Ghoulies II (1988) Review

"He don't go nowhere without his tunes."
-Merle



Sometime after the events of the first movie, the Ghoulies manage to stow away with a traveling carnival.  They hide out in Satan's Den, a haunted house, and quickly become the most popular part of the carnival.  However, people soon start disappearing in Satan's Den and the entire carnival quickly comes under siege from the mischievous, murderous Ghoulies.


What Works:

Ghoulies II is exactly what the first movie should have been.  I was expecting a cheep, ripoff of Gremlins and I was bitterly disappointed the first time around, but this sequel hits the mark exactly.  It feels like a low-budget version of Gremlins and it's fun.  It has tons of cheesy, wacky moments and was exactly what I wanted.

I love the design of the Ghoulies.  They haven't changed much from the first film, but why fix what isn't broke?  They Ghoulies get way more to do this time around and that means more screen time for these awesome creatures.

The setting is absolutely perfect for this movie.  A large portion of it takes place in a spooky fun house and the Ghoulies fit right in.   

I enjoyed J. Downing's performance as the human antagonist, Hardin.  He's just a corporate sleazeball and the type of character you love to hate.  He's fun to root against.

Finally, the 3rd act goes off the rails as the Ghoulies cause chaos across the carnival.  It's a joy to watch and completely ridiculous.  I wasn't expecting the Ghoulies to ever leave the fun house and I was pleasantly surprised that they did and the results were entertaining and over-the-top. 


What Sucks:

As I mentioned, this is a low-budget ripoff of Gremlins and it feels like it at times.  It's mostly a good thing, but the stop-motion effects that occasionally pop up look awful.

Finally, the acting isn't very good across the board.  Besides J. Downing, everyone is sub-par.  Worst of all is Kerry Remsen as the love interest, Nicole.  She just doesn't work at all and is the weakest part of the movie.


Verdict:

I had a blast watching Ghoulies II and it was pretty much exactly what I wanted.  The Ghoulies get more to do, we get a fun villain, a perfect setting, and an awesome 3rd act.  The acting is nothing to write home about and you can tell it's a low-budget film, but this movie has still got it going on.

 7/10: Good 

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