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TERROR TRAIN 2 (2022)

Directed by Philippe Gagnon.
Written by Ian Carpenter, Aaron Martin.
Starring Robyn Alomar, Nadine Bhabha, Nia Roam, Romy Weltman, Lisa Truong, Emma Elle Paterson, Tori Barban, Dakota Jamal Wellman, Ess Hödlmoser, Tim Rozon, Daniel Gravelle, Matthew Villeneuve, Judith Baribeau, Corteon Moore!

In order to get some catharsis from the traumatic events the last time she was on a train, Alana (Robyn Alomar) is coerced by her overprotective roommate Claudia (Nia Roam) to take a ride on another Terror Train celebrating the one year anniversary of the murders. She is joined by all of the survivors from the previous films; train conductor Sadie (Nadine Bhabha), social media whore Pet (Romy Weltman), her best pal Merri (Tori Barban), the class President (Dakota Jamal Wellman) and don’t forget the skeezy Magician (Tim Rozon) and newcomers; reporter Lucie (Lisa Truong), dork The Wil (Daniel Gravelle), and gender-fluid security guard XNDR (Ess Hödlmoser). That’s a full train. But don’t worry, there’s a new killer making his/her/their way through the cabins with a mask and an assortment of bladed weapons. Alana is forced to face her fears and take on this killer for the second time.

I don’t know what I was expecting. The first TERROR TRAIN was a kind of limp biscuit of a horror movie. It wasn’t bloody. It wasn’t scary. It wasn’t really interesting because none of the characters were worth caring about. I don’t know why I thought the second outing by basically the same cast and crew would be any better. But TERROR TRAIN 2 actually is in some ways.

The characters are somewhat more interesting as each has their own reason to be on the train. Robyn Alomar isn’t any more sufferable here. She has CW level acting skills, as do most of those starring in this film. But her story is more interesting now that the initial trauma is over and she is forced to face her demons all over again. The same can be said for most of the characters. While the actors aren’t great, they are ok at conveying the development of their characters. Even smaller characters like Merri gets a small moment to process the horrors of the last train ride. My favorite character continues to be Pet, played with devilish glee by Romy Weltman, who desperately wants the fame Alana received from being the final girl from the last film and goes out of her way to promote herself over all other concerns. Plus she’s pretty smokin’ hot. Again, the Magician (played by Tom Rozon) exudes a creepy vibe, even when he’s trying to be sincere. It’s the Richard Greco hair, flashy clothes, and close talking that immediately screams, “playground watcher,” and makes you want to keep your distance from him. Last but not least is the security guard XNDR played by Ess Hödlmoser, who apparently is a stunt person, but their lisp, gait, and slight build never lives up to the tough talk they give throughout the film. If you want to highlight how tough a character is, just show a scene with them being tough. The tough talk with nothing to back it up just isn’t very convincing. Seems despite the fact that the actor is capable of doing action, the filmmakers were more about LGBTQ representation than actually making a cool character.

The mystery is overly complex. Red herrings are tossed out right and left. One of them is never really cleared up while the final unmasking proved to be disappointing considering the potential of what the character could have delivered in further sequels. TERROR TRAIN 2 is SCREAM-lite, leaning heavy on the self aware quips from the social media addicted characters. Online persona is a major aspect of the film, as it is the same preoccupation of the intended audience of this film. TERROR TRAIN 2 is slightly bloodier than the first one, but again, feels run of the mill. It’s a step up. It’s not a great slasher film by any lengths, but TERROR TRAIN 2 is a marked improvement from the first one and proof that you can whip together a sequel in a short amount of time (less than a year).

If you’ve seen the first one and made it through, you might as well check this one out too. That’s am much of a recommendation as you’re going to get from me on TERROR TRAIN 2.

Check out the trailer here!!
Check out my review for TERROR TRAIN 2022 here!!