Puppet Master II (1990)

Good start, but then it gets ruined

It's fun, it's light, [but] it has a hard time when its tries to get heavy.

A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.

Blistering performances.

What to do when you have a band of misfits that people love even though they do evil things? You add another one and play with fire ... literally. Logic aside (because again Puppets killing people and all that), this sort of sets off where the first one ended. And actually all the movies seem to be connected. Haven't seen them all yet, I'm in the process of catching up to watch the latest which will play at a Festival (near you).For a sequel it's pretty nice, I've seen a lot worse. Even though it may seem like a rehash to some, I'd argue it still works. Again very good puppetry and good effects all things considered (time it was made/budget). If you love B-movies that are out there and way crazy, you may find something here

Arriving at a rural estate, a team of researchers studying the psychic connection of the facility learn that the series of strange deaths surrounding them are the responsibility of a group of malicious puppets working for their master and must stop his deadly plans.This one proved to be a rather enjoyable sequel. One of the better elements here for this one is the fact that there's quite a lot of material here with the puppets being featured which is what really sells this one heavily. Once again, there's a multitude of screen- time shared here with many of the puppets being given equal time throughout the film so that not everything is centered around one or two. Some show up more frequently but there's enough on display here that it manages to let nearly everyone have a moment to shine quite brightly so that in the end it really lets the group as a whole show off their wares into being formidable and imposing. This is played out over the course of several rather enjoyable action scenes here where they get into several rather fun moments, from the first abduction in the bedroom to the encounter with the psychics in their own quarters which gives away their presence to the others when they capture it after the brutal kill involved, though the film's greatest set-piece is the encounter in the couple's shack which is a great deal of fun with the shock kill being committed before the whole thing gets started, the chillingly suspenseful stalking scenes against the first puppet before bringing in the newest creation which gives this a strong action- packed moment. Even the finale, from the race to get to the girlfriend held captive by the doctor and going against the different puppets to make his way to the room where it has the great confrontation with the puppets coming into play for a nice twist ending that serves this one nicely while providing all the fine gore in the kills that's required to give this some enjoyable moments. There is a few flaws to be found with this one, which mainly stems from the fact that there's a rather sizeable portion of the film that doesn't really get anything of much interest going for it as this here is filled with the couple's romance that isn't in the slightest bit interesting or enjoyable as they go about their brief and rather flat escapades that take up time away from the killer puppets. With the concurrent investigation into the mysterious figure who just shows up out of nowhere which really drags the film down at this point, there's a sense that the film isn't really building to the big finale. It just drops the puppets in after going on another thread entirely and makes this part feel pretty drawn-out and overall uninteresting. Likewise, the film running through the same motions for the ending doesn't really make a whole lot of sense as there's no real need to be that way at this point since it's the exact same twist and takes a lot of the shock out of what happens. Still, there's enough to like that it does hold up enough to be enjoyable.Rated R: Graphic Violence, Graphic Language, Nudity and sexual situations.

I didn't think the first was that good however I thought it was decentThis sequel was start of really good, As the Puppets brought back the Master of the Dead.I liked this movie just a bit a better then first movie, I liked the fact that show a lot more of the Puppets.The movie didn't take to long to get started, i found most of really entertaining but however after second half, some parts did drag on a little and found those part a little boring,The ending was just really odd and a bit Creepy,I give this movie 6 out of 10 __________________

Puppet Master II (1991) ** 1/2 (out of 4) This better than average sequel finds the puppets from the first movie back in action. At the start of the film they're digging up their master Andre Toulon (Steven Welles) and bringing him back to life. At the same time a group of paranormal investigators arrive at the house and it's good for Toulon because he needs their brain tissue in order to keep living. PUPPET MASTER II is certainly a notch above the previous film as director Dave Allen really tries to keep the action going and he also creates some pretty nice moments with the killers. I think one of the best things going in the film are the killers, those from the original return but we also get another puppet who can blow fire from one of its arms. The killers are all quite effective here and I think the screenplay put all of them to much better use. Blade, the Klaus Kisnki look alike, is clearly the most effective as all of his little touches, like the tipping of his hat, really come off well and makes for an entertaining villain. Pinhead and Jester are back as well and make for some good characters. The human characters this time out are also a lot better than what we got in the previous movie. The main female has her brother killed early in the picture and her determination to find out why he was killed makes for some light entertainment, although her "troubled" past really brings the film down a little towards the end and especially when she gets into a silly love story with another character. The violence this time out isn't all that graphic but we get a couple fun kills including Blade doing his throat-slashing, Pinhead drilling some holes in heads and the new guy gets to set a few people on fire. The aftermath of one of his victims, which I won't spoil, is certainly worth the price of admission. The atmosphere is also quite good here as the entire film, thanks in large part to the low budget, feels like one of the Gothic horror pictures you'd see from Italy back in the 1960s. The atmosphere is quite thick from start to finish and this certainly helps the film move at a nice pace. The best thing going for the film is the actual look of Toulon. Those familiar with James Whale's 1933 THE INVISIBLE MAN will be familiar with the look but it's quite effective here and especially the first time we see him. The performances range from really bad to decent but you didn't really expect Oscar-worthy material did you? PUPPET MASTER II really surprised me because it's actually a well-made picture that people should enjoy even if they're not fans of the series.