Smile 2, the exceptional sequel to the 2022 Paramount Pictures horror phenomenonSmile, has found love on streaming. Less than a year since the film premiered in theaters and delivered one of the best horror follow-ups in recent memory, users are still spellbound by the sequel. By the time of writing, the film is in the eighth spot onNetflix’s global top 10 list of most popular films. Other titles on the list includeMission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One,The Old Guard 2, and the latest installment of the Netflix documentary film series,Trainwreck: Balloon Boy.
Smile 2tells the story of Skye Riley, a famous pop star who is about to embark on her new world tour. Riley went through a tragedy, and is now trying to leave it all behind while still going through physical recovery. When she contacts her dealer to buy pain medication, it turns out that the young man was involved in an incident where he faced a demonic entity that manifests through smiling victims who harm themselves. The artist gets infected with the curse, and thusbegins her nightmare. Per the Rotten Tomatoes official synopsis of the film:
About to embark on a new world tour, global pop sensation Skye Riley (Naomi Scott) begins experiencing increasingly terrifying and inexplicable events. Overwhelmed by the escalating horrors and the pressures of fame, Skye is forced to face her dark past to regain control of her life before it spirals out of control.
The 5 Gnarliest Moments in Smile 2, Ranked
Smile 2, the follow-up to 2022’s horror phenomenon is gory enough to satisfy horror hounds. These are the gnarliest scenes in the movie.
Written and directed by Parker Finn, also the creator of the first film,Smile 2was released to unexpected acclaim. Considering it was a sequel to a horror movie, not everyone believed it would do so well. On Rotten Tomatoes, it holds a Certified Fresh label and an 86% critics score. The audience score is slightly lower, at 81%. For comparison, the firstSmilesits at 79% and 77% on the critics' and audience scores, respectively.
Although it wasn’t an extremely successful filmlike its predecessor,Smile 2had a good box office performance. It made more than $138 million from a $28 million production budget, and cemented Finn as a horror filmmaker with the ability to make box office hits.
‘Smile 2’ Is a Brilliant Example of a Sequel That Goes Beyond Expectations
What’s great aboutSmile 2is that it never feels like a rehashed piece carefully designed to deliver the same scares that worked before. It works as a standalone movie that takes the concept and fully adapts it to the storyline of a new character who feels more interesting than the first lead. Skye Riley is one of the best horror characters in recent history.
The character fully follows the great script by Finn, but it’s also a masterclass in horror performance by newcomer Naomi Scott, a real-life pop star who should really look forward to expanding her acting career. She is subjected to the film’sultimate goal of being scarierthan its predecessor, and this forces her to face a more aggressive and calculating villain. The final act feels like an inevitable outcome for the character, but Scott gracefully navigates the conclusion as a modern scream queen whose future in horror looks promising.
Source:Flix Patrol
