Phantasm II Review (Film, 1988) #31DaysofHorror
content warning: gun violence, mental wellness, violence against women, gore, religious content, nudity, sexual content
Phantasm II is a journey. Writer/director Don Coscarelli was strongly encouraged to make a sequel to his breakout hit film Phantasm for years. He could not think of a way to do it. Universal wanted another horror series in the 80s and Phantasm fit the bill. Coscarelli eventually realized he could tell a new story in the same universe by picking up literally at the conclusion of the last film and went for it.
It should come as no surprise now that a sequel to Phantasm, an experimental indie sci-fi/horror/slasher film that owes more to the French New Wave than horror cinema, did not light up the box office. The increased budget and demands from Universal (like recasting lead character Mike with a better known actor) made the film look and feel different to the fans of the series. Meanwhile, the nature of Phantasm itself made it a hard sell for a wider audience. It’s remarkable we got the sequel at all, but it was doomed to disappoint.
With all of that said, I still enjoy Phantasm II. Coscarelli still does what Coscarelli does best throughout the whole film. This is a narrative about shifts in perspective told through the lens of someone living through a traumatic experience. Mike, newly released from a psychiatric hospital, is doing everything he can to prove that what he saw nine years ago when The Tall Man started attacking is true. His only way to stay outside the hospital is to become the person they want him to be, a rational member of society who knows that metal orbs can’t fly on their own and the dead can’t become minions to an otherworldly monster.
Throughout the film, Mike is haunted by his memories. His true personality and beliefs direct him on exactly what to say and do to be perceived as normal. Even as he gains allies in his quest to prove what he experienced is true, they all have to fall into the same patterns. If they just say what they’re really thinking, they risk being further outcast from society. They have to hide in plain sight, masking as perfectly normal citizens who don’t know about the world of The Tall Man. As more people become aware of the threat, they also have the balance the line between the new and old reality, life and death, and faith and skepticism.
What could Universal have wanted out of Phantasm? It’s not what you might think for a slasher film. By this point, Alien had led to Aliens and both Terminator and Predator proved to be box office hits. Universal wanted a sci-fi/action film with horror elements and, technically, Phantasm fit the profile on paper even if the film itself is very different.
What’s missing in Phantasm II is the slice of life element. There is no breathing room. The story just keeps escalating moment by moment. You’re not even 15 minutes into the film before Mike and Reggie break into a store to load themselves up on chainsaws, heavy artillery, and even build their own makeshift flamethrowers. Yes, the first film had a heavy reliance on gun violence and fire to solve the challenge of The Tall Man’s minions, but even Ripley and her crew don’t bust out the flamethrower in the first act of an Alien film.
The greatest achievement of Phantasm II is Coscarelli’s direction. There is no way a film that stays at such a heightened sense of suspense the whole way through should feel this scary. The breaks in the narrative are funerals. They’re not just random funerals, either. They’re connected to the characters who have encountered The Tall Man, including new character Liz. She has visions of The Tall Man connected to future events in her life and a psychic connection to Mike. She calls on Mike to find him, leading him to do everything he can to find her.
Perhaps the strangest aspect of Phantasm II is the emergence of religious imagery. Crosses are everywhere in this film. They’re connected to the presence of The Tall Man, a corrupted sign of his influence and power. Further, Liz’s visions are strongly layered with Christian iconography including one particular scenes where she causes herself to bleed from her palms after removing herself from a Catholic funeral service. It only escalates from there.
The quality of Phantasm II is not a question of good or bad. We’re dealing with a sequel to, essentially, an experimental indie film from the 70s. Does the film feel the same? Not at all. Does it tell a story that feels true to this universe? Yes. Is it a whole lot stranger than any studio sequel coming out of the 80s? That depends. Do you mean for a sci-fi/action story or a slasher? Slasher sequels at this time did tackle issues of identity, hiding in plain sight, and fighting an evil that was destined to destroy you. Phantasm II fits right in with the trends of the era.
Phantasm II is available to rent on all digital platforms.
