Film Review: CHILDREN of the CORN II: THE FINAL SACRIFICE (1992)

Having only seen this film '" "Children of the Corn II: The Final Sacrifice," once when it was first released it didn't really do anything for me. Now that the film has finally made its way to DVD (being the only one in the entire franchise not to have had a DVD release of some type) I thought I might give it another chance (especially since it was available for purchase with the much better "Part 3: Urban Harvest" film). Maybe I shouldn't have.



Besides the fact that the SFX (what few the film does have) are pedestrian the film lacks any creative kills and the children come off as being about as dangerous as a teddy bear. This film lacks the presence of a good Isaac or Malachai because Micah (Ryan Bollman) lacks the charisma of those characters from the first film. The only good thing about the film is Rosalind Allen as the female lead as she is a personal favorite from the films "Infested (1993)," "Pinocchio's Revenge (1996)," and "SeaQuest DSV."



This story concerns a rag tag reporter John Garrett (Terence Knox) who with his estranged son Danny travel to Gatlin to write the story of the horrendous murders that took place there. When he gets there everyone else has beat him to the punch but still he stays behind to pick up the pieces. He's finds a room with Angela (Allen) who has taken Micah (one of the boys from Gatlin) in while the dust settles over everything that has happened. With the help of local Frank Redbear, John slowly begins to discover the truth behind the murders in Gatlin as well as conspiracy with the local government that will threaten everything he knows. Unbeknownst to him his son Danny is slowly coming under the wings of Micah who sees Danny's estrangement with his father as a means to bring him into the fold of He Who Walks Behind the Rose.



The first film was suspenseful and the children were menacing but in this film there is no suspense and the children are window dressing. The film lacks any real drive (as most horror films of the '90s) and is a by-the-numbers straight to video drivel (despite the fact that this film did get a theatrical release unlike its brethren). Unless you are a fan of the franchise (and I know they are out there since there are about 8 films in the franchise) than this film has nothing to offer for the fans of the original film.