**This post contains MINOR spoilers**
The Story- Melissa “Mouse” Franklin (Merle Kennedy), Angela’s (Amelia Kinkade) younger sister, is tricked into going to a Halloween party at Hull House. Shirley Finnerty (Zoe Trilling), Rick (Rick Peters), and Z-Boy (Darin Heames) are the masterminds behind a cruel prank, and Melissa is the main target.
Melissa leaves St. Rita’s Academy with her best friend, Bibi (Cristi Harris), Terri (Christine Taylor), Johnny (Johnny Moran), Kurt (Ladd York), Shirley, and Rick. It’s clear something is horribly wrong at Hull House, but the group runs into a bigger problem, when Angela appears. Can Sister Gloria (Jennifer Rhodes), Father Bob (Rod McCary), and Perry (Robert Jayne) save Melissa and the others from Angela?
My Thoughts- Mouse! A demeaning nickname? Yes, but it also weirdly fits. Melissa is tiny, soft-spoken, and she’s very jumpy. But there’s a list of reasons for why Melissa is shy, and why she heavily relies on Bibi as a support system and her only true friend. Melissa is an orphan, her sister seemingly vanished after the brutal massacre at Hull House in the original, and Melissa is geeky and kind of awkward, making her a prime target for jerks and bullies (e.g. Shirley).
But Mouse is still someone, who’s so easy to root for. Merle Kennedy does an amazing job playing the vulnerable and sympathetic nerd. Through Kennedy’s performance, you can clearly see Melissa is traumatized, but there’s also a turn towards the end, where she’s forced to stand up to one big and powerful bully. Merle Kennedy easily delivers one of the best performances you’ll see in the series, and Melissa is truly a memorable character for Night Of The Demons.
Angela is back! Amelia Kinkade’s upbeat and energetic performance is one of the bigger highlights here. Angela is genuinely having fun being an evil menace in the sequel, fully embracing her status as the powerful demoness. There’s no conflicting emotions, or regrets about anything that happened in the previous film. She’s deep into the dark side, and Amelia Kinkade really brings her best as Angela again.
The sequel features another solid cast of supporting characters, with distinct and unique personalities. Shirley Finnerty is a smart-ass and a bully, but it’s impossible to ignore Zoe Trilling’s charismatic presence. Trilling brings an arrogant swagger to Shirley, the fast talking rebel, who gets a kick out of breaking all the rules.
Jennifer Rhodes nearly steals the show as Sister Gloria. Playing a parodied version of the strict no nonsense nun, Rhodes brings a good amount of humor to Sister Gloria. The quick and witty comebacks, karate moves and swashbuckling with her trusty yard stick, and Sister Gloria has her own catchphrase (“Save a little room for the Holy Ghost”)! Sister Gloria is a disciplinarian, but she has a big heart, because Gloria truly cares about the kids at St. Rita’s Academy, especially Melissa.
Kurt and Johnny share believable chemistry as two jocks and best buds. Kurt (also known as King Snake or Inch Worm) is more of an egomaniac, while Johnny is a bit more down-to-earth and levelheaded. Rick and Z-Boy? Two guys, who clearly peaked in high school. Rick Peters plays the cocky troublemaker, while Darin Heames’ Z-Boy is the goofy numbskull. Z-Boy tags along as Rick’s energetic idiot sidekick, and Heames adds more laughs to the movie with Z-Boy’s silly antics.
Cristi Harris brings an earnest and wholesome presence to Bibi. Bibi is one of the good ones here, no doubts about it. Christine Taylor’s Terri is a few steps below Shirley for picking on Melissa and being a bully. Not as bad as Shirley, but it’s noticeable.
Taylor plays a kid, who just wants to have fun, and there’s a nod to Taylor’s Brady Bunch days, when Rick jokingly calls her Marcia. Terri’s also the storyteller, similar to Max’s role in the previous film. She plays an important part, telling camp fire-esque tales building up Angela’s dark mystique, as the local ghoul. If you’re brave or stupid enough to go to Hull House, you’ll have to deal with Angela.
Father Bob comes off as someone, who enjoys the smell of his own farts. Rod McCary is appropriately smug and pompous as Father Bob, a fool, who waits too long to drop his big ego.
