Upon seeing Black Phone 2 (2025), I was extremely intrigued — a stark contrast to how I felt about the first movie, The Black Phone (2021). While the first film was well-done, its plot felt stereotypical: a young child, stupidly walking alone is tricked into stopping for a corny, old-fashioned ploy, from the psycho trying to kidnap him. The kind of ‘80s naivety that’s been done so many times. The sequel, though, made a daring turnaround, with the plot carving out a whole new level of horror. Needless to say, I hadn’t expected to be gripping my friend’s hand so tightly.Â
Set in 1982, four years after the protagonist Finney Blake (Mason Thames) was kidnapped by The Grabber (Ethan Hawke), the plot now centres on a 17-year-old Finney and his 15-year-old sister, Gwen Blake (Madeleine McGraw), at a wintry Christian Camp in the mountains. The snowy landscapes are a quiet beauty at first, but turn disturbing when The Grabber taunts Gwen and attempts to kill his first escaped victim. Â
The stakes were definitely raised. This time, it isn’t just a physical fight with The Grabber, but a terrifying mental one, now that he has turned into an entity. Plus, the isolated setting — unlike the first film’s ‘hidden in plain sight’ approach — makes it increasingly scary. What really made me shield my eyes was the level of gore and disembodied violence. Listen, I can handle gore, but there is a line I scratch in the ice (pun very much intended). The brutality is unreserved and uncomfortable to watch, yet I was impressed by its flawlessness. It all ties with how the film catered towards an older adult audience, now that the protagonists have aged.Â
Finney and Gwen are satisfying characters to watch because they never lose their fiery strength and bravery, despite how much they’ve changed in other ways. It made for a great battle against the iced-over, devilish mask that haunts them in dreams and in reality. They’re no-bullshit, fearless kids, and when they said they weren’t afraid, I believed them. The wonderful acting done by Thames and McGraw helped execute that characterization well. This defiance didn’t take away from how unexpectedly emotional the story was.
Scott Derrickson (Sinister (2012), The Exorcism of Emily Rose (2005)), who co-wrote with C. Robert Cargill and directed the film, took a risk by shifting the narrative lens away from Finney, but it ended up working incredibly well. It was the first time I’d seen a sequel invert the dynamic of its lead character. Going into the continuation of a story, you expect to see the evolution from the protagonist’s standpoint. In this movie, we uncover the traumatic aftermath, new origins, and family history through Gwen’s psychic lens — the secondary character. The perspective transitions from her unconscious visions to her conscious reality, with her abilities guiding the plot. I thought the story would feel imbalanced without Finney at the centre, but it was actually more rounded because Gwen brought answers to questions I’d carried from the first movie — ones Finney couldn’t have given. That shift makes our interaction with the villain remarkably different, without compromising a thing.
The film maintains a scratchy filter like an old roll of colour film, a tie to the time period, each time we enter Gwen’s visions and during Finney’s interactions with The Grabber — an intelligent way of tricking audiences. For the first quarter, it was hard to distinguish if what the characters were doing was really happening because the transitions were so seamless. While I loved how this effect kept me on edge, that back-and-forth routine did start to feel long-winded and tiresome eventually. It felt as if the creators were toying with audiences, making us wonder when the next big moment would come. However, just as I questioned it, the next scene came.Â
Amidst The Grabber’s terror, flashes of biting sarcasm broke through — sharp insults that added drama and a touch of badass swagger, never overstaying their welcome and letting the dread slip back in. Humour in horror is usually a big no-no for me, but it was so well-timed and impulsive, I couldn’t help but chuckle.Â
Black Phone 2 was better than the first. The setting alone hooked me, but taking audiences beyond the grave demanded attention. Its emotional backbone and horrific foundation is skillfully crafted into a creepy and cold nightmare that grabs those who can and can’t see the threat. For its intensified horror, visual effects, and depth of storyline, it’s one of the best sequels I’ve watched and would absolutely rewatch.
Â
Veronica is a Staff Writer at The Cascade. She loves to travel and explore new places, no matter how big or small. She is in her second year at UFV, pursuing the study of Creative
Writing.