Parkin Finn takes his clever premise from Smile (2022) and elevates it to the next level in this sequel, supported by nuanced characterization and a standout central performance, resulting in a film that outperforms the original.
Smile 2 picks up immediately after the first film’s events and follows Skye Riley (Naomi Scott), a global pop sensation who eventually ends up getting the curse. Skye, who is supervised and managed by her mother, Elizabeth (Rosemarie DeWitt), is gearing up for her comeback tour after a year of struggling with substance abuse and a car accident that killed her boyfriend, Paul Hudson (Ray Nicholson). After catching the curse, which feeds on people’s trauma and torments them physically and mentally before driving them insane and forcing them to commit suicide, she begins to experience strange and inexplicable events that blur the line between reality and fiction. As a result of all the horrible hallucinations and experiences, Skye decides to take control and defeat the demon before her life spirals out of control.
The film begins six days after the events of the first film, with a brilliantly directed opening sequence in which Joel attempts to remove the curse from himself and, as a result, enters the home of two criminal brothers, hoping to kill one and pass the curse on to the other. However, his plan fails, and he accidentally kills both of them, with Lewis (Lukas Gage), the drug dealer (who eventually passes the curse on to Skye), witnessing the entire event. As a result, Joel tries to get away but runs into the dead brothers’ colleagues outside the house, forcing him to flee through a window. The scene concludes with a stunning, continuous shot of Joel leaping out of the window and running toward the camera before he is fatally struck by a car. The entire sequence is meticulously planned and executed, with Steadicam camera movements that perfectly capture the chaos and frenzy of the situation.
After the curse falls on Skye, the film becomes about her descent into madness, which the director handles brilliantly without losing momentum in the screenplay. At first, her hallucinations are pretty evident and noticeable, but as the film progresses, they become more subtle, and the audience, like Skye, is unsure whether what we see is real or not. The makers do an excellent job of blurring the line between reality and imagination, which is critical to the overall success of the “Descent-into-madness” angle. As a result, a few twists emerge, particularly near the end, that are both unpredictable and genuinely surprising.
The well-developed central character, whose perspective we follow throughout the film, majorly contributes to the film’s success. Skye is a pop star with a turbulent life. She is a recovering drug addict, which resulted in the death of her boyfriend, Paul Hudson. She also had a falling out with her best friend, Gemma (Dylan Gelula), for which she is primarily to blame. Furthermore, she shows little to no regard for her mother, who gave up her life to support her daughter’s career. All the teenage-related problems, including self-hatred, drug addiction, isolation, and miscommunication, are found in Skye’s character. And making her character a pop star who is constantly in the spotlight perfectly highlights these characteristics.
Naomi Scott gives a phenomenal performance as Skye, allowing us to get inside her head and understand her state of mind fully. Her performance immerses you in her messed-up world and takes you along for a ride, even though the road ahead is paved with darkness, bumps, and uncertainty. Her superb acting skills are on full display in one of the film’s best scenes, which takes place at the charity event, where she goes on a tirade about how her thoughts are filled with chaos and noise and how her belief that her problems would be solved and her life would be peaceful after she achieves success is a foolish dream. As far as horror films go, it is one of the year’s best performances.
While Smile 2 contains some jump scares—most effective and some not—Finn does not rely solely on them, as solid characterization and fantastic central performance, combined with the evolving story, elevate this film to one of the year’s best horror films. The film ends on a high note, leaving you wanting more and making you eager for the third installment.
Smile 2 movie links: Wikipedia, Letterboxd
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