'Smile 2' improves upon its predecessor, still lacks substance
SALT LAKE CITY (KUTV) — Smile 2
2.5 out of 5 Stars
Director: Parker Finn
Writer: Parker Finn
Starring: Naomi Scott, Kyle Gallner, Rosemarie DeWitt, Ray Nicholson
Rated: R for strong bloody violent content, grisly images, language throughout and drug use.
SALT LAKE CITY (KUTV) Synopsis: 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.
Review: “Smile 2” pushed all my buttons in the worst possible way. It irritated me early in the first act and though I and the movie tried to win me back I couldn’t stop hating the experience. Based on the post-film chatter, I think I’m in the vast minority here as my colleagues all but giggled as the credits rolled.
I’m going to try and take a step back and focus on the big picture rather than the numerous smaller elements that derailed the film for me.
“Smile 2” begins with a coda to “Smile” as it picks up where the previous film finished. It doesn’t necessarily have anything to do with the narrative of the sequel, but it does add to the overall universe that Paramount and director/writer Parker Finn appear to be making.
The proper narrative is focused on disgraced pop starlet Skye Riley (Naomi Scott) who is weeks into rehearsals for her comeback tour following a high profile a drug-addled auto accident that left her actor boyfriend dead and Skye scarred by the numerous surgeries that were required to save her life. Still suffering from chronic pain, Skye is forced to turn to a drug dealer to provide the prescription medication she is not legally able to obtain.
Skye’s dealer is suffering from a bout of the smiles and after some incredibly paranoid behavior kills himself in an incredibly gruesome way. Skye is left covered in blood splatter and unwittingly the current host of the smile phenomenon.
Already on a crash course with self-destruction, Skye carries on by drinking an enormous amount of Voss bottled water. The smile-influenced hallucinations combined with the physical and mental strain of preparing for a massive concert tour puts Skye on a spiral that there is no returning from.
The bulk of “Smile 2” is something of a psychological thriller that finds Skye embarking on a journey that frequently takes her into the realm of over-the-top-campy make believe. There are some rest stops that allow for some vicious, incredibly graphic violence. The contrast of dark humor and ground-beef gore is effectively off putting.
Performances are never an issue. Naomi Scott is quite good. Her supporting cast doesn’t come away looking nearly as good but that is largely due to the way the characters are written. Not being able to define exactly what is real and what is a hallucination doesn’t help. They just aren’t defined well enough to pin down with absolute surety what is only happening in Skye’s head. Ultimately, the script determines that whatever may or may not have happened before the film’s climax doesn’t really matter.
The ending does set up a fairly frightening scenario for the future of the franchise. It’s quite possibly the only detail of the film that is scary. The rest is just silly with a bucket of blood on the side.
“Smile 2” wasn’t for me. I wanted something more ambitious with a stronger punch when it comes to the music industry and its hordes of enablers who feed off the talents of its stars. Alternatively, you could also explore the horror that some stars inflict on those who work for them and/or their fans. Finn didn’t want to make that movie. That’s fine. It just wasn’t my thing. I’d probably like it better on a second watch, having already known what I was in for.