*Minor spoilers for The Boy and Brahms: The Boy II*

It feels like a lot longer than four years ago when I sat down to watch ”The Boy,” and yet, here we are. If you, like me, are one of the few people that remember watching ”The Boy,” then you’ll know the satisfying comedic appeal when your absurd thoughts about the other-worldly doll are done away with when 28-year-old Brahms busts out of his living space behind the wall, explaining the mysterious happenings going on in the house. To me, that made the whole 97 minutes worth it. Flash forward to 2020, the sequel nobody asked for came as just as much as a shock as a grown man wearing a baby mask busting out of a wall. 

“Brahms: The Boy II” begins with a home invasion in the household of Liza, Sean, and their son Jude. The fear from the invasion spurs the decision to make a move to the Heelshire Estates, the grounds in which the events of the first film took place. As it stands in most horror movies, the family has no idea about the history of their temporary home. Jude discovers the doll buried in the woods along with its complete wardrobe. The plot progresses with Liza, the mother, beginning to believe that the doll has some sort of supernatural abilities. With a quick google search, Liza learns of the atrocities that have been attributed to this doll since the 1800s. With Jude now submitting to the power of the doll and a crazed groundskeeper attempting to make that happen, the doll is hunted by Liza and Sean, smashed and burned. The family returns to their previous house only for the audience to find that Jude has, in fact, been totally possessed.

I take it that if someone went to see a film similar to this one, you don’t really go for the plot but more so for the horror. You go to feel the thing that keeps you up at night. This movie provided very little of that. Much of the appeal of the first film was lack of knowledge in regard to what was going on with the doll. Did it have powers? Was everybody imagining it? Once it is revealed that it was someone living in the walls, the interest in terror is renewed and mixed with intrigue as the answer to your questions is more interesting than the prospect of a haunted doll. In the sequel, the viewer already knows, assuming they watched the 2016 predecessor, that Brahms, the man in the walls, is dead. Now having the knowledge that the creators changed such an amusing piece of the lore by giving the doll ghostly abilities, removes interest. At the very least, little in the way of any explanation can live up to that of the first film. 

Most of the horror in this flick centered around nothing substantial. If you ask me, horror is something that might only give you a quick chill in the moment but comes back exponentially at the worst times. Kind of like when you’re taking one last look around your room at night before you turn out the lights or when you close your eyes to wash your hair but have the worst feeling someone is standing behind you. ”Brahms: The Boy II,” however, must disagree with me, because I slept no problem that night. The fear factor is mostly portrayed here in jump scares. This comes under the assumption that anyone will feel an inherent reaction in the moment but that moment is fleeting and somewhat lazy. 
I do question why someone decided to make this movie in the first place. It isn’t like the first was overly successful or gained too large of a following. Furthermore, I question who figured the changes to the history of Brahms was a good idea. To me, it was really the final nail in the coffin of potential. There were, however, a few redeeming qualities such as some innovative camera shots and editing coupled with an eerie score and some common horror tropes. This mixed with lack of originality, spooks, and any compelling story still left ”Brahms: The Boy II” free-falling only to land flat on its face. That being said, I implore you, if you decide to sit and watch this movie, I can’t stop you, but please, explore all other options first.