"Sinister" was a decent movie. While plagued with a plot that grew overly complicated for its own good, it still managed to create a strong sense of suspense, with its restricted narrative and sense of paranoia. It also helped to have Ethan Hawke leading the way as the film's main character.

The ending of that movie certainly left audiences puzzled and also created a major difficulty for making a sequel. With the plot twist of Bughuul now uncovered, the next film needed to move in a newer direction and showcase the story from a differing perspective.

Directed by Ciaran Foy, "Sinister 2" is a radical departure from its predecessor, though it certainly does little that has not been done in other horror movies. Instead of a restrictive narrative, the story is split into two perspectives -- that of the Collins family and that of Deputy So & So played by James Ransone. Courtney Collins (Shannyn Sossamon) is on the run with her twin sons because her husband is looking to take custody of the kids from her. Meanwhile, the Deputy is trying to destroy the traces of Bughuul by burning down houses that led to family deaths. Courtney and her kids hide out in one of those houses and the Deputy eventually finds them.

However, by that time it is too late. Both boys have already met Baghuul and his band of ghost children. Dylan (Robert Sloan) is the apparent chosen one despite being the "weaker" of the two, something that makes his brother Zach (Dartanian Sloan) jealous and uneasy.

The film certainly gives off a lot of potential, seemingly looking to emphasize a family drama at the center of the horror movie. However, like the opening film, the story keeps piling on more and more information to the point that it becomes overly heavy-handed. Comparisons to the first film are apt as that film relied on subtlety (for the most part) to get its story points across. This film lacks that sense of subtlety with the kids watching a movie that foreshadows their actions, a father that is too obviously abusive and the Deputy's obvious attempts at humor that usually fall flat. Let us not even mention the scares, which are little more than temporary jolts that are rather predictable and do little to create or pay off on any suspense.

The 8mm films make returns, but they become overly elaborate to the point of being unbelievable. Videos in the first movie were credible in their executions, one could actually believe that kids could commit such a murder. This film shows one involving alligators, another involving electrocution and even one with rats chewing their way through people. It is obvious that the filmmakers wanted to up the shock value, taking a cue from the seemingly deceased torture porn genre. Not only are the murders outlandish, but they end up being quite hilarious in the process.

Then there is the big bad Baghuul who seemingly pops up everywhere this time around, his mystery completely done away with. Where he was once scary, now he is silly.

It is not even worth mentioning the big reversal in the middle of the movie in which the main character in this genre of film makes a discovery that will help him defeat the villain. In sequels to franchises like this, that reversal usually takes the form of mythmaking and expanding on the known rules of this universe. The Deputy's conference with a researcher leaves the viewer confused and bewildered. One audience member had some choice words in the middle of the screening and others reacted with similar vitriol. In a few words, the attempts at creating an expanded mythology fall desperately flat, trying to sound intelligent but really adding nothing the viewer couldn't expect or know beforehand.

The climax of the film only adds to the disappointment, resulting in an anticlimactic run for survival that has been seen so many times in slasher movies of yore.

"Sinister 2" is not the worst horror movie in the world. There are certainly more tasteless films out there, but this one seems like a missed opportunity to build off of a decent first installment.