To See or Not to See: Terrifier 2

Terrifier 2 is quite literally the goriest thing I’ve seen all year.

A sequel to the 2016 Terrifier, Terrifier 2 is written and directed by Damien Leone. It stars Lauren LaVera as Sienna and Elliott Fullam as her brother, Jonathan. Art the Clown (David Howard Thornton) is resurrected by supernatural forces in the small town of Miles County and on his way to murder them both. LaVera and Fullam portray a convincing brother-sister dynamic, and it’s apparent that a lot of effort was spent writing and characterizing them, as their relationship morphs and evolves over the course of the two-hour run time.

Also, props to David Howard Thornton; Art the Clown is a mute, so this satanic entity does not speak at all. Instead, the audience is dependent on the facial features and articulation of Thornton to communicate the psychological and emotional state of Art, and he just knocks it out of the park.

But let’s not kid ourselves; the visual effects team are the main stars here. Terrifier 2 starts off with Art the Clown brutally murdering a mortician with continuous strikes to the head with a small metal hammer. Right off the bat, we can tell exactly where the budget of this film went. Director Damien Leone doesn’t shy away from extreme violence: blood flying everywhere, face ripping off, skull caving in. We are shown, in the most graphic way possible, how this poor man is being murdered by a clown with a small black hat. And to top it all off, Art rips out an eyeball and starts trying to stuff it into his own skull in a comical way.

Director Damien Leone is sick in the head, and I love him for it. There may be some comical undertones throughout, but make no mistake, those with a weak stomach or timid heart should definitely skip Terrifier 2.

★ ★ ★ ★ out of 4

Terrifier 2 is in theaters now.

Photo Credit: Cinedigm