Black Phone 2

by Mike McGranaghan

Black Phone 2 is a triumph of horror sequel-making. Director Scott Derrickson and co-writer C. Robert Cargill had the difficult task of following up their creepy 2022 original, whose ending didn’t necessarily seem fitted for a second installment. What they’ve done is take the most chilling parts of the premise, then put those parts inside a new context that allows them to become deeper while maintaining their terrifying quality. This is a very different film than The Black Phone was, but it’s every bit as nerve-rattling.

The now teenaged Finney (Mason Thames) is struggling to cope with the trauma caused by his former captor, the Grabber (Ethan Hawke). He still hears telephones ringing, a sign that the spirits of murdered children are trying to reach him for help. Finney ignores them. Sister Gwen (Madeleine McGraw) does not. She begins having dreams about Alpine Lake, a Christian winter youth camp where three young boys once went missing, never to be found. The siblings decide to investigate, so they get jobs as counselors-in-training, under the guidance of camp owner Mando (Demián Bichir). The Grabber is there, too, determined to exact vengeance upon Finn.

Gwen is really the key character this time around, as her dreams drive the plot. Derrickson makes the effective choice to present them as though shot on Super 8mm film, thereby giving them an eerie, grainy, Skinamarink-type vibe. Whenever Black Phone 2 shifts from standard cinematography into this stylized kind, it’s like the theme music from Jaws; you know something scary is coming. Each new dream presents an additional piece of the puzzle regarding the missing boys, along with a chance for the Grabber to slip in to torment her. One of the best scenes finds him throwing her body around the camp’s kitchen in an effort to get her inside the flaming oven.

The story flavors its core premise with echoes of horror classics, including A Nightmare on Elm Street (the Grabber invading Gwen’s sleep), John Carpenter’s The Thing (the snowy, isolated location), and Friday the 13th (a killer in a camp). Evoking those films works on us subconsciously, creating an almost Pavlovian response. You find yourself growing tense before anything even happens. Becoming unsettled early makes the many shocking developments hit even harder. Derrickson doesn’t hold back on mining the terror of child abduction, nor on showing some gnarly violence.

Black Phone 2 has a core theme of healing, which is emphasized by the strong performances. McGraw is a genuine standout, meaningfully portraying the intense emotions that drive Gwen through this perilous situation. Her character is searching for answers to the boys’ disappearances, but also to the tragic fate of her mother. The actress proves to be the heart of the movie, ensuring viewers have a reason to care amid the jumps and jolts. Mason Thames is again good as the traumatized Finney, showing his initial - and totally understandable - reluctance to re-enter the Grabber’s realm. Hawke’s role is perhaps a little smaller this time around. Nonetheless, he makes the villain absolutely nightmarish in his evil.

Jump scares are abundant, and there are several action-heavy sequences that get your pulse racing. Derrickson similarly establishes a tone of dread that runs throughout, never allowing you to relax. Black Phone 2 forges its own path visually and tonally without sacrificing the character-based elements that made its predecessor a twisted treat. Prepare to have your stomach tied in a knot for two hours.

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