Black Phone 2 picks up several years after the events of The Black Phone. 17-year-old Finn (Mason Thames, How To Train Your Dragon, Regretting You) is still struggling with his kidnapping and his killing of The Grabber (Ethan Hawke). He often gets into fights at school when people bring it up. His younger sister Gwen (Madeleine McGraw) is being called a witch by her classmates after news of her dream powers that helped to find the missing boys has come out. However, Ernesto (Miguel Mora), the younger brother of Grabber victim Robin from the first film, doesn’t care about that and has an obvious crush on Gwen.

As he second film opens, it’s 1982 in North Denver, and Gwen starts to experience some strange dreams, which once again involve that black phone. First, a young version of her mother, Hope (Anna Lore), calls her from 1957 from a payphone next to a frozen lake in the Rocky Mountains, Colorado—the phone number appeared to Hope in a dream, the 7 digits carved into ice. Then Gwen starts to have dreams of 3 brutally murdered boys at the same lake, except that they are carving letters into the ice rather than numbers, and pleading for her to find and help them. The boys were abducted and killed at the Christian youth camp Camp Alpine Lake, where Hope had worked as a counsellor 30 years earlier.

Knowing that these dreams won’t end until the souls of these boys can rest, Gwen, Ernesto and (a reluctant) Finn head to the camp as Counsellors In Training in order to investigate. Due to blizzard conditions, the only other people at the camp are owner Mando (Demián Bichir), his niece Mustang (Arianna Rivas), and office workers Barbara (Maev Beaty) & Kenneth (Graham Abbey). After the CITs arrive, Gwen’s dreams become even more intense, and Finn receives a call on the lakeside payphone from the Grabber, telling him “Hell is not flames Finney, it’s ice. Nothing burns like the cold.” While the Grabber is no longer human, his spirit lives on in the dream world, and he is determined to hurt Finn like Finn hurt him, and he plans to do so by going after Gwen. Can they find the missing bodies of the boys so that they can finally rest, and can they stop the Grabber once and for all, before it’s too late?

Black Phone 2 is a solid follow-up to the first film, finding a great way to extend the mythology of the franchise in a way that feels believable and natural. At the core is still this story of a brother and sister, but this time around it is more focused on Gwen. The filmmakers have managed to maintain a similar tone and the intimate feel of the first film, while also making things a bit grander in scope. The first film achieved a claustrophobic like feeling with Finn being stuck in a single room as he tried to solve the mystery. Now, a frozen, snow-covered camp adds that trapped element, while also serving as the perfect setting for a creepy horror film.

The film takes several interesting twists and turns and has some unexpected reveals, The characters are given a chance to develop and grow. The scares and gruesome deaths are offset with moments of humor to help ease the tension. We often see Gwen enter the dream world, and the filmmakers use a unique visual style to help differentiate that. The dream world is filmed in Super 8, which has some shakiness, blips, over-exposed colors and lots of film grain—a stark visual difference from the modern crisp and clean digital picture. This not only adds a very unique and creepy feel to those dream world scenes, but also makes it easy for the viewer to identify when Gwen is asleep or in the real world.

I thought this sequel was really well done, and just as good as the first film. It has the mystery, scares, and the same creepy villain from the first movie, but now in a supernatural form that gives him an even more horrifying, almost Freddy Krueger way to attack his victims. The film ultimately builds to a solid and exciting conclusion.

Universal has released Black Phone 2 on 4K UHD, Blu-ray, DVD and Digital. We were sent the Blu-ray for review. The release looks and sounds great. The picture is extremely clean and clear with an excellent level of detail, and makes use of a color palette that transports viewers back to the early 80s. The clarity of the picture is especially noticeable in contrast to the dream world footage. Those Super 8 shots are blended in seamlessly, helping to really cement the period and creepy tone of the film. A lot more of this film takes place in the dream world compared to the first film. The audio track provides clear dialogue, and makes excellent use of the surround channel to give the film a more immersive feeling. such as the blustering snow sounds during the blizzard, or the pulsing score. The filmmakers really play with the sound in the dream world, muffling the audio, accentuating the bass, and adding static, and so on.

The Blu-ray disc comes packed in a standard HD keepcase with an embossed slipcover. The release contains an insert with a code to redeem for an HD digital copy of the film (which is Movies Anywhere compatible). The disc contains a director commentary and almost 40 minutes of bonus material, including deleted scenes and behind-the-scenes featurettes with the cast and crew.

