Horror has not got off to a great start in 2020: Fantasy Island, Gretel and Hansel, The Grudge, and The Turning bombed with both audiences and critics, and unsurprisingly, Brahms: The Boy II is not the film to course-correct that. Quite frankly, this sequel has the least reason to exist.
The Rant
Unlike the films listed above, Brahms is not an attempt at reviving a once-popular IP. Instead, director William Brent Bell and writer Stacey Menear return with a sequel that is four years past its expiration date. In fact, it feels like these filmmakers have forgotten about the events of The Boy completely as this sequel blatantly disregards its twists and plot developments.
It is revealed in the third act of 2016's The Boy that the real Brahms hides inside the walls and moves his freaky doll counterpart around the house to torment his victims (baffling, I know). There is no mention of supernatural forces. Flash forward to the 2020 sequel and the filmmakers have decided to rewrite Brahms' origin. Now, Brahms is a demonic doll who turns his owners mad, psychotic and suicidal. Not only does this cheapen the first film's bold and bonkers twist, it reduces Brahms to just another evil, possessed doll.
Looking at Bell and Menear's filmography, neither have been credited on another project since Brahms' 2016 predecessor (a likely testament to its quality). Yet when given the opportunity by STX Entertainment to produce a sequel to their respectable hit [The Boy grossed $64 million worldwide], they can only come up with a lazy 80 minute feature that undoes the original's character-building. What was the point? Were Bell and Menear that desperate for work that they opted to break their own rules? It goes without saying that Brahms would not be impressed.
The Review
After Greta's encounter with Brahms in 2016, the titular doll finds a new owner in the sequel: Jude (Christopher Convery), the young son of Liza (Katie Holmes) and Sean (Owain Yeoman). The family plan a relaxing vacation to the British countryside after a traumatic home invasion and, while his parents stroll around the Heelshire Mansion grounds, Jude unburies Brahms. Unsurprisingly, Liza and Sean mindlessly allow their child to befriend the creepy, ancient doll...nailing yet another pin into the coffin of originality. As Jude's attachment to Brahms gets progressively more intense, his behaviour starts to change. He becomes rude, disobedient and sinister.
Brahms follows the same stale formula as most modern horror films yet Menear's script is underwritten and still suffers from pacing issues. The entire film feels rushed. However, unlike its predecessor which was simultaneously manic and a slow burn, Brahms' pace increasingly multiplies. From the brief home invasion at the beginning of the film to the ridiculous reveal at the end that Brahms has been waiting since his creation to be united with Jude, there is not enough time for the audience to digest and comprehend these misfired moments. Brahms has the same narrative depth as a (poorly made) short feature; it's worrying that Menear is also credited as a script editor.
With such a terrible script, actors Holmes, Yeoman and Convery had the biggest challenge of all: to save this sinking ship. Unfortunately, their performances are mostly forgettable and do little to elevate the material. It did not help that they all played unlikable characters. Not only are Liza and Sean irresponsible parents (who would let their child keep a doll like Brahms?), but Sean is a really shifty husband. He is conveniently absent on the night of the home invasion, shames Liza for not dealing with her trauma and also acts unnecessarily cold towards the caretaker (Ralph Ineson). Moreover, the film attempts to position Jude as a mentally damaged child, but his bratty behaviour makes him more annoying than sympathetic. All in all, I missed Lauren Cohan.
There was one stomach-turning moment in 2016's The Boy that was genuinely terrifying: when the real adult Brahms climbs out of a mirror. Bell tries to replicate this in the sequel with a masked, Brahms-ed up Jude emerging from a doorway. I do not think Bell understands why this worked in the predecessor, but not in the sequel. In The Boy, this moment is a twisted, jaw-dropping reveal whereas in Brahms, it is nothing more than a crazy child (over)dramatically entering a room. The one scare in Brahms that is effective occurs when Liza takes a closer look at the doll's face which briefly turns demonic. However, the tension and horror is immediately wiped as it is revealed that it was just a vision.
The scariest thing about Brahms: The Boy II is that somebody somewhere thought it would be a good idea to release a sequel that ignores all aspects of its predecessor...and those somebodies are the exact same creative team. Tha don't make no cents luv.
