The Last Exorcism: Part II

In 2010's The Last Exorcism, Nell Sweetzer (Ashley Bell), a deeply religious Louisiana bayou farm girl, was supposedly freed from the demon Abalam. Continuing where the first film left off, Part II finds traumatized, terrified Nell being discovered in a rural swamp, having escaped from the coven that helped her give birth to an unholy baby. Nell is moved to Devreaux Home, a transitional halfway house in New Orleans, where she tries to put the pieces of her life back together with the help of a well-intentioned therapist (Muse Watson). She starts a new job as a hotel housekeeper and acquires a first-ever boyfriend (Spencer Treat Clark). But something is still troubling Nell—evidenced by ominous visits from her father's ghost—and that something is malevolent Abalam, who follows Nell around the French Quarter wearing a Mardi Gras mask, prompting birds to dive-bomb into windows, dogs to bark, insects to swarm, and voices to emerge from radio static. And there's that telltale bit of Nell's hair that Nurse Cicile (Tarra Riggs) secretly snipped off to squirrel away in her gris-gris bag—portending an inevitable voodoo ritual. Directed by Ed Gass-Donnelly, this is a lame sequel that—and this is the truly terrifying part—concludes with a setup for yet another film. Not recommended. [Note: DVD/Blu-ray extras include a “Hair Salon Scare” viral segment (3 min.), a “Shooting in New Orleans” location featurette (2 min.), and trailers. Exclusive to the Blu-ray release is an audio commentary by director Ed Gass-Donnelly and producer Eli Roth, a “Nell's Story” character featurette with star Ashley Bell (3 min.), and a bonus UltraViolet copy of the film. Bottom line: a decent extras package for a bad sequel.] (S. Granger)