The first “Smile,” from writer-director Parker Finn, came out in 2022, and in a less promising directorial debut its premise would’ve fallen apart around the third or fourth mirthless stare. Evil spirit, loose in the world, flits from human to human; unfortunate victim commits suicide in some heinous fashion in the presence of the next lucky customer; rinse, repeat. Simple, flexible idea, yes, but enough for a feature?
It was. Expanding on the grin-and-share-it idea in his slick, 10-minute short “Laura Hasn’t Slept” (2020), “Smile” revealed Finn as a filmmaker of sure pacing instincts and enough compelling interest in his female protagonist’s traumatic past to deliver more than one smash-cut jump scare after another. (The supernatural entity both stokes and thrives on trauma, like certain politicians.) Initially Paramount Pictures planned to dump “Smile” on Paramount Plus; if it had, it would’ve missed out on the $200 million the movie made instead in theaters.
“Smile 2” goes in a newish direction, to frustrating mixed results — but it’s a mixed bag you can respect because it’s not hackwork and it’s trying new things. This time, the anguished center of the narrative is pop superstar Skye Riley (Naomi Scott), about to launch a massive world tour after a difficult substance abuse recovery. She’s also recovering from a terrifying car accident that took the life of her fellow cocaine addict boyfriend.
In an exceptionally bloody prologue, the audience sees what Skye does not: a returning character from the first movie (played by Kyle Gallner) handing the curse off to drug dealer Lewis(Lukas Gage), who’s destined to meet with Skye later. Skye has more on her mind, and in her nightmares, than simply an aching back from some heavy-duty dance rehearsals. Flaming out so publicly a year ago, and alienating friends and family, has led to an unsteady present state.
The clandestine meetup with Lewis for a little Vicodin leads to a gory suicide (death by head-bashing with a 35-pound weight), marking Skye as next in line. “Smile 2” spends a good deal of time on non-supernatural rigors and miseries of touring. The star’s watchful, controlling mother and manager (Rosemarie DeWitt) is a load; Skye’s starstruck sweetie of an assistant (Miles Gutierrez-Riley) has his own ways of making the lonely celebrity feel on edge.
“Smile 2” is only 17 minutes longer than the 2022 film, but the two hour-plus run time feels sludgy, especially toward the end. Finn’s screenplay feels more like a dozen short films strung together, in ways the first “Smile” did not. I liked the original’s far more sparing use of splatter and splurch; “Smile 2” goes for it, right from the beginning, though its most chilling sequence has no blood whatsoever. At a fan event, Skye gamely poses and autographs posters for a long line of fans, one of whom is a superfan bordering on restraining-order material. Another is a preteen with braces and a peculiar smile, and director Finn’s execution of these elements puts the whammy on the audience in a wonderfully old-school way.
Even when the movie’s not quite working, the design collaborators elevate the results. Sound designer Dan Kenyon works in tandem with composer Cristobal Tapia de Veer to create a subtly twisted array of tension-building cues. Also, the cast is a good one. As Skye, Scott — who lent the live-action remake of “Aladdin” something like a human pulse — rarely has a chance to relax on screen here, since essentially she’s portraying a series of unfortunate and painful events. But in the scenes with her wary friend Gemma, Scott and Dylan Gelula give the audience a respite and an interesting relationship.
So it’s up and down. But when it’s up, “Smile 2” makes you look forward to Finn’s next project. As dour as Skye’s predicament may be (and the movie’s not really all that fun), the filmmaker has a sense of humor. He did, after all, cast Ray Nicholson as one of the smilers, and since he’s the son of Jack Nicholson, and director Finn has acknowledged how much his “Smile” movies owe to the famous Stanley Kubrick “stare” close-up as seen, for example, in “The Shining,” well … let’s just say that when the younger Nicholson shows up, he’s ready for that close-up.
“Smile 2” — 2.5 stars (out of 4)
MPA rating: R (for strong bloody violent content, grisly images, language throughout and drug use)
Running time: 2:12
How to watch: Premieres in theaters Oct. 17
Michael Phillips is a Tribune critic.
