Writer and director McG has been able to helm unique projects that range genre to genre, from music videos to Terminator Salvation, and of course, the Charlie’s Angels movies from the 2000s. However, his talent shines best when he is combining comedy, action, and in his newest ventures, horror. The Charlie’s Angels films, though overly sexualized and cheesy, are still extremely entertaining and continue to be celebrated by fans. McG was able to take what made those movies so charming and apply them first to 2017’s The Babysitter, and now to the film’s sequel.
The original Babysitter movie revolved around Cole (Judah Lewis) and his babysitter Bee (Samara Weaving), who seemed to be the coolest person ever until one night Cole witnessed her and her friends performing a Satanic ritual in his living room when he was supposed to be asleep. Having to fight for his life to survive the night, the horror comedy utilized foul language and excessive violence to create a roller coaster ride perfect for the Halloween season.
Now, two years after those events, Cole finds himself ostracized at school for telling everyone that a Satanic cult invaded his home and tried to kill him. His crush Melanie (Emily Alyn Lind) is his only friend, but even she doesn’t believe him. Feeling sorry for him, she decides to invite him to the lake with her and her friends so that Cole isn’t sent away to a psych hospital by his parents. The beginning takes a while to get started as it has to introduce all of Melanie’s new friends as well as a new girl at school, Phoebe (Jenna Ortega), who Cole is immediately struck by. But once the night begins, so do the Satanic shenanigans, and the movie becomes just as fun as the original.
The dead group of teens from the first movie have risen to kill Cole and reclaim their lives, setting Cole off on another night of survival. What worked so well in the first film was its ability to make all of the stupid things the characters say land with humor. Bella Thorne is back as peppy teenager Allison, who was arguably the funniest character in the first one. Her sexual innuendos work just as well in this film, as do the rest of the group’s individual characteristics. They drop one-liners left and right, and though not as many land as they did in the first one, they still work pretty well considering how most comedy in teen films is too overt without being funny.
Killer Queen also throws in a few wild sequences to up the comedy. These are sometimes effective and other times comes off flat, but nonetheless are entertaining. A fantasy dance number in place of a sex scene, as well as a Mortal Kombat fight scene, are among them, just to give you an idea. This technique isn’t anything we haven’t seen before in recent comedies, but they fit perfectly in the kind of story McG is telling here.
As a horror movie, Killer Queen isn’t scary, although it employs a few jump scares mostly for laughs. However, this movie is gorier than the first, with each death occurring through unrealistic and bloody means. This only adds to the comedy, but all of these gimmicks are effective only if the audience is into that sort of genre. People who don’t enjoy outright stupid death scenes or one-off sexual innuendoes probably won’t enjoy this film.
McG’s ability to create charming comedies is still working out for him — The Babysitter: Killer Queen builds off of the original while delivering the same quick humor the fans loved from the first installment. By offering more blood than the first, along with wacky plot devices and a few surprises, the film succeeds in what it set out to do: create an entertaining sequel to the bizarre and vulgar original. For the sake of the fans, let’s hope Netflix finds it in their hearts to fund a third one.
