was mean she it was necessary, she was sensual every time. Carmen is a hot women and my favorite vampire female character. Tracy Lin (Alex) gives another strong and believable performance as Charlie's (lucky bastard) radiant new girlfriend. She was very cute and hot. She knew how to display a strong woman that looked very tender. I love this woman. Is it me or she looks a lot like Anna Chmulsky (from "My Girl" fame)? What a beautiful woman. Yum. The other supporting cast members are very good. Brian Thompson (Bozworth deserves special mention. The other vampire gang members were perfect! Cool designs. The tranvestie roller skater vampire is insane! A creepy character. The werewolf worked perfectly as the Evil Ed of the movie. Still we miss a lot Evil Ed. I enjoyed Ernie Sabella's performance as Dr. Harrison. He was insane! Also, the patient in the mental asylum that helps Peter Vincent to escape is groovy. I truly enjoyed his performance a la Jay and Silent Bob. A great cast that worked perfectly for a horror comedy.

DIRECTION. Tommy Lee Wallace did a wonderful job. He sets a creepy atmosphere getting hand from action and comedy. There are some impressive camera angels that make the movie look classy. For example the scene where Peter Vincent uses the broken mirror against Regine in the final battle looks great! A difficult scene that went perfect. "Fright Night II" looks impressive for being a horror movie. Obviously the budget here is huge.

F/X, CINEMATOGRAPHY, SOUNDTRACK. The f/x improved the original's. Visually stunning effects again. I loved the tranvestie vampire's death and the maggots coming out from Bozworth's stomach. Candy for the eye! Thanks. The cinematography is great. Part II is visually stunning also. Metal Pop tunes, vampiresque melodies, organs, and rock make a great soundtrack. Not as good as the original's but still works.

FRIGHT NIGHT PART II has many things to bite: -Regine telling Charlie and Peter "welcome to Fright Night!". A scene that sent chills to my bones! A new classic moment for me. -Regine threatening Peter Vincent and then tells him that Charlie's punishment will be worse. -Bozworth's explicit death. -The scene where a looney helps Peter escape from the mental asylum. A hell of a funny scene! -The final battle between Charlie, Peter and Regine. I loved the way Peter used the broken mirror. The scene is very memorable because it's the last time that the team win a battle against vampires. Everybody misses Roddy McDowall a lot... -Dr. Harris's death. -The scene where the skate roller tranvestie vamp. comes at high speed against Charlie. A truly creepy moment with the 80's craziness. The clothing, the hair, the music, the scary looks. I love it.

Take my word, "Fright Night Part II" is a great horror comedy movie. Not as great as the original but still delivers and overpasses expectations. This is one of the best sequels ever to a horror movie. The Fright Night movies will always work. Time seems to make no harm to them.

8.0/10 Fun, gory, entertaining, well directed and acted. Part II is a sequel to bite!