Disclaimer: I’m a blind film critic and I typically watch films with audio description. this title does have available audio description.
I think this franchise is critic proof, and no matter what any critic says, people will watch it anyway. When you think about the video game this series is based on, it is hard to believe that an Oscar caliber film could ahve ever been milked from it, let alone a sequel in the franchise. They had two ways to go. They could have either had a new cast experience Freddy’s, or return the original cast. They did the latter, and it is possible the film suffers as a result.
I would attempt to describe the film to you, but I’m not even sure the screenwriter could do that. Basically, it picks up where the last film left off, but also connects us to another origin story. In the past, there was an original Freddy’s, and a Marionette puppet that kicks things off by consuming a child. Flash forward, and we are going to spend a lot of time at the new location, which was stylistically different, and even had a little boat ride.
The cast from the first film is back, led by Josh Hutcherson, who is taking care of his little sister Abby (Piper Rubio). Abby really made some friends in the last film, and misses those cute animatronics that were holding the souls of dead kids within them.She’s now into robotics herself, but her teacher is trying to get himself killed off, and is a raging dick to her. She finds solace in a friend, who appears for all of one scene, before the screenwriter disappears him like Jim Caveziel needs to track him down.
So friendless Abby ends up with a device that has a really old voice (think Stephen Hawking), which convinces her to go to this other Freddy’s, and help out the new gang. She needs help with her robotics project, and Chica vows to help. Sure.
There’s also a plot with a ghost influencer gang that wasn’t chosen last year for either Shelby Oaks or House of Eden, so they have to traipse around Freddy’s, notably not really standing a chance.
And then we still have Vanessa (Elizabeth Lail) who is doing the Melissa Barrera thing from Scream 5, where she is reckoning with being the spawn of a serial killer. She also apparently is the only cop in the film. And, if you were worried if Abby’s aunt died in the first film, fear not. She survived, only to spend the entire film only being referenced, and not actually in a damn frame of the film.
I liked very little here. It is worse, for sure, it definitely didn’t improve on the original. characters come and go on a whim. The film is never scary, and for a film based on a game known for jump scares, this has shockingly few even attempts at one. whenever the film needs something to happen, it just does, regardless of whether it makes sense, or explaining the fake science behind it. This entry still made a ton of money, and I’m sure it is a cheap franchise to make, so the promise it makes at the end setting up the third film will likely be executed. Like I said, critic proof. Even if I wasn’t a critic, I wouldn’t like it. There are other horror titles from 2025 I’d rather stand up for, like the aforementioned House on Eden and Shelby Oaks, or even Until Dawn, Fear Street: Prom Queen, Bone lake, or Opus. Truly, the best thing here is that they found, in the first film, a very talented young actress for Abby, which is needed here, because she absorbs far more screentime the second time around.
There are so many unnecessary self inflicted wounds here, like Josh Hutcherson is Mike, so why add a new character named Michael? Just because? there are thousands of names, and you picked Michael, without even doing anything with it. there isn’t even a verbal explanation like very Freddy’s needs a Mike. Nothing.
However, the audio description is brilliant. there’s some stuff that happens at the end, with the clashing of animatronics that was tough to follow and describe, and was handled beautifully. Plus, there’s some violence and gore to describe as well. Mostly, a giant disappointment. There’s a stunt casting with Skeet Ulrich here, but the film barely does anything with him. it felt like an inside joke for the two people in the back. I’m not even sure they spend five nights AT Freddy’s, or that this film took place over five days.
Nonsense. This movie is critic proof, but that doesn’t make it good, nor does it make it coherent.
Rotten: 2.7/10
