Black Phone 2

I loved this movie a lot more than I thought I would. I was skeptical about a sequel to the black phone. I really liked the first one, but it felt complete. But the direction they took this one really worked for me. I think going deeper into the supernatural element was quite cool and interesting to explore. But what I think what really makes this film work for me is the characters. The movie really cares about developing the characters and exploring interesting things through their perspectives. Both Finn and Gwen have really compelling character arcs that both build up to some quite emotional moments. Even what they do with the dad, which is a smaller part of the movie, is interesting as well. The movie was also actually a lot funnier than I expected. It's not a comedy, but has some really good moments that make you laugh. There is some interesting commentary about Christianity here. What I appreciate is that it doesn't vilify it, but rather illustrates how there are different types of Christians. Some who are judgemental and don't actually love or embody the virtues that Christianity teaches, and those who seek to understand and be kind. That's not a big part of the movie, but thought it was interesting. The performances are all great across the board. Particularly Mason Thames and Madeleine McGraw. Both do incredible work here and really bring quite a bit to their performances. Of course lots of credit to Scott Derrickson who directed and helped write this movie. I thought the script was quite good. His direction was really cool as well. Loved how he executed Gwen's dreams. He stylized them in a more grainy looking film style that I thought was cool. Lots of great choices. Overall very solid. 9/10