Phantasm II (1988)

February 25, 2025 11:31 AM

[TRAILER] Mike (this time played by James Le Gros), after his release from a psychiatric hospital, teams up with his old pal Reggie (Reggie Bannister) to hunt down the Tall Man (Angus Scrimm), who is at it again. A mysterious, beautiful girl has also become part of Mike's dreams, and they must find her before the Tall Man does.

Also starring Paula Irvine, Samantha Phillips.

Written and directed by Don Coscarelli. Produced by Roberto A. Quezada for Universal Pictures. Cinematography by Daryn Okada. Edited by Peter Teschner. Music by Fred Myrow, Christopher L. Stone.

33% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes.

Find streaming options for your country/services at the film's listing on JustWatch.

posted by DirtyOldTown (5 comments total)

Don Coscarelli continues to be a good horror director here, but maybe doesn't get away with his screenwriting idiosyncrasies as well this time around. Mostly for the faithful.

The actor Reggie Bannister is in hospice now, and his family has requested cards and letters to lift his spirits.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 11:33 AM on February 25 [1 favorite]

I like it but it's an odd film. Strange pacing, with shocking moments of gore that seem out of phase with the vibe.

Sad to hear about Reggie.
posted by Jessica Savitch's Coke Spoon at 5:24 PM on February 25

The last line of the copyright notice on this film must be seen and enjoyed.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 5:36 AM on February 26 [1 favorite]

I might be wrong but this one is the studio picture? It doesn't have the janky energy the other films in the series have. Oddly it is the one I've seen the most aside from the first mostly because it was regularly shown on Canadian TV for whatever reason.

Sorry to hear about Reggie.
posted by Ashwagandha at 6:28 AM on February 26

This was on late night commercial TV all the time in the late '80s/early '90s, and while I expect the gore was excised from it, I was spellbound by The Ball. (I would have been in high school.) The nice thing about this being a studio picture was its budget, which from what I can tell was spent entirely on The Ball and BallCam. I don't think I paid much attention to the rest of the movie, although I've rectified that as an adult.
posted by kittens for breakfast at 4:36 PM on February 27