The sanity of pop star Skye Riley seems to slip through her fingers after witnessing the suicide of an acquaintance. 

Ever since that horrible event, Skye starts to see several persons showing a scary wicked smile approaching her with dark intentions only to disappear, making her question her ability to distinguish what is real and what is not. Unbeknownst to her, she has become the new target of a supernatural entity that will torment her until she loses her mind and perishes.

Writer/director of “Smile 2” brings the next chapter in this universe that started with the short film “Laura Hasn’t Slept” and evolved to the full feature “Smile” back in 2022.

After the events at the conclusion of the first film, we see Joel, a policeman now infected with the curse of the Smile Entity, breaking into the house of some drug dealers with intentions of dying and passing the curse to them. However, some unforeseen details spoils the plan, and someone else ends up with the curse.

Some time later and due some very interesting circumstances, pop star Skye Riley ends up meeting with Lewis, a friend that can get her the pain medication that she is unable to get, and who turns out is the one that inherited Joel’s curse. This will be the beginning of Skye’s descent to hell.

I was not a big fan of “Smile”, but I enjoyed a majority of the movie and I thought the concept of the Smile Entity was very cool. I also wanted to see more of that creature and the lore that could be part of it. This new entry for me was even better than the original, but still felt a little bit too long and that it takes too long to get to the meat of the story, which I felt was unnecessary since we are watching a SEQUEL.

Sure, some details were left ambiguous in the previous film, but the audience knows most of the details by now and there was no need to go through all the steps of the curse again, even if the main character is unaware of why she is going through this ordeal. I think the film is very good and solid, but it could have been a lot better if it did not spend so much time following Skye through her day as an artist, the dance routines and all that. 

To be fair, it was refreshing that we did not see Skye spending 30 minutes or more looking for answers through newspaper clippings, books or interviews. She is alone, she cannot ask for help because she knows that people will not only think that she is losing her mind, but also that she is using drugs again, and will throw her career away again. This made her fall into madness even more scary. 

I loved the last part of the film, which of course I won’t go into details in order to avoid spoilers, but it will leave you wondering what exactly happened during the movie. I think this gives the film a lot of value for a second or third viewing, but at the same time, it might not matter. More details on that later.  

I know that my previous statement might seem to not make sense, but it will once you see the film. 

And I really recommend you to watch “Smile 2”, even if, like me, you were not a huge fan of the first one. 

Another aspect where this new movie surpasses its predecessor, is that there are a lot less annoying jump scares.Sure, there are several, but also there are several GREAT scares that were done very well, and makes this film worth watching… Although I still say it did not need to be 2 hours long.

The acting was good, and the special effects were great, especially in the last part. 

But here I have another issue:

While I think the ending itself was good, it was very predictable, and we have seen it several times lately in what I call the “Viral Ghost” sub-genre. If you saw “Rings”(2017) and more recently “Truth Or Dare” (2018), you can see where “Smile 2” is going.

Also I need more information about how the curse is supposed to be passed on. If am correct, you need to witness A SUICIDE, not a REGULAR death (even if it was accidental). If this is correct, the whole film should not even exist. (And am I not talking about the last part of the film, mind you)

I am sure we will get more information on the lore in the next sequel (and let’s not kid ourselves… THERE WILL BE ANOTHER). I am especially interested to see if the next one will move forward the story or if it will take the PREQUEL route as several more recent horror films tend to do. 

Overall I was entertained, I would watch it a third time, and I will pay my ticket for the next one. 

Smile 2 was written and directed by Parker Finn .The cast includes Naomi Scott, Rosemarie DeWitt, Lukas Gage, Miles Gutierrez-Riley, Peter Jacobson, Ray Nicholson, Dylan Gelula, Raúl Castillo and Kyle Gallner.

If you happen to now Spanish and enjoy podcast, I would appreciate if you check my podcast «Filme, Tinta Y Sangre» where I did a quick review.