Filmmaker Parker Finn’s grinning supernatural entity returned for another round of gruesome encounters within the psychological horror film franchise’s sequel Smile 2: Collector’s SteelBook Edition (Paramount Pictures Home Entertainment, rated R, 2.39:1 aspect ratio, 110 minutes, $65.99).
Now available in the 4K disc format, the story takes place six days after the first film’s conclusion and an infected Rose Cotter’s death. A now cursed Joel (Rose’s ex-boyfriend and police officer) tries to pass his new bad luck onto drug dealers with fatal results.
Shift to pop singer Skye Riley (Naomi Scott) where the tale really unfolds after her dealing with a series of tragedies including surviving an auto accident that killed her boyfriend (Ray Nicholson), an event that breaks her physically and emotionally.
Her recovery and return to the limelight are stalled when she watches a friend (and her current drug dealer) beating himself to death while wearing a diabolical smile on his face.
Skye begins hallucinating and committing acts of violence, seeing friends and dead loved ones with devious smiles until she begins to fall apart in public, much to the anger of her mother-manager Elizabeth (Rosemarie DeWitt).
A stranger convinces Skye to meet and explains that she is possessed by an evil parasitic entity and her only chance of survival is tricking it into believing she is dead, so it leaves her body and then not allow it to enter another host.
That complicated plan may not go well for Skye as she may be far past salvation, thanks to her new, internal friend.
“Smile 2” offers plenty for the horror fan to love and a slightly disappointing ending should lead to another sequel, but I’m sick of that grinning creature always winning.
4K in action: Well, despite the gorgeous-looking transfer of the movie, my stomach would have really appreciated not seeing “Smile 2” in the ultra-high definition format due to a selection of extremely gory and violent scenes.
Viewer beware when watching a human rip their jaw off with a crowbar, the taking of glass shards out of a bleeding foot, the plunging of a mirror shard into a blood-spurting neck and a mouth being torn apart by a skinless monster.
In addition, Skye’s music video scenes and performance costume are colorfully vivid and crisp, taking advantage of the 2160p and dynamic range enhancements.
Best extras: Fans will first appreciate a solo optional commentary track with a slightly exhausted-sounding director who is more than willing to dive into his “Smile” universe nearly nonstop.
He explains his motivations for the sequel, the mythology of the “Smile” entity’s curse, an appreciation for the cast, working with Ms. Scott, the locations, the practical effects used in the gory scenes, costuming and his influences including horror manga art.
Next, seven featurettes (averaging roughly five minutes each) cover the origins of the “Smile” franchise, take a deeper look at the Skye Riley character, explore the creation of pop songs and choreography for Skye, and explain the bridging of the first and second films together focused on the saga of Joel.
The best, and last three segments, cover the often gruesome special and practical effects tied to a human beating himself in the face with a weight, the fatal car crash and the emergence of the “Smile” monster from inside of Skye.
As far as the slick packaging, the steel case will induce nightmares. The stark white and lined exterior offers a front cover with a slatted, black-and-white headshot of a grinning Mr. Nicholson (the son of Jack Nicholson) delivering his best impression of the crazed Jack Torrance from “The Shining.”
The back offers the warning “It’s the last thing you’ll see” scrawled and splattered in blood.
The interior is not as memorable with a spread of blood that’s shaped like a smile in front of an all-black background.
• Joseph Szadkowski can be reached at jszadkowski@washingtontimes.com.
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