Fear Street Part 2: 1978 (Mini-Review)

Fear Street Part 2: 1978 is the second of a movie trilogy based on the Fear Street books by R.L.Stine. This installment takes place just after Fear Street Part 1: 1994. In it Deena and Josh Johnson go to the only survivor of the Camp Nightwing massacre in the hopes of releasing Samantha "Sam" Fraser from the wicked grasp of the witch. But will the survivor actually give Deena and Josh hope? Or will her story be another confirmation of how cursed Shadyside will be for eternity? Fear Street Part 2: 1978 was released on Netflix in 2021. It was directed by Leigh Janiak. It stars Sadie Sink, Emily Rudd, Ryan Simpkins, and McCabe Slye.

While I loved Fear Street Part 1: 1994, I find the second installment a step up. Part 2 is still a tame horror movie where the pace is very fast. What makes Part 2 different is the fact it seems a little more coherent. Characters arcs and twists are done better as the foreshadowing is made clearer with a tighter story.

So does any kill live up to the bride slicer kill in Part 1? Sadly no. But that doesn't mean there is a lack of blood spilled and character deaths that hit you hard. Cindy Berman's boyfriend, Tommy Slater, is possessed by the witch this time around. Which means throughout the film there's worry about who will have to kill him the end. Because C. Berman is the only Shadyside survivor, his death warrant was issued before the movie even started.

The main heart of the film is the uneasy relationship between Cindy and her sister Ziggy. The former follows the rules to a fault while the latter has a very carefree attitude about the world. So while people are getting slaughtered, I was worried about if the sisters would be able to mend their frayed relationship. As you might have guessed, Ziggy is just a nickname. Since she is a big David Bowie fan, she named herself Ziggy after Ziggy Stardust. So there's even a question of which sister will die. I mean...Ziggy's first name could start with a 'C' after all.

This movie dials back with the songs unlike the first one. Though I didn't mind all the songs in the first movie, because it made me feel nostalgic, I did like that the second film dialed it back. Plus since there were less songs, the songs were allowed to play longer and have more of an impact. "The Man Who Sold the World" by David Bowie and "Carry On Wayward Son" by Kansas play during big moments of the movie.

The lore of Sarah "the Witch" Fier is expanded on. Most of the new lore is courtesy of the nurse Mary Lane. She had become obsessed with defeating the curse over Shadyside since her daughter, Ruby, had been previously possessed by the witch. She wrote down things she learned in a book which first Ziggy sees and later Cindy takes.

Part 2's ending makes me think that much more is going on with the curse over Shadyside than most people know about. It could be that Sarah Fier didn't place a curse over the place that would eventually become Shadyside, but others were the cause.

I would recommend Fear Street Part 2: 1978 to horror fans. I would especially recommend Fear Street Part 2: 1978 to those who like Friday the 13th.