It would be easy to dismiss “Smile” as just another seasonal scare-fest.
However, something a bit deeper was going on with the 2022 horror offering about a supernatural entity that, once it grabbed hold of a host, caused them to see others around them smiling in the creepiest and most maniacal of ways. Within a few days, the increasingly haunted person commits suicide, allowing the parasite to leap to another person who had witnessed the death.
Sure, the smiling could be seen as gimmicky, but, overall, the film from writer-director Parker Finn seemingly has something to say about struggles with mental health.
Audiences certainly didn’t dismiss “Smile,” the movie raking in more than $200 million at the worldwide box office on a reported budget of well under $20 million. That kind of return on investment leads to a studio greenlighting a sequel, and, thus just over two years later, “Smile 2” is hitting theaters this week.
Armed with what our eyes tell us was a much larger budget, Bath native Finn has delivered again with a film that is both highly entertaining and consistently disturbing — and a step up from “Smile.” “Smile 2” is, at various points, funny and absurd and, at others, unsetting and heartbreaking.
It begins six days after the events of “Smile,” which saw the entity jump from deceased psychiatrist Rose Cotter (unseen “Smile” star Sosie Bacon) to her ex-boyfriend, police officer Joel (a returning Kyle Gallner). He has a plan to rid himself of his problem in the most productive way possible, but — and this shouldn’t be too much of a spoiler — all does not go as planned.
Finn soon introduces the film’s main character, global pop star Skye Riley (Naomi Scott). Out of the spotlight after a car accident with her actor boyfriend, Paul (Ray Nicholson), and a well-publicized run of abusing drugs and alcohol, the singer is about to launch a world tour.
Scarred both physically and mentally from the accident, she’s feeling the pressure of the high-stakes endeavor — exacerbated by her controlling manager and mom, Elizabeth (Rosemarie DeWitt) — and struggling with back pain, but little does Skye know her real problems are right around the corner.
Seeking pain pills, she visits a high school friend, Lewis (Lukas Gage, “The White Lotus”). She finds him manic, and soon enough, the young man is — you guessed it — smiling and using a heavy workout weight in a manner not recommended.
Not wanting anyone to know she was with Lewis when he killed himself, she doesn’t report the suicide to the authorities. She then begins to unravel mentally, encountering a young girl at a fan meet-n-greet who is showing her a big ol’ steady grin.
Things grow only smiley-er and more concerning, with Skye reaching out to estranged bestie Gemma (Dylan Gelula, “Dream Scenario”) when she has nowhere else to turn.
However, her real ally may be Morris (Peter Jacobson, “House”), a stranger who’s well-versed in the evil she’s facing and wants to help her.
British singer and actor Scott, who in 2019 starred in both “Charlie’s Angels” and the live-action “Aladdin,” is quite compelling at the center of “Smile,” absolutely throwing herself into Skye and all her difficulties. The character has learned to chug bottles of water whenever she feels compelled to use — with Voss getting some major-league product placement in the film — but that’s just the tip of the iceberg of what would seem to be the physical demands of the part.
Just as impressive, if not more, is the construction and execution of the film by Finn. He continues the use of unusual and even disorienting camera movements — including more upside-down shots — to great effect. “Smile 2” is always visually interesting, but its hooks reach much deeper than that with creative sequences and jump scares that, even though you know are coming, manage to arrive a bit differently from how you expect them to come.
And if you want to see more parallels to mental struggles of the non-supernatural variety, they’re here, with Skye, in great pain, telling her mother at one point she couldn’t know what it’s like to be inside her head.
At a little more than two hours, “Smile 2” does overstay its welcome, if only by a few (extremely uncomfortable) minutes.
It also may frustrate some that — and no doubt by design — it becomes more and more difficult to separate Skye’s imagined horrors from reality. But, hey, that’s part of this wild ride.
If nothing else, you have to appreciate just how dark this affair is for a mainstream release. It is DARK.
We won’t get into its conclusion, but it also shouldn’t be too much of a spoiler to say there is room for the franchise to continue, with Finn saying recently he’s interested in further expanding on his not-so-cheery universe.
Thanks to its seemingly higher cost, “Smile 2” may not have quite the same ROI of its predecessor, but, given its high quality, it’s all but certain to perform well enough that we haven’t seen the last of these upside-down frowns.
‘Smile 2’
Where: Theaters.
When: Oct. 18.
Rated: R for strong bloody violent content, grisly images, language throughout and drug use.
Runtime: 2 hours, 7 minutes.
Stars (of four): 3.
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