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You can all jump for joy, because there is finally another sequel that is better than the original… but that’s not saying much. It’s easy to be better when you are a sequel to an American remake of a Japanese flick. Pulse 2: Afterlife is a mostly unwanted film, but despite the fact that there is no interest in the film in any way shape or form, the film was still made. The good news is that they actually put some effort into this film. The bad news is that they didn’t put much money behind that effort, which leaves the film feeling a little cheap.

The story picks up at the end of the American remake, with society experiencing a free fall. A father and a mother are both looking for their missing daughter. The catch is the mother is dead, but doesn’t know it. The father finds the girl and must protect her from the soul-stealing ghost that her mother has become while trying to find a safe place for his daughter, which sets up a pretty interesting film.

The look of this movie is complete garbage. The film is shot with a digital camera that is entirely too crisp, so crisp that many shots look like they have been shot on a green screen with the characters placed in the foreground. This effect is compounded by the fact that many scenes were actually made using a green screen. The world of Pulse 2 is hokey looking and not real enough to give the film a solid context. Characters stumble about random scenes of chaos which lose their impact because they don’t feel real.

The direction is solid and Joel Soisson does a wonderful job of creating some interesting imagery here and there. The film would be even better if it weren’t for the abysmal camera work on the film. Soisson’s movie does an excellent job of continuing events from the first film, while still managing to create its own story, a story that is better than a DTV sequel has any right to. The pacing of the film is solid and the film flies by aided by some creepy imagery.

The acting in the film isn’t all that bad. The cast is composed mostly of people who feel like they should be in a Sci-Fi series, rather than in an actual movie, but they play their parts well for the most part. Jamie Bamber makes a surprisingly sympathetic figure as Stephen, the father of the girl in question. Boti Bliss takes her clothes off and wanders around as a naked ghost… probably a good thing, because when she’s alive in the movie, she can’t deliver her lines with any sort of skill. Even the actress that plays the little girl does a fine job… and we all know how much I despise child actors.

The special effects are the main place where the consequences of a low-budget rear their head. Whereas the effects of the first film were probably the best thing about it, here the special effects are easily the worst thing about Pulse 2. The CGI looks fake as hell, and scenes of bruising spreading across people’s bodies looks as if it was carelessly drawn on. Most of the special effects are weak, and even the blurry visions of ghosts don’t look as good as they did in the first film.

Pulse 2 is a surprisingly well-done sequel… to a movie that no one gives a shit about, which probably means most people won’t give a shit about this one. With a little more money and a camera that didn’t make the film look fake, this film could have been a solid 7. As it is, the effects take it down a notch and the look of the film will leave a bad taste in your mouth… something like raw mussels covered in tofu butter.

Final Synopsis: Pulse 2 is a solid effort, but it’s still a skip. If you really enjoyed the first film, there’s probably something wrong with you, but you may want to check this one out.

Points Lost: -1 for extra parts that are unexplained and dropped by the end of the movie, -1 for shitty CGI, -1 for a cheap look, -1 for some plot inconsistencies as scene between the first film, -1 for some less than savory acting

Lesson Learned: Ghost taco is hot.

Burning Question: What happened to the dude in red?

Pulse 2: Afterlife
5/10

Tags: 2008, anti-technology, diane goldner, dimension extreme, ghost boobs, horror, horror movie, jamie bamber, joel soisson, latest movie reviews, post-apocalyptic, recent1, sequel, straight to dvd sequel, todd giebenhain