John P. Ryan returns as Frank Davis, the father of the mutated baby in this, Larry Cohen's sequel to his cult favourite "It's Alive". Frank is now working with a group of people that attempt to help other mutated babies and their parents, and to prevent the tykes from eradication by the authorities. He makes contact with expectant couple Eugene (Frederic Forrest) and Jody (Kathleen Lloyd) and assists in spiriting the kid away to a special sort of clinic. But the cops catch up to them in time to have to deal with the escape of not only Eugene and Jody's offspring but two other murderous infants as well. Cohen had already made his point in the first movie about a possible effect of negative environmental changes on a developing fetus, and his story here is more a portrayal of irrational behaviour that may well annoy some viewers, as it shows how people can be in total denial, and stubbornly continue to engage in dangerous activities, hoping that history won't repeat itself. Characters also opine that maybe, just maybe, the infants have been altered as part of a new step in evolution, a common enough theme in genre fare. But, in the end, there's also the notion present that love and tenderness can temporarily keep a monster at bay. The movie is basically entertaining enough, and respectably paced, with particularly good scenes with Ryan (it's really nice to see him reprise his role) & Forrest and Forrest & John Marley, who plays a cop with a personal motivation for wanting to make the babies extinct. The Bernard Herrmann score is still very effective as well as the Rick Baker makeup effects; Cohen and company refrain from ever giving us an extended look at the babies, which can only be a good thing. The under-rated Forrest is likable as Eugene while the cute Lloyd, an actress whose career should have gone further, is similarly appealing as Jody, although some folk watching may grow tired of their vacillating on the issue of what to do with their child. Marley is very good in his role, while Andrew Duggan, Eddie Constantine, and Cohen regular James Dixon also provide solid support, and Cohen's daughter Jill Gatsby pops up in a small part. All things considered, this isn't as sharp or memorable as the first movie but not really bad either. Six out of 10.

It Lives Again starts is Tuscon in Arizona where Eugene (Frederic Forrest) & Jody Scott (Kethleen Lloyd) are expecting their first child, the couple is contacted by Frank Davis (John P. Ryan) who was the father of a mutant baby & warns them that they Jody is about to give birth to another mutant baby. Frank claims that the Government have set up a team to kill all the babies at conception & that he wants to protect them, the Government extermination team is lead by the ruthless Mallory (John Marley) while Frank belongs to a small group of scientists who want to protect & study the babies. Jody gives birth to her mutant baby & goes on the run from Mallory's team, in a secluded mountaintop house Jody & Eugene learn that Frank & the scientists have two other mutant babies that they are studying & caring for...Also known as It's Alive 2: It Lives Again just like it's predecessor It's Alive (1974) this was written, produced & directed by Larry Cohen who continues, elaborates & expands on the story & ideas of the original rather than just rehash & reuse them. A few character's return from the original It's Alive, most notably Frank Davis the father of the first mutant baby is now an activist helping to protect them & giving passionate speeches although the progression of the character is somewhat halted when he is unexpectedly killed off. The human villain here Mallory is joined by the cop Detective Perkins from the original It's Alive although he gets no such dramatic overhaul, the conflict between the two sides with those who want to protect the babies & those who just want to exterminate them is also elaborated on as entire networks are set-up to fool & evade the authorities. The scientific team feel that the babies are the next step in human evolution which is a bit of a stretch & I still have a hard time believing that so many people would just ignore the fact that these babies & brutally killing anyone they meet. Eugene & Jody are the unlucky couple this time & like the original their emotions & feelings go from utter disgust & hate to maternal love although it's less effective this time around & there's never any sensible reason given as to why the babies want to seek out their parents & kill them.Like the original It's Alive the killer babies are only ever seen in quick flashes or brief glimpses although once again that was down to the special effect being less than special so they were mainly kept off screen. With so many things going on in the plot from crazy scientists to arguing parents to stabs at social commentary & parenting there's not much time for horror actually, It Lives Again is noticeably tamer than It's Alive with less blood, less attacks & less scares although there are a couple of amusing visual gags including an incubator encased in a steel cage & a birthday cake with a mutant babies claw print in it. A slightly more polished production than the original things are still look a little rough at times, Bernard Hermann's score was reused even though the composer had died some three years earlier.Filmed in Tuscon & San Francisco things look a bit dated, the acting varies from John Ryan who is still good while he's alive anyway to Frederic Forrest who takes the Ryan role he played in the original who just isn't that good here.It Lives Again is a good follow up to Cohen's break though film It's Alive that tries to expand on it's ideas rather than reuse them but in trying to do too much it doesn't quite work as well. Followed by It's Alive III: Island of the Alive (1987).

After the Davis baby is destroyed, others begin to appear around the country. The second film follows a renegade group of people (including Frank Davis from the first film) who are trying to prevent the government from killing the mutant babies. But at what price? Along with Frank, we now have the Scott family: Eugene Scott (played by Frederic Forrest, best known to me as the Nazi Surplus Store Owner from "Falling Down") and Jody Scott (played by the lovely and undercast Kathleen Lloyd). And the Scott family doesn't like it when you try to kill their baby! Oh, and the makeup effects of Oscar-winning Rick Baker again.This film picks up pretty much where the other left off, give or take a few months. Where the first one pushed the message of chemicals affecting unborn babies, this is more of a family message: parents should love their children regardless of who or what they are. If your child is a criminal or autistic, they're still your child and you should defend and love them, not let the government exterminate them.There's also a really subtle subplot about child molestation. Although never explicitly shown, there is good reason to believe molestation is occurring between an adult and a child family member. (I won't say who, but you should notice it as hints are dropped multiple times.) This film is paced better than the first one, and the attacks are a bit more often and slightly more gruesome (though by no means graphic). Going from a PG rating to an R was a good move, though they didn't push the rating as much as I probably would have liked. And a really strange thing happens: Frank Davis becomes known as "Frank Davis". Not "Frank", not "Mr. Davis"... but "Frank Davis" every time he is mentioned. It seems unnatural, as if somehow he is a celebrity that needs to be highlighted, like TV's Patrick Duffy or something.Although I liked this movie better than the first one, it relies heavily on the first one to understand it, so you're really stuck having to watch both if you want to "get it". The recurring characters and source of the mutants won't make sense unless you see the original. But by all means if you liked the first one, watch the second... and if you liked this one, watch the third.

I read James Dixon's great novelization of this sequel first, so my expectations were high. Too high. It plays like a retread of the first film with three killer tots instead of one.John Ryan is back trying to warn other parents of the infant scourge, but nobody listens until it's too late or they're dead.Once again, Cohen gives us a dialog-heavy, vapid time-waster with little action until the last ten minutes and badly directed action at that.Bernard Herrmann's score is culled from unused cues from the first film and is the film's only saving grace.If you can still find it, read the novelization and consider what this film could have been.