Five Nights at Freddys 2 review: It sure is a movie, technically
**The Decline of Robo-Horror Sequels: A Deep Dive into *Five Nights at Freddy’s 2***
The world of robo-horror sequels seems to be spiraling downward, as exemplified by the latest release, *Five Nights at Freddy’s 2*. Following in the footsteps of *Terminator 2: Judgment Day*, which successfully redefined its iconic antagonist by giving it a heart of gold, and *M3GAN 2.0*, which stumbled by transforming its horror icon into a sassy superhero, this sequel struggles to find its footing. The premise of *Five Nights at Freddy’s 2* should be engaging: a familiar cast of killer animatronics returns, but this time with a twist, as they are pitted against a new, more sinister version of themselves. However, the film ultimately falls flat, failing to capture the same compelling energy that made its predecessors memorable.
In *Five Nights at Freddy’s 2*, the story shifts focus from Mike Schmidt, played by Josh Hutcherson, to his younger sister Abby (Piper Rubio), who is determined to reconnect with her ghostly friends. The film explores the haunted legacy of Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza, revealing a deeper backstory involving a tragic character named Charlotte, who becomes the vengeful spirit known as Marionette. While the film attempts to deliver some engaging third-act robot versus robot action, it often drags with scenes of human characters who seem perpetually clueless and on the brink of danger. The dialogue is criticized for being disjointed, as characters deliver lines that feel disconnected from the narrative, leading to a frustrating viewing experience.
What’s particularly disappointing is the film’s lack of genuine horror. While it is a PG-13 movie, which limits its ability to deliver intense scares, there are missed opportunities to create a more impactful narrative. Unlike *M3GAN*, which managed to balance humor and horror, *Five Nights at Freddy’s 2* opts for off-screen violence and predictable jump scares, leaving audiences wanting more. The film does touch on themes of childhood innocence and the dismissal of young voices by adults, a trope that could have been explored more deeply. However, it ultimately falls back on tired clichés, leaving viewers with a sense of dissatisfaction. As *Five Nights at Freddy’s 2* hits theaters, it remains to be seen whether it can capture the same audience that propelled the first film to success, or if it will be yet another example of the decline of the robo-horror genre.
First came
Terminator 2: Judgment Day,
which was fine.
Then there was
M3GAN 2.0
,
which was a flop. Now we have
Five Nights at Freddy’s 2
, a sequel that has all the energy of a dead battery. Behold the steady downward spiral of robo-horror sequels
In each of these franchises, the first film was about a killer robot who, despite being an antagonist, was compelling enough that audiences wanted more. So, Hollywood brings them back for a sequel. But this time, the bad robot has a heart of gold and only wants to protect a child. From what? Oh, a more advanced and even more evil version of the robo-killer that started it all.
Look, that premise should be fun. In
T2,
it is because co-writer and director James Cameron kept Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Terminator stiff and macho, then introduced a wiry robo-cop with shape-shifting abilities to bring fresh terror. In
M3GAN 2.0,
Blumhouse fumbled their new icon of horror by trying to make her a sassy superhero, killing the subversive vibe and losing their audience. With
Five Nights at Freddy’s 2
, screenwriter Scott Cawthon and director Emma Tammi (who collaborated on 2023’s
Five Nights at Freddy’s
) follow this pattern to introduce flashy new versions of Freddy, Foxy, Bonnie, and Chica, without abandoning the dinged-up but beloved originals.
This does make for some fun third-act robot versus robot violence. But mostly this movie is about the living humans who bop around this franchise, clueless and always near death. And that’s far more frustrating than entertaining.
What’s
Five Nights at Freddy’s 2
about?
Elizabeth Lail, Piper Rubio, and Josh Hutcherson look scared in “Five Nights at Freddy’s 2.”
Credit: Ryan Green / Universal Pictures
Thankfully, this sequel moves away from the tedious story of Mike Schmidt (Josh Hutcherson) and his guilt over his long-lost little brother. This time, his role is relegated to sidekick while his younger sister Abby (Piper Rubio) recklessly seeks to reconnect with her ghostly pals, and his sort-of girlfriend Vanessa (Elizabeth Lail) grapples with the skeletons in her closet that weren’t shaken free last time around.
You see, the Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza location at the center of the first film was a franchise, and the original location has its own secrets. Ahead of its time, this possessed pizza place has WiFi-equipped devices, which means its animatronics toys can operate remotely through one seriously vengeful spirit — and leave the restaurant.
In a flashback to 1982, poor Charlotte, draped in black and white stripes with a moody haircut, was just a kid when she was slaughtered before an audience of neglectful parents. (The ’80s were a wild time.) So, naturally, this baby emo’s soul clung to her favorite animatronic at Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza, a black-and-white figure called Marionette.
