McDowall, Ragsdale and company join again for more vampire fun. Thanks Mr. Tom Holland for creating these movies.
The sequel to one of the most important vampire movies of the past 20 years delivers expectations by entertaining and making the audience laugh. The charm of the original is present but just in half. We still enjoy the Roddy McDowall - William Ragsdale duo now in better shape. Although the Jerry Dandridge character is not present, it's present through all the movie because he's mentioned and remembered.
Four years have passed since the frightening events that led to the death of 10,000 year old vampire Jerry Dandridge. Charlie Brewster has a hot new girlfriend, Alex and now he attends college and isn't a geek anymore. Things seem to be perfect for him. Through therapy, Charlie tries to forget what happened and tells to himself that everything came out from his mind. Nothing really existed to him. Peter Vincent still hosts "Fright Night" and his life is also good.
Harmony abruptly breaks when Charlie believes in vampires again. He still has vampire related nightmares, his mind plays tricks on him and one of a sudden, the events of the original "Fright Night" happen again. Regine Dandridge (yes, Jerry's sister) finds Charlie and Peter Vincent and swears to take revenge for her brother's death. This time the vampires are more and will do everything possible to torture Charlie for eternity and kill Peter Vincent. Once again the Brewster-Vincent duo teams against the blood sucking gang in a fierce battle that will make you want more of Fright Night!
I truly LOVE the original "Fright Night" and to me, none sequel or vampire flick will match it's coolness. "Fright Night part II" is the vampire movie that I was looking for. The movie is filled with horror, action, cool f/x, great acting, sensuality, gore, black humor, and a good soundtrack. What else could you ask for in a horror movie from the 80's?! Part II does the things correctly and almost tops the original.
ACTING. Roddy McDowall and William Ragsdale are my favorite duo in horror movies. Both actors are at their best in this sequel. Seems that both enjoyed acting together and fighting vampires. McDowall gives a strong performance based on his maturity and fine humor. He's the man! No one like him can challenge vampires. Ragsdale improves his performance from the original and gives a great performance. Julie Carmen (Regine) could fill the great Chris Sarandon's shoes in the role of the lead vampire. Her performance totally hypnotized me and I enjoyed it. Vampires were never this seductive and hot. I praise her for wearing tight and short outfits. She's super hot and gives a great performance. She was mean she it was necessary, she was sensual every time. Carmen is a hot women and my favorite vampire female character. Tracy Lin (Alex) gives another strong and believable performance as Charlie's (lucky bastard) radiant new girlfriend. She was very cute and hot. She knew how to display a strong woman that looked very tender. I love this woman. Is it me or she looks a lot like Anna Chmulsky (from "My Girl" fame)? What a beautiful woman. Yum. The other supporting cast members are very good. Brian Thompson (Bozworth deserves special mention. The other vampire gang members were perfect! Cool designs. The tranvestie roller skater vampire is insane! A creepy character. The werewolf worked perfectly as the Evil Ed of the movie. Still we miss a lot Evil Ed. I enjoyed Ernie Sabella's performance as Dr. Harrison. He was insane! Also, the patient in the mental asylum that helps Peter Vincent to escape is groovy. I truly enjoyed his performance a la Jay and Silent Bob. A great cast that worked perfectly for a horror comedy.
DIRECTION. Tommy Lee Wallace did a wonderful job. He sets a creepy atmosphere getting hand from action and comedy. There are some impressive camera angels that make the movie look classy. For example the scene where Peter Vincent uses the broken mirror against Regine in the final battle looks great! A difficult scene that went perfect. "Fright Night II" looks impressive for being a horror movie. Obviously the budget here is huge.
F/X, CINEMATOGRAPHY, SOUNDTRACK. The f/x improved the original's. Visually stunning effects again. I loved the tranvestie vampire's death and the maggots coming out from Bozworth's stomach. Candy for the eye! Thanks. The cinematography is great. Part II is visually stunning also. Metal Pop tunes, vampiresque melodies, organs, and rock make a great soundtrack. Not as good as the original's but still works.
FRIGHT NIGHT PART II has many things to bite: -Regine telling Charlie and Peter "welcome to Fright Night!". A scene that sent chills to my bones! A new classic moment for me. -Regine threatening Peter Vincent and then tells him that Charlie's punishment will be worse. -Bozworth's explicit death. -The scene where a looney helps Peter escape from the mental asylum. A hell of a funny scene! -The final battle between Charlie, Peter and Regine. I loved the way Peter used the broken mirror. The scene is very memorable because it's the last time that the team win a battle against vampires. Everybody misses Roddy McDowall a lot... -Dr. Harris's death. -The scene where the skate roller tranvestie vamp. comes at high speed against Charlie. A truly creepy moment with the 80's craziness. The clothing, the hair, the music, the scary looks. I love it.
Take my word, "Fright Night Part II" is a great horror comedy movie. Not as great as the original but still delivers and overpasses expectations. This is one of the best sequels ever to a horror movie. The Fright Night movies will always work. Time seems to make no harm to them.
8.0/10 Fun, gory, entertaining, well directed and acted. Part II is a sequel to bite!
