Silent Night, Deadly Night Part 2

“IT’S GARBAGE DAY!

Ricky is being released from a mental hospital. He takes with him the terrifying memory of his brother Billy’s death and the memory of Mother Superior who brought about his brother’s demise. For Ricky, starting a new life means avenging his brother’s death, which sets him on a blind journey of relentless revenge, leading ultimately to Mother Superior. And when he gets to her, not even her faith will be enough to stop Ricky as he follows in the family tradition of Christmas carnage.”

Silent Night, Deadly Night Part 2 opens with Ricky (Eric Freeman), the brother of the killer from the first film, being interviewed by a doctor in a mental institution, trying to get the record straight on what happened leading up to his incarceration. Billy describes in great detail the events from the first film, even those he or his brother weren’t present for. After Billy’s death, Ricky goes to live with a foster family who doesn’t celebrate Christmas, but soon he begins to have panic attacks any time he sees a nun. A few years after, Ricky witnesses a man trying to rape a woman in a secluded wooded area. Provoking flashbacks of his mother being raped by a man in a Santa suit, he promptly hops in a nearby Jeep and runs the guy over. As he gets older, certain things trigger memories in him that lead to violent reactions and madness, wanting to punish those who are naughty, ultimately leading him to his relationship with Jennifer (Elizabeth Cayton) and the incident that sends him over the deep end.

You know when a TV show you love decides to take a break for a week and the entire episode consists of flashbacks and about five minutes of new material? That’s what Silent Night, Deadly Night Part 2 is, the film version of a flashback episode. The first 40 minutes of the film is a replay of Part 1, intercut with about a minute at a time of Ricky talking to the doctor at the mental institution. It’s clear that the writers had no story for this, or just didn’t want to come up with anything additional, and you’d think there is no real benefit of this whatsoever, because just replaying the older film is just simply boring and a complete cop-out. However, anything to make there be less of Eric Freeman and his acting just has to be a good thing.

In the special features, it’s mentioned that the filmmakers had a professional actor who was also a director in mind to play Ricky. Then, for no reason whatsoever, they decided Eric Freeman’s look was what they wanted. Maybe they didn’t let him open his mouth? Or let his eyebrows fly all over the place? But what Freeman brought to the film is quite possibly some of the worst acting I’ve ever seen in my life. It’s The Room bad. Why do his eyebrows move like a robot trying to display emotion? Or laugh in such a weird, mechanic/maniacal way? If I didn’t see him in these special features and the fact that he has aged, I would have thought that he was a robot. That being said, it’s the horrible acting that makes this film the cult classic that it is. “It’s Garbage Day!” is such a bad line said for no reason at all, but it’s Freeman’s horrid delivery that makes them laugh. There are plenty more head scratching one liners in this that will keep the laughter coming, so don’t worry about that.

In the ‘new’ portion of the film, some of the makeup and practical effects were done very well. The electrocution scene, the bullet to the security officer’s forehead, all looked great given the film’s budget. One thing I did question was Mother Superior’s face. So, she had a stroke, and that makes one half of her face look like Linda Blair from The Exorcist? Either someone doesn’t understand what strokes do, or there was some unnamed explanation we weren’t given in the final cut.

Although the film is entirely unoriginal thanks to most of it being just Part 1 played like it was a memory, Silent Night, Deadly Night Part 2 does create some memorable scenes that are celebrated by fans of this cult classic.

Video

The video is presented in 1080p High Definition Widescreen 1.85:1 with a new 2k scan of an archival theatrical print. There is a noticeable difference in quality in the ‘flashback’ scenes from Part 1 and the sequences of Part 2. The Part 1 sequences are very clean and detailed, with the Part 2 being somewhat blurry at times, with considerable damage from scratches and other blemishes that are all part of being a theatrical run print. It may not be the best source for a transfer, but if that’s the only thing available, a new scan from that is an impressive feat. This definitely doesn’t look as good as the transfer from Scream Factory’s Part 1 release.

Audio

The audio is presented in DTS-Master Audio Mono. No real issues or noticeable problems with the audio track. You’ll hear that horrible, dumb laugh from Ricky quite clearly, as well as the campy one-liners that have given this film cult-status.

Special Features

Scream Factory again goes above and beyond what this film deserves, all for the pleasure of fans. With the main behind-the-scenes featurette almost as long as the film, it goes in depth on a lot of stuff that’s all more entertaining than the film itself. Although I didn’t really care for them getting Eric Freeman to reprise his role as Ricky in a short, it’s nonetheless really cool that they did that and should have true fans wanting more.

Here’s what you’re going to see on this set:

• NEW 2K Scan Of An Archival Theatrical Print
• NEW Audio Commentary With Director Lee Harry, And Actors Eric Freeman And James Newman
• NEWSlay Bells Ring Again: The Story Of Silent Night, Deadly Night 2 – Featuring Interviews With Co-Writer/Director Lee Harry, Actors Eric Freeman, James Newman, Elizabeth Kaitan, Darrel Guilbeau, And Kenny McCabe, And Makeup Effects Artist Christopher Biggs
• NEW Garbage Days Are Here Again– A Look At The Film’s Locations
• NEW Ricky Today– A short Film Featuring A 2018 Interview With Ricky Caldwell
• NEW I Don’t Sleep– An Extended Interview With Makeup Effects Artist Christopher Biggs
• Audio Commentary By Co-Writer/Director Lee Harry, Co-Writer Joseph H. Earle, And Actor James Newman
• Theatrical Trailer

This film didn’t even have enough story to make its own feature-length film but somehow becomes a cult sensation thanks to some really bad acting. Scream Factory’s treatment of this film and the extras included will definitely make fans very happy. Can we hope to see Part 3 next year?