Rube Goldberg Killing Machines

Rating: 10/10 (14 February 2003)

Any really good Horror movie walks the line between horror and comedy. The better it does this - the better the movie. An example would be Romero's "Night of the Living Dead". FD2 does this extremely well - between the writing and the editing it creates tension and suspense very effectively. The Horror is graphic and disturbing.
The problem when you successfully straddle that horror/comedy line is the possibility of falling off the other side. For the first 30 minutes the movie is really successful at connecting chains of events that seem almost independently sentient. A coffee cup becomes a potential accomplice in Death's plan.
After 30 minutes one begins to see humor in mayhem. By the end of the movie and the not surprising "denouement", my wife and I (and the theater)were rolling in the aisles with laughter. "Scary Movie" wanted this response but settled for sight gags and in-jokes. I did not expect much from this movie, but was very impressed with the unintentional effect. I will now see the first movie in the series, just to see more work by this team. It is true that some did not laugh, but most were holding their sides. It would not be fair to suggest that they rerelease this as a comedy since it is also effective as horror. I also do not want to belittle the talents of David R. Ellis or the writers of the story and screenplay, J. Mackye Gruber, Eric Bress and also Reddick. These guys are masters of the genre!

I seriously give this movie a high rating and will recommend it to all of my friends.