What’s Included:

Film: (1:53:52)

Blu-ray:
• 1080p / Widescreen 2.39:1
• Audio: English Dolby Atmos, English DVS (Descriptive Video Service), Spanish 7.1 Dolby Audio, French 7.1 Dolby Audio
• Subtitles: English SDH, Spanish, French

Digital (code may not be valid after 1/31/2027):

• HD Digital Copy (Movies Anywhere compatible)

Extras:
Play All, or select from:

• Deleted Scenes (7:47)
  Play All, or select from two deleted scenes.
  • Gwen and Ernesto Talk in the Library (1:15)
    In the library, Gwen tells Ernesto that her dreams scare Finn, and so Ernesto offers to go with her to the camp instead.
  • Mustang Talks to Group (:54)
    As Gwen and Ernesto< they leave Ken and Barb's house, Mustang suggests they talk to Mando.
  • Mando Talks About the Camp Closing (1:19)
    Mando tells Gwen, Ernesto & Finn what happened at the camp in 1958.
  • Mustang and Gwen Talk in the Chapel (1:04)
    Mustang tells Gwen not to be scared.
  • Ernesto and Gwen Kiss (1:22)
    Ernesto and Gwen kiss in the woods.
  • Gwen Prays (1:24)
    Gwen prays by the frozen lake.
  • Ken and Barb Ask Gwen and Finn to Come Back (:29)
    Ken and Barb give Gwen and Finn a counselor application and ask them to come back.
• Dialed In: The Cast of Black Phone 2 (10:33)
  The cast and crew talk about returning for a sequel, the characters, the cast, and more. Includes behind-the-scenes footage, and interviews with producer Jason Blum, executive producer/story writer (“The Black Phone”) Joe Hill, director/co-writer/producer Scott Derrickson, executive producer/second unit director Maggie Levin, and stars Mason Thames (“Finn”), Miguel Mora (“Ernesto”), Madeleine McGraw (“Gwen”), Anna Lore (“Hope”), Arianna Rivas (“Mustang”), Demián Bichir (“Mando”) & Ethan Hawke (“Grabber”).
• A Story Carved in Ice (10:45)
  The cast and crew talk about the new look of the Grabber, the effects, prosthetics, stunts, combining Super 8 and digital shots, and more. Includes behind-the-scenes footage, and interviews with co-writer/producer C. Robert Cargill, executive producer/story writer Joe Hill, director/co-writer/producer Scott Derrickson, producer Jason Blum, costume designer Amy Andrews Harrell, production designer Patti Podesta, hair department head Nathan Rival, stunt coordinator Branko Racki, key stunt rigger Marco Bianco, special effects on set key Fred Gagnon, special effects on set Daniel Vasquez, VFX supervisor Ivan Moran, executive producer Adam Hendricks, executive producer/second unit director Maggie Levin, and stars Mason Thames, Madeleine McGraw, Demián Bichir & Anna Lore.
• Frozen in Time (10:12)
  The cast and crew talk about filming in a cold Hell for the sequel, the 1982 setting, finding the right location, the look of the film, shooting in the snow, the Lake Maru set, and more. Includes behind-the-scenes footage, and interviews with production designer Patti Podesta, costume designer Amy Andrews Harrell, director/co-writer/producer Scott Derrickson, VFX supervisor Ivan Moran, makeup department head Colin Penman, co-writer/producer C. Robert Cargill, producer Jason Blum, executive producer/story writer Joe Hill, executive producer/second unit director Maggie Levin, special effects on set Daniel Vasquez, executive producer Adam Hendricks, and stars Arianna Rivas, Mason Thames & Madeleine McGraw.
• Feature Commentary by Director/Co-writer/Producer Scott Derrickson (1:53:52)
  Like with the first movie, director/co-writer/producer Scott Derrickson provides another thoroughly-entertaining and informative commentary throughout the film. He talks about how the sequel came about, and once again delves into the auto-biographical aspects of the movie, including the 1980s camp setting, and shares lots of other stories and behind-the-scenes information about the production.

Final Thoughts:

Black Phone 2 is a solid follow-up to the first film. It keeps the same tone and feel while also expanding the world and mythology in an exciting and natural way. The cast is excellent, leaning more on Madeleine McGraw this time around. Universal’s Blu-ray release looks and sounds great, and includes some entertaining bonus material. This comes highly recommended for fans of the first film. While maybe not necessary, I still would suggest watching the original movie before watching this if you haven’t already seen it.