Brahms: The Boy II

None of the mounting dread is surprising, and only some of it is more effective than the average haunted-whatever picture. But Brahms himself remains an oddball delight.

None of it is remotely frightening or original, the admittedly good-looking film adding nothing new to this unfortunate horror subgenre.

Like its predecessor, “The Boy II” is a fairly corny and stodgy spook-show, with a few good jolts and one genuinely creepy killer toy.

It doesn’t work, however, and the end result is one long yawn of mediocrity, devoid of any genuine suspense, hobbled by incoherent plotting, and ending on a note of goofy what-the-fuckery.

The horror genre also comes with a short list of demands that must be followed: Build a tense mood, a terrifying atmosphere, and tumultuous characters. “The Boy 2” rejects all of these. Instead, director William Brent Bell settles for a basement full of cliches.

There is one seriously suspenseful scene in the script, and it’s suspenseful because the trailers to the movie have given it away. Nothing else in it is scary, and the third act’s a career-killing embarrassment.

It’s so punishingly dull to watch, filled with dry, perfunctory dialogue from Stacey Menear’s consistently uninventive script and shot without even a glimmer of style, that even at a brisk 86 minutes, it feels like unending torture.

There is one seriously suspenseful scene in the script, and it’s suspenseful because the trailers to the movie have given it away. Nothing else in it is scary, and the third act’s a career-killing embarrassment

[SPOILER ALERT: This review contains spoilers.]

It's a typical sequel. Its predecessor was a stunning horror masterpiece, with a complex, mind-boggling plot. However, it set the bar far too high for its sequel. Although "Brahms" successfully frames itself as an epilogue, the story winds up having little to no relevance to the first movie. Predictable and with an ending that will make you go "that's it?", the movie is not a bad choice for your next horror fix. In fact, all of the horror elements are THERE and are STRONG. But as a movie in and of itself, it is just lackluster in some regards.

It's scarier to see "the exorcist" for the tenth time. Brahms: The Boy II does not appear to be a sequel despite what the title says.

Another sad example of how **** up, unmotivated, lazy and dull mainstream horror is right now.