‘Smile 2’ Review: A Skillfully Disquieting Sequel Turns the Life of a Pop Star Into a Horror Ride of Mental Breakdown
variety.comOwen Gleiberman Chief Film Critic Portraying the life of a diva pop star — or, at least, doing it convincingly — isn’t the easiest thing for a movie to bring off.
There are too many real-life counterparts. The director Brady Corbet (“The Brutalist”), teaming up with Natalie Portman, got about halfway there in “Vox Lux.” Lady Gaga, drawing on elements of her own legend but shrewd enough to play the heroine of “A Star Is Born” as not a version of herself, created a character for the ages.
More recently, M. Night Shyamalan seemed to make “Trap” mostly to let his budding musician daughter, Saleka Shyamalan, embody a pop singer — which she did with aplomb in concert, less convincingly in the backstage scenes.
So when you hear that “Smile 2,” Parker Finn’s sequel to his effective if overloaded creep-out horror film of two years ago, is centered around a pop star, you may not exactly be expecting a deep-dish immersion in the pop-music universe.
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