Robert Jayne’s Perry is an important character, the nerdy and persistent fighter, who’s obsessed with demons and demonology. They really don’t take the time to explore it, or flesh things out, but Perry shares a bond with Melissa. They’re both outcasts and geeks, so of course Perry and Melissa have to deal with bullies. Jayne has his big moments during the battle at Hull House towards the end, and he’s easily one of the more entertaining characters to watch throughout the movie.
Following in the footsteps of its predecessor, Night Of The Demons 2 delivers more exceptional makeup and practical effects. Evil, menacing boobs, big puddles of wet, bubbly, and sticky gore, and the “How’s about a smile, sis?” scene with Angela and Melissa? Nasty stuff.
Hull House is still spooky. If we’re comparing Hull House to the original, it’s more spruced up, and who knows, maybe Angela’s been busy making some changes around the house, because why are the bed sheets so neat and clean? But Hull House is a dangerous place. You don’t want to find yourself stranded there, without any help, and that’s what’s important.
Night Of The Demons 2 is a few steps below the original. I don’t understand why they used footage from the original. Perry is about to attack, and here comes Angela! The problem is, you can clearly see it’s footage from the 1988 film, where Angela is menacingly floating down the hallway. I’m guessing something happened? Maybe they had to add this in during post-production for some reason. It’s a weird moment that throws everything off during a frenetic series of events, because the footage doesn’t synch up with Perry’s struggle to deliver a counterattack to Angela.
But Night Of The Demons 2 is still a damn good follow up sequel. Effort! That’s one of the reasons why I still love this one. It’s not a lazy sequel at all. Angela is more established and confident as the main villain in the series, showing off her powers, how dominant she is, and Angela has a sword! We’re introduced to Angela’s sister, who plays a fantastic protagonist, and it’s revealed Angela and Melissa’s parents committed suicide after receiving a creepy Halloween card, signed by Angela.
There’s a strong effort to push the story forward, but they still managed to maintain some continuity from the original. Keeping the underground stream surrounding Hull House that acts as a barrier for demons was an important factor. Although, the carnage is not limited to Hull House, because they used a clever trick to give a logical reason for Angela’s escape. A conveyance (that pesky tube of lipstick) protects Angela on her way to St. Rita’s Academy, and that’s when all hell breaks loose! A demented Angela and her minions running around outside of Hull House brings all the chaos you’d expect. Good stuff.
Religion, demonology, and a Catholic boarding school? Good versus evil, faith versus the temptation to join the dark side. Adding religious elements and occultism to the story puts more meat on the bones for Night Of The Demons 2. The chapel at St. Rita’s Academy is used a safe house, when Angela attacks. And what’s the most powerful weapon that’s capable of defeating Angela, a threatening and unstoppable force of evil? Faith.
Night Of The Demons 2 easily has the best opening in the series. Two door-to-door Jehovah’s Witnesses feel the need to visit Hull House. They’re eventually cornered by Angela, and you can probably guess what happens next. You just have to laugh at these two smiling Jehovah’s Witnesses, walking up to an abandoned creepy old funeral home with a big no trespassing sign on the front door. Sure, let’s stay optimistic, because nothing bad will happen, and there’s nothing weird about a lady living inside an abandoned house!
Cheesy, consistent laughs, fun gags (a talking head in a toilet), and A LOT of gross-out moments. Night Of The Demons 2 is loaded with more gore, nudity, sexual innuendos, Amelia Kinkade is still sharp as Angela, and moving the story outside of Hull House was a refreshing change. It’s a bit more silly and whackier than the original, complete with Super Soakers and water balloons filled with holy water. But you have to remember, Night Of The Demons 2 is a horror comedy about horny teenagers suffering the consequences of their stupid choices. If you’ve never seen it, Night Of The Demons 2 is definitely worth checking out, if you want to know where the story goes next.
I honestly wish they would’ve found a way to work Melissa into the story for Night Of The Demons 3. Maybe an older version of her? Melissa could’ve worked as a big surprise return, someone who survived Hull House and Angela. She has firsthand knowledge on how to fight her sister, and Melissa still had some mileage as a character in the series.
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