Sinister 2 (2015)

Sinister 2: Directed by Ciarán Foy. With James Ransone, Shannyn Sossamon, Robert Daniel Sloan, Dartanian Sloan. A young mother and her twin sons move into a rural house that’s marked for death.

“Sinister 2 isnu0026#39;t as bad as some make it out to be. Itu0026#39;s not a good movie either. Like most sequels, it struggles with the novelty gone and never manages to succeed in new ways or areas. It is a mediocre and forgettable film, just as the name of itu0026#39;s main character.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eI very much enjoyed the first movie. While itu0026#39;s not without its faults – I actually donu0026#39;t think it was that scary with too heavy reliance and textbook-use of u0026quot;creepyu0026quot; sounds and the children were too cliché for my taste; it was a very absorbing movie, well directed with excellent music, a good sense for mystery, mood, pace, a solid twist and awesome ending. It cleverly managed to outbalance itu0026#39;s shortcomings.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eSinister 2 starts off promising enough – at first it looks and feels just as it is supposed to, the snuff-flicks are still here with their grainy look and new, obscure kills complimented by creepy music. We find out what has happened after the first movie and continue the investigations surrounding the murder cases involving mysterious events, now with a new family (with twins – which couldu0026#39;ve provided an interesting twist to the story) and more involvement of the deputy from the prequel which at this point pretty much has inherited the knowledge of the previous main character. Everything you could possibly want in a sequel to Sinister is here, but sadly it is meaningless as they never manage to do something as interesting or memorable with it.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThe death-flicks are useless this time as they donu0026#39;t provide anything to resolve the puzzle or any kind of new information. Even worse: the pace of them is pretty much straight to the point giving them a very rushed, uninspired and uninvolved feeling – not enough build-up and no intensity. As opposed to some in the first movie, none of them made me wonder or left me amazed how they were filmed. Instead some of them involve CGI rats and crocodiles – donu0026#39;t even ask. Even the characters argue to watch them all through in one sitting almost as if just to be done with.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThe movie also suffers from too much exposition provided by the ghost children. The family, the deputy and Bughuul I found to be decent, but also problematic. While the deputy continues to be the same, likable character, youu0026#39;ll never fear for him because he seems to be too safe from all of it. The character of the mother is another one we should fear for, but oddly enough she is almost entirely absent in any of the horror events; her struggle is only on the family-issue side which doesnu0026#39;t quite sit right with this kind of movie and is more or less a subplot which lacks emotional depth, partially due to the father being so over the top. There is just overall little sense of danger in this movie which is its biggest fault.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eTo itu0026#39;s credit it does try to provide new things while being true to the first movie. It has itu0026#39;s moments where it shows potential and ideas, but never quite manages to expand on it in suspenseful and creative ways. It does however bother to explain some things surrounding the history and what ifu0026#39;s, just about in the right amount without ruining too much, which is always nice. It also has its fair share of plot holes and faulty logic, just like the previous one did (some are even still the same), but I found it to be forgivable as itu0026#39;s not something I should be too concerned about with a movie involving supernatural events.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eItu0026#39;s not exactly trash. I wasnu0026#39;t really bored watching it, but it also didnu0026#39;t provide enough suspense either, which is something it definitely should have. With a third Sinister movie seemingly sure to be made itu0026#39;ll be interesting to see where he series is being headed and if itu0026#39;ll reach cult status as any other popular horror franchise. The first one has potential to become a classic, this one is a much weaker entry which makes me wonder how they will handle the next one. Sinister 2 had potential and could have used more polish in almost every aspect. Hopefully the makers will learn from it and allow them more time to come up with good material.”