Fantastic Fest 2025: ‘The Black Phone 2’ Finds Depth Through Nightmares
Last night, we attended the first screening of The Black Phone 2 at Fantastic Fest 2025. The sequel sparked considerable interest with its Nightmare on Elm Street-inspired advertising. Showcasing a follow-up that would maneuver the marquee villain of the franchise into a dream-lurking killer in the vein of Freddy Krueger. And given the long, extensive absence of that franchise, using The Black Phone as a placeholder was 100% in my good graces.
While there are influences from Nightmare on Elm Street, the movie has more on its mind than positioning Ethan Hawke as the new Robert Englund. Similar to the first movie, the sequel is heavily rooted in the discussion of confronting trauma. In the first film, it was emotionally driven by the topics of abuse and overcoming the abuser. The sequel is about what happens after the confrontation. More specifically, the challenges of overcoming the pain of the past to find a way forward to heal.
What is The Black Phone 2 about?
Scott Derrickson returns to direct the sequel based on a screenplay by C. Robert Cargill and Derrickson. The film reunites us with Finney (Mason Thames) and Gwen (Madeleine McGraw) in the early eighties during the time of Duran Duran. Finney has grown more aggressive as a high schooler, showing no hesitation in standing up for himself against anyone attempting to push him around. The behavior stems from his days of being bullied, with the added trauma of almost being a victim of The Grabber (Ethan Hawke). Gwen remains the adult in the room between them and their father while also moving into a phase of showing interest in boys. One of them in particular is Ernesto (Miguel Mora), who takes an interest in Gwen and embraces all of her subtle quirks. Ernesto is also the brother of Robin, who was also one of the victims of The Grabber.
As Finney and Gwen try to navigate a life after the tragic events of the first movie, Gwen begins having surreal nightmares about dead children in a snowy climate. The dreams show some of them dead beneath the ice, etching letters on the ice surface beneath the water. But as the dreams repeat nightly, they grow more terrifyingly real, causing her to sleepwalk through a vivid nightmare. Even worse, the familiar face of The Grabber slowly begins to resurface in these dreams, as well as the phone calls outside of the dream world. And these phone calls come from a set of new children summoning Finney and Gwen to a Christian camp at Alpine Lake.
Amazingly shot visuals from director Scott Derrickson
A year or so ago, Derrickson created a segment for V/H/S 85 called “Dreamkill,” where the murderous aspects felt dreamlike. It is now clear that this might have been a test run for the preparation of filming The Black Phone 2. Whenever the movie transitions into nightmares, the footage becomes grainy and dirty, as if it were filmed using a Super 8 camera. Adding to this, cinematographer Pär M. Ekberg masterfully creates an environment that feels jittery, as if the current reality were a stop-motion world. Atticus Derrickson (Scott’s son) impressively makes the music in the nightmare sequences feel hypnotic. It pushes one into an unsettling meditative sound that almost seems to induce relaxation while incorporating horror into the visuals purposely.
While the visual and audio components are riveting, admittedly, the Freddy Krueger inspiration leaves much to be desired. Mainly because the sense of danger from the Elm Street movies is completely lacking here. The brilliance of Freddy Krueger as a villain is that the viewer can never determine when he might attack. Reality and dreams can often feel the same in his environment. Moreover, when Freddy does appear, there is almost a guarantee someone will die. The Black Phone 2 lacks the same teeth, and for most of the movie, hardly anyone faces a threat of death in the same manner as an Elm Street movie. That being said, Ethan Hawke is still a terrifying presence as The Grabber.
The themes from Joe Hill’s original text remain true
The script for The Black Phone 2 is elevated by its tenderness for Finney and Gwen. The themes of overcoming pain and trauma are stronger than ever because of the focus on Gwen. She, like Finney, has her own demons to battle. Her mother allegedly lost her mind and committed suicide, and Gwen begins exhibiting similar symptoms to her mother. One can see Gwen’s journey in this movie as an allegory for generational illness. She seeks answers about the missing children in her dreams, as well as the reason behind Gwen’s mother’s connection to the camp. The direction of Gwen’s story is surprisingly sentimental considering the horror backdrop.
Both Thames and McGraw are terrific here, pushing emotionally raw performances. Thames has a great sequence that communicates the anger that can result from abuse and trauma. We see he is unable to control the inner rage, but we also witness how much he hates it. The one unexpected thing is how much of a performance piece this movie would become.
Overall, The Black Phone 2 is a decent continuation of the first movie. However, considering the marketing, it would be best to adjust expectations. It’s not a Freddy Krueger-inspired slasher but rather a horror film about confronting past trauma. The Elm Street influences are present, but don’t expect a full-throttle supernatural slasher. It’s more interested in the character growth of Finney and Gwen than in resurrecting a horror trope. A few pacing issues aside, The Black Phone 2 is a surprisingly suspenseful and sentimental sequel.
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