Smile 2 Will Have You Avoiding All Social Cues… Indefinitely

Tis the season for thrills, chills and strange cinema.  Every October I go through the ritual of re-watching Halloween classics, and every year I am on the lookout for new films to enrich my growing list.  Beetlejuice Beetlejuice was an immediate add on, but after watching it back in September I still ached for more.  Enter Smile 2.

I enjoyed the first Smile but I felt more immersed in Smile 2 and the reason is simple: Naomi Scott.  The sequel about a virus that makes you go crazy, smile and kill yourself gets a complete upgrade in this film.  Scott plays Skye Riley, a Lady Gaga-esque singer who after surviving a horrific car accident that killed her boyfriend (played by Jack Nicholson’s son,) comes in contact with a “smiler.”  Instantaneously we are drawn into the counterfeit world of celebrity life and with it a protagonist on the verge.  Much gorier than the original, Smile 2 is focused entirely on Skye Riley.  The film even has a killer soundtrack with six pop songs performed by Naomi Scott as Skye, with my personal favourite being Death of Me.  As atrocious as this film gets, and trust me it gets ridiculously gross, you won’t be tempted to cover your eyes solely due to Naomi Scott.  After being neglected in Aladdin and Charlie’s Angels, Scott finally has a breakout performance which allows her to dominate with every tantrum, reaction and blood curdling scream.  Moreover, the final shot of Skye on stage with a microphone in her hand is guaranteed to haunt your dreams…at least for a few nights.

The ending of Smile 2 has me wondering what the franchise’s future holds.  It did make me think of John Wick 2 and all the wildness that it prophesied in its final few moments, a similarity that Smile 2 directly evoked.  It’s worth noting that as I walked out of the theatre I caught someone smiling at me and I will admit it did disturb me.  Will I be avoiding all polite smiles in the near future?  Well I do understand that Smile 2 is just a movie but it’s realism, heightened scare factor and relevance in light of the The Eras Tour pandemonium has me rethinking my public expressions.  Perhaps a scowl is the way go… until Halloween is over that is.

Happy Haunting

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