Black Phone 2

Hey everyone, and welcome. Today, we will be talking about the film Black Phone 2. Fun Fact: Miguel Mora played Robin in the first film, and in this film, he plays his brother, Ernesto. This film came out in 2025 and stars Madeline McGraw, Mason Thames, and Ethan Hawke, and was directed by Scott Derrickson. So without further ado, let's get right into it.

Black Phone 2 takes place 4 years after the first film, and we see Finney dealing with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, and his sister Gwen starts having nightmares about some murders at Alpine Lake camp. As the story unfolds, we see how these nightmares are connected to their mom, and then the Grabber starts terrorizing everyone at the camp. Gwen and Finney must figure out what happened at this camp and how to stop the Grabber.

Black Phone 2 is a supernatural horror film that's also a murder mystery, which will have you scared but intrigued. It has similar vibes to Sinister, Fear Street: 1978, or A Nightmare on Elm Street.

The Black Phone was a surprise to me because I didn't think I would love it so much, so I was so excited to watch the sequel. The first film comes from a story by Joe Hill, but this one just uses that story for inspiration and veers off on its own. Both films are horror, but they are also both murder mysteries, which is intriguing because everyone is getting attacked by the Grabber, and there is fear that he will kill them, but then you also have these 3 kids in this sequel that were killed in the past that we are trying to find out where their bodies are and who did it. I love how this movie keeps the horror, murder mystery vibes, but adds another layer because ghosts were in the first movie helping Finney and Gwen, and they are in this movie, but you also get the ghost of the Grabber, who is terrorizing these kids and feeding off their fear. The camp also adds to the creepiness because it's pretty empty, and the amount of snow makes it feel like they are stuck there, dealing with the ghosts. The movie also keeps up the small comedic parts as Gwen is just so full of sass once again, which is just great to see because, adult or kid, she will not let you just walk over her. The movie feels like it pays homage to the slasher films that took place at summer camps, but also mixes in a supernatural element.

Black Phone 2 seems to center more on Gwen than Finney since she is the one who can see ghosts, but they are both being terrorized. I loved how she gets a message from their mom, Hope, and the movie opens up with the mom's perspective, and we don't know who she's talking to on the phone, and then we see Gwen's perspective a little later, and we can hear the full conversation. Their dad is in AA as well, which is nice because he helps give a little insight into the situation with their mother since he's their main connection to her. This leads them to this Alpine Lake Christian camp, which feels very of the times because they are in the 80s, which seems like the time these camps were popular. I love how both siblings were able to be a part of the story because Finney was hearing phones ring, and at the camp, the person who answered the phone was the Grabber, and then Gwen was able to astral project to the realm where the grabber and these kids were. We see how all these kids were killed via Gwen's dreams, which were horrifying, but it helps to put the pieces together of what happened.  Gwen thinks what's happening to her is a curse, and I loved how, by the end, after talking to her mom, she learns it's not a curse.

I saw the Grabber in the trailers for this movie and honestly thought he would just be terrorizing the kids, but I didn't know how big his role would be. We see Finney still seeing the grabber, and then he's answering the phone calls, but I thought that would be the extent. When we get to the camp, the real detective work starts because we need to know who killed these kids. Everyone there instantly became a suspect, but in a shocking turn of events, the killer is none of them, but the grabber. Gwen had 3 nightmares, and the kids sketched WBH in the ice, and Armando mentions that there was a counselor called Wild Bill Hickok, who we learn is the grabber, and that the first kills were at this camp, but the bodies were never found. We learn that Hope, Gwen, and Finney's mom was a camp counselor at the same time, and that's where she called from because she needed Gwen to find the kids since she couldn't get to them, and Armando, Barbara, and Kenneth were around too. It was shocking to me that the grabbers' first kills weren't the kids in the first movie, and that he had been doing this for a long time, but wasn't caught. We later learn that the Grabber is able to be around because even though these kids are dead, they fear him, which gives him power. They know the kids are in the lake, but they don't know where, and it's frozen, which adds another layer of stress.  I loved that Armando was so dedicated to finding these kids and risked his life to do so.

I didn't expect the story to connect the Blake family and the Grabber so much. It was shocking to see how intertwined their family was with the Grabber. We learn that the mom was at camp with the Grabber, and I was thinking Oh, that's where she died but then I was like Hmm, she's too young here. The film shows us how she had the same ability as Gwen, and she had actually uncovered that the Grabber was holding someone hostage. She sleepwalks, I think, to his house, or at least I hope it was sleepwalking, because she pulled in the driveway like it was her house, and she finds the kid in the basement, but as she is leaving, she is captured by the Grabber. He kills her and stages it like a suicide, and it really surprised me because I didn't think much about their mom dying, let alone that it may be by the same person who kidnapped Finney, which makes it seem like his getting kidnapped wasn't random, and also that the grabber has been terrorizing this family for so long. I'm glad we got to see how their mom tried to stop it, but she couldn't do it by herself, and even though she wasn't physically there, she helped her kids. I love how it also gives the family some closure because what they thought they knew about their mom is wrong, and also makes you think about Gwen's ability in a different light, since she assumed her mom killed herself due to that ability when in reality she saw it as a blessing because she could help people.

