The fiendish mastermind behind the 976-Evil number is at it again, and this time he's got a demented college dean, Mr. Grubeck (Rene Assa) doing his bidding. Grubeck is arrested after a witness is able to pinpoint him as a killer, but no jail is going to keep Grubeck from doing his homicidal duties. You see, he's now given the power of astral projection. So his spirit can be out and about murdering people while his body catches some z's in his prison cell. But opposing him is Spike (Pat O'Bryan), who fans of the first film know has been through all this before. Spike hooks up with Robin (Debbie James), a stunning college student, and together they set out to stop Grubeck. Overall, a decent sequel to a decent first film, "976-Evil II" is rough going for a while, but greatly improves once it comes up with its major set piece which ingeniously melds "It's a Wonderful Life" and "Night of the Living Dead". Too bad the rest of the movie isn't that clever. Still, it does deliver one pretty good runaway car sequence, and the climactic action boasts one Hell of an impressive explosion. The makeup effects are fairly effective, although other visual effects are so bad as to be laughable - in a good way, for this viewer. Director Jim Wynorski serves up a generous serving of both cheese and crud in a movie that is reasonably amusing for what it is. O'Bryan manages to keep a straight face while working overtime to project a sense of "cool". Bubbly blonde James, a former Miss Teen USA and Miss Colorado and Miss USA finalist, is appealing and acts her little heart out as the gal who segues from potential victim to heroine. Wynorski works with some of his regulars, such as Paul Coufos, super sexy Monique Gabrielle, and the very funny Ace Mask, and other familiar faces include Rod McCary, Karen Mayo-Chandler, Mindy Seeger, ever hilarious George "Buck" Flower in a somewhat more substantial part than usual, and Brigitte Nielsen in a special guest appearance as the seductive proprietress of a bookstore specializing in the occult. Chuck Cirino's music score is great and there are even some songs credited to the actor Vincent D'Onofrio! A heads up for people who like in jokes: pay attention and you'll see the names Joe Bob Briggs and Roger Corman (Roger "Gorman", actually), who was Wynorski's boss for many years, on a poster. This could be best described as the kind of movie that does have its moments. One has to give Wynorski credit, as he sticks some eye candy with Mayo- Chandler right near the beginning of the movie. The ending is one of those deals where people will either appreciate it or be annoyed by it. At least it's not a predictable one. Six out of 10.

Either I've never seen the first 976-Evil or it's been so long that I've forgotten all about it, but this matters not, for Part 2 is directed by Jim Wynorski whose preferred film-making route is to prioritise gratuitous tits and ass over plot progression. It might not be all that sophisticated, but hot women being chased around in their panties is never boring in my book and, sure enough, within minutes, a busty blonde gets her kit off to take a shower and is attacked by a serial killer who offs her in a manner that doesn't use up too much of the budget. Things look set for some seriously trashy entertainment.Sadly, from thereon in, Wynorski unwisely changes tack, with shoddy effects and terrible storytelling taking precedence over bare female flesh, any subsequent busty women keeping their clothes on.The rest of the film is packed full of the kind of random weirdness that proliferated many a cheapo horror of the late 80s/early 90s: there's a kitchen full of malevolent appliances; the bad guy practises astral projection (an art taught to him by Brigitte Nielsen); the hero pulls a fully loaded machine gun from a wall to shoot-up a talking stuffed pig's head (!?!); and the heroine's best friend Paula (Leslie Ryan) is sucked into her TV, where she is attacked by zombies from Christmas classic It's A Wonderful Life (I kid you not!). While this might sound like a lot of crazy fun, the crap acting, Wynorski's uninspired direction, and the sheer inanity of the script (if indeed there was a script) make it a painful experience.2.5 out of 10, very generously rounded up to 3 for IMDb.

If you're not familiar with the first film from 1988, it starred Stephen Geoffreys (had a notable role in 1985's Fright Night) as a bullied youth who dials 976-Evil and receives supernatural powers that turn him into a demon; Splendid 80's creature horror that couldn't have been better. This remake does not maintain substantial continuity nor does Geoffreys return to reprise his role. Patrick O'Bryan does return to fulfill his role of Spike, however – the cousin to the main character of the first film. A college student by name of Robin discovers that her dean, Mr. Grubek, is accused of being the Slate River Killer – a deranged killer responsible for murdering other young females. By submitting his will to the mysterious voice over the phone, Grubek is given the power of astral projection (that is to say, he can leave his body at will and still perform certain tasks). After witnessing another girl's death at the hands of Grubek, Robin learns the secrets of the phone line with the aid of Spike - a man all-too-familiar with how powerful and dangerous it can be.Whoever said this movie was better than the first installment was a lunatic. I should have known this sequel was going to fall flat on its face. It was a straight-to-VHS release and just based on visuals alone anyone can draw that conclusion. There's no charm to be found in its weak attempt at black humor either; it's just lame all-around. I can't think of one likable thing about this film – not one! The makeup is pitiful in comparison to the first and all of the actors do a lackluster job (specifically one of the police officers who's on watch duty – I hope someone wrote him after that performance and told him to quit forever, or else).The cheapness that encompasses the production value speaks volumes. I'd only agree to watch this movie on the premise that it was background filler and I was pre-occupied with something more important. Being that it was only important for me to watch this once, I don't expect to view it ever again – but whenever I get that feeling of satisfaction within me, and I let a bad title remain in my past, it always manages to find a way creep back in. So, with that said, this probably won't be the last time I see you, 976-Evil II.In passing, it mentions Joe Bob Briggs on a wall advertisement. This was obviously intentional, as Joe Bob's Drive-in Theater was shown regularly on television at the time – a show in which Joe Bob (John Bloom) would provide trivia and humorous critiques of B-rated movies. He later expanded upon this format and shifted his focus to straight-to-VHS horror movies. It was basically like giving permission to ridicule the film on account of how terrible it was. I have no idea what to make of the ending. No idea at all. I'm all for nontraditional endings that don't have to end happily, but COME ON. Is that what you call a twist? I call that, "I tripped over something that was laying on the floor and fell against a wall, then proceeded to fall end-over-end down a long spiral staircase, rendering me unconscious upon impact." Don't waste your time with this one and heed my warning.

Poor excuse of a movie using the success of the first one to hopefully bring in fans, but not sure it got many.Patrick O'Bryan from part 1 returns back to the town where he killed his cousin because the hotline is back and a killer is once again on the lose. This time its the dean of a college and it has him possessed and he's killing anyone in his path.This movie was majorly flawed. Jim Wynorski isn't the greatest director and editor Nina Gilberti is a major person to blame and she and Jim work together a lot so who's really to blame for these shots. The music has potential, but always seems to be either too cheesy or very inappropriate for the actions on the screen.The acting isn't too bad, Rene Assa as the possessed dead, Pat O'Bryan as a motorcycle riding pro. Great scenes with Brigitte Nielsen, Leslie Ryan and the legendary Buck Flowers. The one actor that was horrible was the lead girl, Robin (Debbie James) I didn't like the new and improved phone message on the hotline, it wasn't cool like the first movie. There was hardly no blood here and the killings were mostly off screen and it was not that exciting. There was a super cool scene though that makes up for a lot of the junk. Paula and Robin are watching TV and going back and fourth between "It's a Wonderful Life" and "Night of the Living Dead" and then Paula gets sucked into the TV in a black and white madness, as the Frank Capra classic comes to life and they all turn into zombies and she ends up being stabbed to death by a little girl with a trowel.It wasn't a masterpiece even in B-Movie horror standards, but it is worth a watch 4 out of 10 stars.