La ligne du diable II

976-EVIL II (1991)

* 1/2 (out of 4)

This direct-to-video sequel picks up shortly after the original film as the Dean of a local school has been arrested for murder. It turns out that he got involved in the notorious hotline and soon he was possessed and doing the Devil's work. Before long a woman (Debbie James) is trying to destroy him and the evil powers that he possesses.

I wasn't much of a fan of the original movie and this sequel is certainly far from being "good" itself but at the same time there's no question that it makes for a more entertaining movie. If you're familiar with the work of Jim Wynorski then you already know that he's a master at making low-budget movies and throwing enough in them to make them worth sitting through.

976-EVIL II has a storyline that is pretty much a copy of the original, although this one here adds an even more comic spin to it. The highlight of the film are its use of the public domain films NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD and IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE. Clips from both of those films are shown here and then we get some funny jokes about them and a re-enactment, which is downright funny and I must say it was quite creative.

I'd also argue that Wynorski knows what the people renting this film would have wanted and that's nudity and gore. It takes one-minute for us to reach our first nude sequence and about four more for the first gore scene. The original film seemed to have director Robert Englund not knowing what horror fans would want but that's not the case here. I thought James was fun in her role and I thought Rene Assa was a real benefit as well.

With all of that said, the film is still pretty hard to sit through as there's plenty of action and exploitation but none of the characters are overly interesting and I'd argue that there's really nothing here that keeps you glued into the story. If you're a fan of these types of "B" movies then you might want to check it out but others should probably stay clear.

I have to say this movie surprised me in that it was very well produced and directed. This movie is much better than the original 976-evil movie, the acting is better, the script is better and the characters are more believeable. Now let me talk a little bit about the main character in the movie, her name is Debbie James and wow what a hottie! She is a former Miss Teen USA and a former Miss USA finalist. She is also a former Miss Colorado. Her acting isn't bad either in this movie and she is the main character. I wish Debbie james would appear in more movies (she only has had minor roles in a few subsequent movies) but at least we get to see her as the main character in this interesting movie, which is certainly worth renting and even buying. I give this movie 8 out of 10 stars!

The fiendish mastermind behind the 976-Evil number is at it again, and this time he's got a demented college dean, Mr. Grubeck (Rene Assa) doing his bidding. Grubeck is arrested after a witness is able to pinpoint him as a killer, but no jail is going to keep Grubeck from doing his homicidal duties. You see, he's now given the power of astral projection. So his spirit can be out and about murdering people while his body catches some z's in his prison cell. But opposing him is Spike (Pat O'Bryan), who fans of the first film know has been through all this before. Spike hooks up with Robin (Debbie James), a stunning college student, and together they set out to stop Grubeck. Overall, a decent sequel to a decent first film, "976-Evil II" is rough going for a while, but greatly improves once it comes up with its major set piece which ingeniously melds "It's a Wonderful Life" and "Night of the Living Dead". Too bad the rest of the movie isn't that clever. Still, it does deliver one pretty good runaway car sequence, and the climactic action boasts one Hell of an impressive explosion. The makeup effects are fairly effective, although other visual effects are so bad as to be laughable - in a good way, for this viewer. Director Jim Wynorski serves up a generous serving of both cheese and crud in a movie that is reasonably amusing for what it is. O'Bryan manages to keep a straight face while working overtime to project a sense of "cool". Bubbly blonde James, a former Miss Teen USA and Miss Colorado and Miss USA finalist, is appealing and acts her little heart out as the gal who segues from potential victim to heroine. Wynorski works with some of his regulars, such as Paul Coufos, super sexy Monique Gabrielle, and the very funny Ace Mask, and other familiar faces include Rod McCary, Karen Mayo-Chandler, Mindy Seeger, ever hilarious George "Buck" Flower in a somewhat more substantial part than usual, and Brigitte Nielsen in a special guest appearance as the seductive proprietress of a bookstore specializing in the occult. Chuck Cirino's music score is great and there are even some songs credited to the actor Vincent D'Onofrio! A heads up for people who like in jokes: pay attention and you'll see the names Joe Bob Briggs and Roger Corman (Roger "Gorman", actually), who was Wynorski's boss for many years, on a poster. This could be best described as the kind of movie that does have its moments. One has to give Wynorski credit, as he sticks some eye candy with Mayo- Chandler right near the beginning of the movie. The ending is one of those deals where people will either appreciate it or be annoyed by it. At least it's not a predictable one. Six out of 10.

976-Evil 2 (1991) is a far better film than the first movie. The film-makers didn't try to be serious with the subject matter and the players seem to be enjoying themselves. Shot on the cheap, the sequel follows Spike and his attempts to stop the evil behind that darn 976-EVIL. He's still tooling around on his motorcycle looking like a rebel without a clue. But this time around he has one. It's up to him to stop the madness. A little worse for wear (Spike's sporting a five o'clock shadow that comes and goes) but he's all clad in black leather and looking to kick some demonic butt!

Like I said, a very entertaining movie. Unlike the first film the black humor works. The villain in this movie is real creepy and funny as well. The film's direction flows along at a reasonable pace (thanks to the ever reliable Jim Wynorski) and the blood flows. I'm glad they stopped after this one. I probably couldn't take another sequel.

Recommended.

B

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I believe, we did not. The first part of this movie was far not very good (What do you expect of a film directed by Freddy Krueger?). But this is one of the worst horror movies I have ever seen. Rene Assa (Who is this?) gives the worst performance of a college chief, who fell in love with one of his pupils, then he started dialing this number 976-EVIL, and than started performing assorted Omen-like murders. This poor girl (pupil) stands his evil powers with (guess who?) Spike, an annoying biker who participated in the first part too. Special F/X are poor, the acting is horrible, directing by Jim Wynorski (that genius whose mind brought us "Ghoulies IV" a movie which is in no way better). I didn't see any point in the script, it seems to rely solely on cheap special effects and some disgusting dead scenes. This movie sucks!