Sinister 2

SINISTER 2 is an unwanted sequel that carries on the below-par outcome of the first film. As I recall it, the first half of the original SINISTER was an exemplary little thriller, about a guy uncovering the antics of a historical serial killer and the creepy home movies he left behind. Then it all went supernatural and turned into a dumb INSIDIOUS clone.

Unfortunately for the viewer, SINISTER 2 carries on in this same supernatural category, although for some odd reason the filmmakers seem to be more inspired by CHILDREN OF THE CORN here than the original movie. It's unfortunate that nobody in Hollywood tries to be truly creative these days instead of copying what has come previously.

Anyway, this is a typical ghostly B-flick little different from a hundred others. The film is saddled with annoying kid characters for the leads, while the adults fail to act or do much. The sense of dread from the first half of SINISTER, with the creepy music and home movies, is gone here. There are still home movies but they lack the novelty shock value and have been too planned out. SINISTER 2 is a dud, and let's hope they don't bother with a third.

Being a huge fan of the first Sinister, I was beyond excited for this movie. After seeing the trailer, it looked like they were going to go over the top with this one and make it intense. I really wanted that to happen. I really wanted this to be even better than the first.

I didn't get what I wanted.

This is my first review, so I'll keep it short. Everything that I was hoping this film would have, wasn't there. Not really a spoiler, but I felt like it tried to be more of a family drama movie with some supernatural stuff going on in the background. There were non-genuine jump-scares and the acting was less than average. Even with the glaringly bad plot, I sat there trying to look at some positives. The positives are that some scares got me. I'm jumpy even when I know jump-scares are coming, so they got me on that. But when the movie ended, I couldn't help but reflect on how bad the overall story was and how stupid some of the scares were. I won't spoil any of them, but let's just say that you'll probably be wondering how the scares were "genuine" when you really put it into perspective.

I give this movie a 5/10. Mostly because I just really, really wanted to like it. I kept searching for any redeeming qualities throughout the movie and they are slim to none. I recommend watching if you're bored one night and you've seen just about all the horror movies out there. It'll pass the time, but it's just a plain jump-scare fest with a nonsensical story. Don't go in having high expectations like I did.

EDIT: I gave this movie a 5/10 because I was in denial. This movie not good. 1/10.

Sinister had a good premise and twist that separated it from ordinary horror flick. This also means it was relying on the mystery aspect that was revealed at the end. The sequel loses the luxury of having the paranormal riddle. Instead of completely rehearsing the plot it utilizes different perspective and personalities, then combines it with dreadful bits to make a terrifying spectacle.

Resuming the events from previous movie, now Ex-Deputy (James Ransone) is trying to sever the haunting circle by destroying the houses it affected. Unfortunately, there's a new family of mother (Shannyn Sossamon) and two sons who occupies one particular house. They are in danger of repeating the same terrible fate as previous victims, especially the children.

James Ransone is a much different lead than Ethan Hawke was, he's more timid and less intense, but he looks very decent which should endear audience to his valiant effort. There's good chemistry with Shannyn Sossamon who is a great cast for the mother role, just like in TV series Wayward Pines. The two are not the typical family or paranormal whiz of recent horror movies, and this gives the characters a sense of urgency.

There are bits of usual investigation involved, but the main draw is the perverted twist on the children and the eerie clips they made. These short clips are like snuff movies from children's point of view and presented with old cryptic filter. It may seem a bit similar to that of first film, but they are dauntingly effective and much more diverse.

The children themselves don't look menacing and often seem like superficial apparitions. Unlike the original movie which displayed them sparsely, their appearance here is overexposed. It may have worked if viewers were introduced more to the children or the child abuse issue was treated with more polished, although unfortunately there's not much depth on the youngling characters.

For most parts the scare looks average, coupling a few jump scares and taking hints from creepypastas. It loses the steam towards latter end since it becomes a tad predictable and the ghostly kids are hardly frightening, however the characters are adequately presentable which should keep audience invested throughout the unworldly predicament.

The first SINISTER was a fairly scary & very atmospheric Horror film but this sequel definitely wasn't scary in the slightest because it felt like a Children of the Corn flick & a family drama mixed together.

James Ransone is very good again as the timid & scared Duputy from the first film & James is a very interesting actor & is a very good actor & i liked him more than Ethan Hawke in the first film. James was excellent in the brilliant "IT: Chapter 2" & is genuinely a good actor who i like to see. Ransone definitely is the best thing about this sequel. His Deputy is a funny character with a good heart & is now a private investigator working on the case of the Evil Supernatural Deaths after the horrific murders of the Oswalds family.

The Deputy meets a scared mother with her two weird sons that are on the run & hiding out in a big old farm house next to an abandoned church that was the site for a families murder. The story is fine really & the cast is decent with the super sexy Shannyn Sossamon as the boys weary mum with her own problems going with her abusive ex-husband & now Supernatural goings on at her farm house. The weird skinny young boys are the target of a bunch of evil ghost kids that wanna persuade them to kill their family but one boy is good & one is bad.

This does feel very routine for a Supernatural flick & nothing stands out as scary, unique or even creepy at all. In fact SINISTER 2 felt like a Goosebumps episode or something similar. The fact you see the ghostly kids constantly & the boys sit talking to them regularly that there is zero threat at all & no tension or fear for the audience but it's still a fun & entertaining supernatural film. Of course Sinister 2 was totally inspired by Stephen Kings Children of the Corn & that's fine. I did like the rural setting with the big old farm house & the corn fields.

The film is watchable & fun but that's completely down to James Ransone keeping it all interesting & fun because he's a good actor & Deputy is a good character full of awkward charm.

The first Sinister was definitely more creepy & atmospheric but i will say that Sinister 2 is much more fun & i love that Duputy character.

Sinister is one of my favorite horror films from the past few years, so when the reviews for this sequel started coming out, I was really disappointed. I mean, it has a 13% on Rotten Tomatoes at the time that I'm writing this. But after going into the movie with an open mind, I actually thought it was surprisingly solid, a whole lot better than the reviews would have you believe.

When Sinister 2 was originally announced, I was pretty skeptical. The original focused so heavily on a mystery that was solved by the end, so how do you make another one when we already know what's going on? C. Robert Cargill and Scott Derrickson pull that off by offering something totally different that still feels familiar. We follow the madness from a child's perspective this time, and that allows us to explore the rules of this universe in a really interesting way. In the first one we're begging for the Oswalt family to leave the house, but this time, we're begging for the family to stay in it. The formula is flipped around a bit, and while still being structured around a collection of film reels, Sinister 2 feels different enough to justify its existence.

It's also quite creepy just as the original movie was, although the atmosphere isn't as bleak and relentless this time. A whole lot of scenes take place during the day and just consist of a lot of dialogue, and it was definitely missing the Scott Derrickson touch in some places. Sinister 2 also relies on jump scares a bit more than its predecessor did, and in fact nearly every single scare in the movie is accompanied by a loud noise. They all worked on me, so I didn't mind too much, but I wish I could say the scares in this one were as inventive as they were the last time.

But overall, Sinister 2 does a really solid job of building on the first one. The plot is far more interesting than I expected, James Ransone and Shannyn Sossamon are both great, and the film reels themselves are all pretty fantastic (except for one that goes a bit over the top and just looks silly, but I won't spoil it). Best of all, while Mr. Boogie gets more screen time here, I never felt the added exposure made him any less terrifying, and luckily the franchise hasn't gone the Halloween route of explaining too much.

No, it's not as good as the original, but if you enjoyed that movie as much as I did, you should have a good time with Sinister 2.