This haunted animatronic resembles a cross between Slenderman and the Insane Clown Posse, filtered through the kiddie-friendly lens of Tim Burton. Which is hilariously creepy for a kid’s attraction, but also very true to the ’80s, when Cabbage Patch Kids and Chuck E. Cheese were omnipresent. On a mission to wreak havoc on the town that let her die, Charlotte/Marionette sends forth her own fleet of Freddy and friends bots. And it’s up to Vanessa and Mike to save the day, along with Abby, who is still bizarrely trusting of creepy androids. But this time, they’ll get some third-act help from some familiar (and fuzzy) faces.
Five Nights at Freddy’s 2
is tame, even for PG-13.
Toy Freddy and Toy Bonnie stand ominously in “Five Nights at Freddy’s 2.”
Credit: Ryan Green / Universal Pictures
It’s a PG-13 horror franchise. I get that. But for all its horror potential,
Five Nights at Freddy’s 2
goes very, very soft.
M3GAN
was PG-13, and it featured a body count, as well as slaughter scenes that left audiences gasping and howling with laughter.
Gremlins
was PG and offered nerve-rattling tension and a climax so gross it gave a generation of kids nightmares.
Five Nights at Freddy’s 2
has off-screen violence, a handful of jump scares, and the same repeated gag of the Marionette scuttling toward the screen.
Perhaps this is enough to please kids. But frankly, they deserve better. This summer the PG-rated
Sketch
proved a movie for kids can offer scary monsters and a story with a powerful message about big emotions and family.
Nights at Freddy’s 2
is just a rambling tumble of scenes that too often feel like filler or absolutely nonsensical.
Some of it is horror cliché stuff, like someone hears or sees something spooky and reacts with the speed of a tortoise. You’ve fallen into a weird canal and hear plunking as if something has come in after you? Better stand still and swish around your flashlight instead of
getting out of the water
, right? Such tropes might be forgiven for being part of the genre expectation. We need to the inept randos to die and show the consequences our heroes face. The off-screen violence that results from these kill scenes — issuing bubbling blood but no image of actual injury — could likewise be excused because this is certainly for a younger audience. But how do you explain how Mike and Vanessa, who have been in this situation before, are still so comically bad at tackling any kind of robotic conflict?
In one scene, Vanessa clearly lays out how Charlotte can be stopped. And oh hey, wouldn’t you know Mike has the exact thing they need to stop her! But we won’t talk about this again for another 40 minutes, for no apparent reason. The dialogue is similarly confounding. Vanessa and Mike — in the least interesting will-they-won’t-they romance ever put to screen — have conversations as if they are in different rooms. It’s not just that they’re on the same page. It’s as if they’re reading off AI prompts from totally different plots. Such scenes made my brain wince.
This only gets more confounding as other supporting players pop up with little motive, like a creepy security guard with a broad smile, a mournful father (Skeet Ulrich in an all-too-brief appearance), and a dead father (Matthew Lillard, terrifyingly intimidating). They exposition dump or menace, then banish us back to a plotline full of tangles and holes instead of scares and fun.
Five Nights at Freddy’s 2
could have hit harder by leaning into its critique of grown-ups.
Matthew Lillard is still scary in “Five Nights at Freddy’s 2.”
Credit: Ryan Green / Universal Pictures
A recurring element of great horror movies is when a kid knows in their bones something is deadly wrong, but the grown-ups around them shrug them off (often to their own peril). The people who are supposed to protect you have left you susceptible to supernatural threat! Now what?! Such a setup reflects a frustration of being a kid and not being heard.
Five Nights at Freddy’s 2
treads into this trope in the first act, as Charlotte (still alive) desperately tries to get the parents at the pizza palace to see the danger in plain sight. When they don’t, she winds up dead, and rightfully wrathful about it.
As the Marionette, she is solidly spooky. And her gripe with the living is valid. So,
Five Nights at Freddy’s
gets off to a promising start.
Plus, the parents in this opening are comically dismissive of this fretful child, which seems to set up a cartoony tone that could suit the film well. Rather than aspiring to a grounded attitude, Cawthon’s script could have embraced the tightly strung energy of the young girls at the film’s center. But no. We’re back with blah Mike and tragic yet still boring Vanessa.
The only grown-up who keeps up this viciously dismissive energy is Wayne Knight as Mr. Berg, a science teacher who hates Abby for no apparent reason. His scenes are actually pretty funny. Knight commits to the cartoonish villainy of this terrible teacher, and in him, the film actually begins to have some spark and outrageousness. If Tammi had encouraged others in the cast to achieve this level of intensity, the film might have been more enjoyable. But like the first one, this sequel has just a deadly amount of talking, with too little scares, jokes, or surprises.
But hey, I thought that about the first film too. And it went on to make hundreds of millions of dollars. So, perhaps if you liked the first
Five Nights at Freddy’s,
this sluggish sequel will thrill you far more than it did me.
Five Nights at Freddy’s 2
opens in theaters Friday.
