SMILE 2

Writer-director Parker Finn's feature debut Smile took a modest $17 million budget and turned it into a whopping $217 million worldwide box office gross. Talk about a return on investment! Overnight, Finn became a horror movie director to watch, and a sequel to Smile was inevitable. And here it is, leaning heavily on the tropes of the original movie but at the same time, retaining its mystery to keep the audience guessing.

This time, the victim of the 'smile monster' is a contemporary pop star who's been through the wringer. A traumatic car accident, rehab for drug addiction – you name it, she's lived it. But just when it seems like she's ready to take on the world with new music and a headline tour, the smile monster comes knocking. Apart from the change in environment, the original tropes remain intact: the creepy smiling faces, the gory acts of violence, and that constant inability to tell what's real and what's not.

Finn's sequel seems to share some DNA with other recent movies and TV series. We've got the pop star angle like in HBO's The Idol and Shyamalan's Trap, plus the whole celebrity horror vibe of The Substance. So, yeah, there's a lot that feels familiar in Smile 2. But that's not to say it's derivative. It's more like it's drawing inspiration from the same well as those other stories.

The best thing about Smile 2? The audience is never quite sure what they're seeing, which perfectly mirrors the nightmarish experience that Naomi Scott's character is going through. Speaking of Scott, the English singer/actress is totally believable as the shell-shocked Skye Riley, desperately trying to hold on to her sanity and the control of her own mind and body.

So, will we see a Smile 3? Maybe, but only if Finn can give us something new. He needs to spin a yarn that explains the origins of the "smile monster" instead of just repeating the same old tricks. By a third film, the audience will be demanding answers. I'd be on board if it's handled creatively. What do you think?