Terrifier 2 (2022) spoiler free review

It’s been decades since a horror film has made people so sick on the movie theaters that they need to leave before it ends. The first film to come to mind is The Exorcist (1973) that is considered by many the scariest and best horror film in history. That statement has being debated over the years but what no one can deny is the impact that it had in the horror genre and the audience. Now, 49 years later, another horror film has done it. Terrifier 2 is far from being considered one of the best horror movies in history but is always going to be remembered as the one that made people walk out of the theaters in 2022.

Resurrected by a sinister entity, Art the Clown returns to Miles County to terrorize a teenage girl and her younger brother on Halloween night.

Film synopsis

Directed, written, produced, and edited by Damien Leone this American splatter slasher film is a sequel of Terrifier (2016). Being in development since 2019 and delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic it was finally released on August 29, 2022 at the FrightFest and October 6 on the United States. With a budget of $250,000 the film has grossed $10.3 million at the box office becoming an instant success. It has also received positive reviews from the critics and audience scoring a 88% in Rotten Tomatoes while Terrifier (2016) holds an approval rating of 56%.

My opinion

We meet Art the Clown back in 2013 in the anthology horror film All Hallow’s Eve directed by Leone in his directorial debut. Since then his fan base has grown making him a modern horror icon. After the release of Terrifier in 2016 fans where left wanting more of this homicidal clown but with the hope of improvement. Those thoughts were heard and thanks to that we have a sequel that overpasses the original. David Howard Thornton returned to play his role as the clown.

The film starts right were the first one ended with Art the Clown being resurrected at the morgue starting right away his killing spree. A year later we’re introduced to Sienna Shaw, portrayed by Lauren LaVera, the final girl and star of the film. LaVera and Thornton performances are the highlight of the movie saving it from being just a gore fest. The only downside of this sequel is the running time. While the first film is one hour and a half this sequel is two hours and a half. Usually this is a good addition but in this case it wasn’t.

Terrifier (2016) was criticized mostly on its running time with comments highlighting how it affected the story development. With those comments and criticisms it shouldn’t come as a surprise that they decided to make a longer film. But unfortunately it became too long for what it was. The first 30 minutes are intense with a downfall that lasts until the final encounter between Art and Sienna. The film serves the purpose of entreatment, has creative deaths and an insane amount of gore, it’s better than the first one but it may disappoint more than one because of the overhype around it since it came out in theaters.

The possibilities of a third and fourth film are high but only time will tell how much are we going to wait until we see Art the Clown again. Terrifer 2 is now available to stream on Screambox and soon coming in DVD.