[Watch the review above and/or read it below.]

Black Phone 2 makes sense on paper: Scott Derrickson and C. Robert Cargill check back in with Finney and Gwen years after the Grabber, shift the spotlight to Gwen, widen the afterlife idea, and swap basements for snowy cabins. The idea’s sound; the delivery isn’t. Clunky dialogue, strained exposition, and a lack of real surprises keep pulling it down.

The horror sequel pushes much harder into dreams and the supernatural than the first film did, with its kidnap-thriller shape. Derrickson still lands unsettling images—especially with kids in the frame—and there are stylish flourishes throughout. But the tension never quite locks in. Those Super 8–textured dream passages and clean camera moves can’t cover a stop–start rhythm, and every time the script slows to explain itself, the suspense dips. The dream rules also feel a bit fuzzy, which doesn’t help.

Ethan Hawke’s Grabber returns, albeit in ghostly form. The film openly borrows from A Nightmare on Elm Street, reframing our serial killer as a Freddy Krueger–style boogeyman who stalks sleepers. The Grabber remains a creepy creation, but he’s frustratingly underused—and used too simply when he’s given the spotlight. The sequel spends too long teasing confrontations instead of delivering them, leaving Hawke too little room to really cut loose as he did so memorably the first time. When the horror showdowns arrive, they’re energetic and visceral, if a little too familiar.

As Gwen, Madeleine McGraw shoulders more of the emotional load and delivers when the pressure spikes. Mason Thames is a steady presence as Finney, though the script gives him too little to play. The dialogue—particularly the ’80s-style teen chatter and awkward stabs at levity—often clangs, and beyond the siblings the supporting players feel underwritten.

Poor dialogue aside, the screenplay does touch on some interesting themes—trauma, faith, and generational pain—channelled through the Christian camp setting and Gwen’s growing abilities. They’re handled with a simplicity that blunts their impact; there are flickers of something deeper, but the film rarely digs.

Black Phone 2 isn’t a completely souless cash-in. It has ideas, style, and a willingness to push into new territory. But the messy script, uneven tone, and diminished Grabber keep it from matching the first film’s chill. Admirable in ambition, middling in execution—this is a call you may not feel compelled to answer twice.