Quadrilha de Sádicos 2

I'm sure some would say that you'd have a better chance of picking the winning lottery numbers every week than picking out the worst horror sequel of all time. Hell, when a film like "Silent Night, Deadly Night" can spawn no less than four follow-ups, there is obviously a LOT for one to choose from. But those who think that this is truly an impossible task have never seen the "Hills Have Eyes Part II". And boy, I sure envy them because they won't have to go to their graves pondering what else they could've done with their life during the 90 minutes they used up to watch this film. "Hills Have Eyes II" is not even gracious enough to provide one with 90 minutes of bad laughs. It is just plain DEAD! I mean, this must have had the most unenthusiastic film shoot in history. The direction, the script and the acting are so flat that it doesn't look anyone involved in the project gives a damn at all. You'd never think that Wes Craven himself, whose 1977 original was a genuine horror masterpiece, could be responsible for such an utterly lifeless piece of celluloid, but as he's stated many times before, this came at a time when he'd do ANYTHING to scratch out a living in the film biz (though I'd personally have chosen to find work at a sweat shop than have my name attached to something like this). Thankfully, his next project was the hugely successful "Nightmare on Elm Street", which helped the otherwise talented filmmaker go on to bigger things, though ironically, "Hills II" was held back for release until a year afterwards and would probably still be sitting on a shelf somewhere if "Elm Street" were not such a success.

Anyway, there's no sense dwelling on where this sequel goes wrong, because it does so in EVERY department, but there are definitely a great deal of things that stick out. Despite being such a lifeless piece of work, "The Hills Have Eyes Part II" is, and always will be, remembered among horror fans for one reason and one reason only: the dog's flashback. That's right, in the annals of horror movie stupidity, there has never been a moment to top the lunacy of the Carter family dog having a flashback to some of the events he witnessed in the original film! Hell, there are so many damn flashback sequences in this film that it actually makes for a reason to watch it: if one has trouble finding a copy of the original "Hills Have Eyes", they can just rent the sequel since it shows just about every scene from the original anyway. Of course, those who fondly remember the original are gonna be shaking their heads at the absurd contrivances in this sequel. The only returning member of the mutant family this time around is Pluto, who is now living in the desert with "The Reaper", who is supposed to be the brother of Papa Jupiter, the original leader of the clan. Think about this for a second. Remember the chilling scene in the original "Hills" where the old man at the gas station tells the story about his wife giving birth to Jupiter, and how the kid developed into a monster that eventually murdered their daughter? Strange that he makes no mention of Jupiter having a brother. Even stranger is how he says that giving birth to Jupiter almost tore his poor wife apart - yet she still finds the strength to deliver another kid that's even bigger. But not to worry about the plot holes since Craven doesn't give any more regard to his direction or editing either, especially near the end, when one of the major characters just disappears completely from the picture! I'd just love to ramble on endlessly about all the laughable blunders in this film, but I realize that taking the time to complain about it is just another set of minutes that I'll end up wishing I'd spent on better things when I go to my grave.

Wes Craven admitted in an interview that he needed to make some cash fast, would have happily 'directed Godzilla in Paris'. So he made a sequel to one of his well-made and enjoyable films.

However, 'Hills Have Eyes 2' is a letdown. It seems to rely heavily on flashbacks to the previous (superior) film and is really nothing more than a 'Friday the 13th' clone. It even has the same composer as the Jason films (Harry Manfredini) so much of the music in 'Hills 2' could make you think you're watching a 'Friday the 13th' sequel. This whole film is just a waste of time. The characters are so obnoxious you don't give a hoot what happens to them, the 'Papa Jupe's brother' business is glaringly contrived and unlikely and to cut a long story short I have trouble believing that this mess was by the same director who brought us the best of the 'Nightmare on Elm Street' films and 'Shocker'.

The Hills Have Eyes Part II is Wes Craven's less than great follow-up to the brutal original. The first film is damn near terrifying in parts. This one is slightly goofy and unbelievable. The flashbacks are my main problem with the film. Everyone has flashbacks. Every single character from the original has flashbacks, the freakin' dog even has flashbacks. If you're watching The Hills Have Eyes Part II, you almost have to be a fan. I think we're all familiar with the first one. If you're not, then you shouldn't be viewing it. Any reality or spontaneity is also gone. You know who is going to die right away. The cast is decent though. Michael Berryman, Robert Houston, and Janus Blythe all return. Kevin Blair from Friday the 13th Part 7 and Peter Frechette from The Kindred play moto-cros bikers while Nicholas Worth plays the voice of the Reaper. And can anyone tell me where the Reaper was hiding in the first film? If you didn't enjoy the first Hills Have Eyes, you aint gonna like this one.

Note for genre buffs: Kane Hodder is listed as a stuntman.

Since Wes Craven himself wrote and directed this one, I was really expecting more than just another slasher movie. Still, it's pretty good, though. And yes, I'm sure dogs can have flashbacks too (they do have minds after all, don't they?)

A group of bikers, which includes some of the survivors from the original film, embark on a journey by bus to a biker race near the desert of the infamous incidents. However, because of a mistake they are late and decide to take a shortcut through the desert.

So, allegedly Wes Craven disowned this movie, claiming he only made it for the money. Sounds plausible. Unlike "Nightmare on Elm Street", "Hills" was not a film that needed a sequel. (Somehow, we have since ended up with a remake and sequel...) On the plus side, we have horror icon Michael Berryman, and Kevin Spirtas (who is better known to horror fans for "Friday the 13th Part VII"). So, while this is a pretty poor excuse for a horror film, it at least has a few familiar faces.

In 2019, Arrow Video released a special edition Blu-ray. It's a bit light on the features. There is a making-of documentary, but the audio commentary is provided by "The Hysteria Continues." For obvious reasons they could not get Craven to do it, but certainly there could have been some actor(s). Glad to see the special treatment, but this does not make it a better film.