Eight years after the blood-soaked chaos of See No Evil (2006), the hulking psychopath Jacob Goodnight rises again in See No Evil 2 (2014), a direct-to-video sequel that trades hotel corridors for a morgue’s icy chill. Directed by Jen and Sylvia Soska—the Twisted Twins of indie horror fame—and starring WWE’s Kane (Glenn Jacobs) alongside scream queens Danielle Harris and Katharine Isabelle, this slasher flick aims to revive the franchise with a fresh coat of gore. Released on October 17, 2014, via VOD and hitting Blu-ray shortly after, it’s a lean, mean 90-minute stab-fest that picks up right where its predecessor left off. With a modest budget and a cast of horror vets, See No Evil 2 swings for the fences—sometimes hitting brutal highs, sometimes stumbling into generic lows. Let’s autopsy this sequel and see what’s worth salvaging!
A Morgue Melee: The Setup Strikes Back
See No Evil 2 wastes no time, diving into the aftermath of Jacob Goodnight’s rampage at the Blackwell Hotel. Pronounced dead and carted to the city morgue, the towering killer (Kane) isn’t quite ready to call it quits. The story centers on Amy (Danielle Harris), a morgue worker wrapping up her shift on her birthday. Her co-workers Seth (Kaj-Erik Eriksen) and wheelchair-bound boss Holden (Michael Eklund) are swamped when a flood of bodies—including Jacob’s—rolls in from the hotel massacre. Amy ditches party plans to help, only for her friends to crash the morgue with cake and chaos. Cue Jacob’s miraculous revival, and the sterile slab room turns into a slaughterhouse.
The Soskas play it smart by setting the action on the same night as the first film, dodging timeline headaches while leaning into a Halloween II-style single-location vibe. The morgue—cold, clinical, and cramped—amps up the claustrophobia, though it lacks the original’s grimy character. The plot’s simple: Jacob stalks, slashes, and hooks his way through the crew, driven by a vague mix of vengeance and psychosis. Flashbacks to his abusive, religiously fanatic mother (Nancy Amelia Bell) try to flesh him out, but they’re more recycled noise than revelation. It’s a straightforward slasher setup—nothing groundbreaking, but primed for bloody fun if you’re along for the ride.
A Killer Cast in a Deadly Dance
Glenn Jacobs’ Jacob Goodnight is the hulking centerpiece, a 6’8” wrecking ball of mute menace. Kane’s physicality—scarred, masked, and wielding hooks like a fisherman gone rogue—makes him a slasher icon in the making, even if his dialogue (mercifully sparse) lands flat. The Soskas dial back his first film’s trollish vibe for a more standard masked-killer look, which works but strips some uniqueness. Still, when he’s snapping necks or dragging victims with chains, Jacob’s a force—less nuanced than Jason Voorhees, but just as relentless.
Danielle Harris shines as Amy, bringing her scream-queen pedigree (Halloween 4, Hatchet) to a role that teeters between final girl and decoy. She’s tough, likable, and sells the terror, though her arc feels truncated. Katharine Isabelle’s Tamara, a sexed-up party girl, injects campy energy—straddling Jacob’s corpse in one bizarre scene—but her comedic tone clashes with the film’s grim streak. Kaj-Erik Eriksen’s Seth offers earnest grit, stepping up as a surprise hero, while Michael Eklund’s Holden adds quirky flair before bowing out. The ensemble’s solid, but thin scripting leaves most as kill fodder—predictable deaths for a predictable bunch.
Gore and Guts: The Soskas’ Slasher Spin
The Soskas, riding high off American Mary (2012), bring their indie flair to See No Evil 2, but WWE Studios’ leash shows. The morgue’s stark whites and blues—shot in Vancouver—give it a slick, icy look, a stark pivot from the first film’s dank squalor. The kills, though, are the main event: a throat slit here, a hook through the chest there, all splashed with practical gore that’s satisfyingly nasty. Standouts include a slow, agonizing neck-lift death and a brutal eye-gouging finale—vicious enough to make you wince. Yet, some off-screen kills and tame stabs feel restrained, lacking the wild excess the Twins hinted at in interviews.
Pacing’s a mixed bag. The first act crackles with setup and jump scares—Jacob’s slab-rise is a jolt—but once the stalking begins, it drags. The morgue’s sameness flattens the tension; endless hallways and locked doors can’t match the Blackwell’s creepy sprawl. At 90 minutes, it’s trim, but a midsection slog tests patience. The score, by The Newton Brothers, pulses with dread, and tight editing keeps the gore flowing, yet the film’s ambition feels hemmed in—less a Soska signature than a studio paint-by-numbers with extra blood.
A Sequel’s Strengths and Stumbles
See No Evil 2 has its claws out early. The morgue twist is clever, the cast elevates the material, and Kane’s presence looms large—perfect for a B-movie slasher. Harris and Isabelle spark joy for horror fans, and the Soskas’ eye for gory detail shines in bursts. It’s a step up from the original’s uneven pacing and unlikeable crew, earning a 60% on Rotten Tomatoes (small sample, sure) for sticking to slasher roots. X posts from 2014 praise its “fun kills” and “throwback vibe,” and at $5-10 million (estimated), it’s a lean machine built for VOD thrills.
But it’s not flawless. The script—by Nathan Brookes and Bobby Lee Darby—leans on clichés: the horny couple, the cocky jerk, the nice guy. Jacob’s backstory feels tacked-on, and the morgue’s sterility dulls the atmosphere. The Soskas’ indie edge gets sanded down; where American Mary oozed personality, this feels like a gig they couldn’t fully twist. Continuity hiccups—like Jacob’s miraculous recovery from a pipe through the heart—strain credulity, even for a slasher. It’s a solid rental, not a franchise igniter, leaving you wondering what could’ve been with more freedom.
Thanks and a Call to Keep Screaming
Thanks for slicing into See No Evil 2 (2014) with me! This morgue mayhem’s got its hooks in me, and I hope you’re tempted to give it a whirl—or at least debate its kills. Stick around—more movie madness awaits, from horror haunts to action blasts. What’s your take on Jacob’s comeback? Drop it below, and let’s keep the terror rolling! #SeeNoEvil2 #SlasherRevival #Horror2014
