When it was released in October of 2012, Sinister was a smash hit that had proven itself to be the rarest of horror films: it was genuinely scary. Ethan Hawke starred as Ellison Oswalt, a bestselling true crime writer who had fallen on hard times financially. Seeking a story for another bestselling true crime book, he moves into the home of a family that had all been killed by hanging. The entire family--the parents and kids--were all hung by the necks side by side in a grotesque display from a branch of a tree in their own back yard. The mystery was not only who killed them and why, but what happened to one of the young daughters, who disappeared after the murders.
Sinister was helmed by Scott Derrickson, who also directed the equally scary The Possession of Emily Rose, and who would go on to direct Doctor Strange for Marvel. With Sinister he provides a fascinating mystery, showing how Oswalt uncovers the truth about the family slaying, and how there were more victims--other families who were killed, and that a supernatural force was behind them. Derrickson built up a creepy sense of dread the deeper Oswalt dug into this mystery, with the horrific realization hitting him that, in doggedly pursuing the otherworldly menace, he’s put himself and his own family within the demon’s crosshairs.
I recently had a chance to rewatch Sinister, and was pleased to see that it held up very well. While the jump-scares no longer shocked me because I knew they were coming, the growing sense of dread was still all too palpable, and didn’t lessen even after a repeat viewing. As a result, Sinister has become one of my favorite movies to watch around Halloween, or any time around the year when I want a good scare.
I wish I could say the same about Sinister 2. Released in 2015, Sinister 2 tries to tell the same basic story, a demon worming his way into a family in order to cause their destruction, but from a different angle. The script was co-written by Derrickson, and it shows flashes of brilliance--such as having Deputy So-And-So (James Ransone) denying the demon Bughuul new prey by burning down the houses of his prior victims. But the fact that the character that Ransone plays doesn’t have a real name even in the sequel (which is an in-joke from the first film) is part of the sequel's problem.
Sinister 2 was directed by Ciarán Foy. And Foy is a competent director; Sinister 2 looks great (it had a bigger budget than the first film, which shows onscreen) and the actors give good performances, but the film lacks the creepy build up of the first movie, and without the sense of dread it really doesn’t offer anything new to the franchise (Derrickson did direct one scene, the “Christmas Morning” sequence, which originally was intended for the first Sinister, but was cut due to running time).
Sinister 2 might have been a let down for me, but it still serves as a good double feature after seeing the first movie. While the sequel wasn’t the commercial success that the first Sinister was, I have a feeling it won’t be long before we hear from Bughuul once again. As the Nightmare on Elm Street and Friday the Thirteenth films have proven, you can’t keep a good creep down, even in a disappointing movie. --SF
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