I love the quality change when Gwen goes from the real world to her dream world. In her dreams, the film quality is Grainy as if you are watching an old movie, while in the real world, it's clear, which I think is a great way to distinguish between the two. It's something similar that Derrickson did in Sinister as well, when showing the home tapes, which I like to see because it not only tells you something is different, but also, as you learn, it's kind of a warning that something a tad bit scary will usually happen. I love how they use these dreams to show the kids dying and the ghost of the Grabber, who is terrorizing people, but they can't see him. It's interesting to see that in this dream world, you can get hurt, which will translate into the real world. In these Black Phone films and in Sinister, it seems like as the films go on, the stuff shown in the grainy world and the stuff in the real world start to become closer together. I love how she realizes in this dream world, she isn't powerless and learns how to help and fight back.

Kenneth and Barbara were pretty useless when it came to helping, but every time they helped, somehow they got hurt. I was annoyed by Barbara, but by the end, I felt bad after the grabber tripped her, which led her to smash her head on the ice. It's like they were never his target, but after everyone else dodged, they just happened to be in the vicinity and got hit next. It was kind of funny cause every time I was like Dang, I kind of understand why you want to be left alone.

Finney clearly has PTSD after being kidnapped and abused, and it manifests in anger and irritation, and he's always in survival mode. He cares so much for his sister and wants to protect her, but he's not doing a good job of even protecting himself, as he mentally is falling apart. I loved the scene when Gwen calls him out for it because he gets so overprotective at the camp, but leading up to them going, he didn't want to hear about her dreams, didn't acknowledge her feelings, and didn't want to be questioned about how he was doing mentally. I love to see the emotional toll the Grabber has taken on this family and how sad it is. In the first movie, their dad was an alcoholic, which is how he dealt with the pain of losing their mom. In this movie, Finney is smoking a lot of marijuana to try and numb the pain from his experience, and Gwen is the only one really dealing with her issues. She ends up calling out both of them because she says Finney is becoming like their dad due to him not facing the problems, becoming closed off, and seeking substances instead of facing the trauma he's dealt with while their dad is clean but he’s ignoring all the signs that Finney isn’t doing good just because he’s more focused on showing them that he’s sober. Its an emotional scene because it not only forces everyone in the family to speak about the stuff that was and is going, its when Gwen tells them what happened to their mom, and also makes you realize that even though you may think you’re handling something, you may not be doing it well and people around you can tell and even if it is annoying, they are looking out for you. Finney breaks down as I saw Gwen finally get to him because she's been trying to help, but now there is so much on the line, and she needs everyone to be on their A game, and Finney wasn't and was possibly going to end up putting himself in danger. It was a great scene, and it was something that needed to be said for Finney and their dad, because while their dad was clean, Gwen reminded him that he needs to be their dad as well.

I love the subtle things that were callbacks to the '80s. Obviously, camps were more popular than, which I think is due to kids not having access to so much technology and parents having to still work in the summers or winters. In one scene, Finney is wearing a Peter Gabriel shirt, who was popular in the 80s. The music video for Subways of Your Mind by FEX is playing in one scene, which was released, and it took 17 years for people to figure out the song title and artist, because, for some reason, no one could figure it out, and it got the nickname, the most mysterious song on the internet. Also, the grabber has an iconic mask, which is something that feels very reminiscent of old horror movies like Jason, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, or Michael Myers.  I'm sure there are more, but I just love the connections to the 80s to make the viewer feel immersed.

My favorite part of the Film was Gwen bringing all the barrels to the surface as the grabber is terrorizing everyone, which starts the final showdown with the grabber. The scene was Gwen finally realizing what she needed to do as she used the grabbers' greatest weapon against him. The kids grab him as he's skating, which prompts him to fall, and while Finney can't see him, he can feel him, and he goes to town, smashing his head on the ice. He wants to drown the grabber's ghost, but his leg is still being held on by one of the kids, and Gwen comes and chops it off, and they throw him into the lake, and the kids drag him down. I loved seeing the siblings working together to eradicate the evil that caused so much damage.

Black Phone 2 is a great sequel to an already amazing horror film. The cast was great, and the story really had me invested, and I was trying to piece it all together. I love horror movies, and this film definitely was a highlight and is a reminder that Scott Derickson is a master when it comes to horror.