The Unborn II

Year: 1994
Director: Rick Jacobson
Writer: Rob Kerchner, Daniella Purcell
Genre: Horror: Sci-Fi, Evil Children

The Unborn was a movie that I feel is entirely unrated. It received a remake in 2009, which I knew of, but also a sequel. The sequel was something which caught me completely by surprise. Although I didn't remember the end of the first film, it didn't seem like something that would lead into a new movie. Now I can understand what angle they took with it although there didn't really need to be a sequel to begin with.

So the story starts us off with a woman moving into a new neighborhood. Her overly cheery (and pesky) neighbors butt into her life almost immediately, pointing out the baby gear she has in tow. We knows he has a child but for some reason isn't bursting to pull out photos to show everyone. Something is wrong... but what?

We're also shown a woman who puts on some heavy sunglasses before marching up to a child on the playground and shooting him square in the face. WHAT? It's really this scene (the first in the film) which sets the tone for everything else that comes. The idea behind the story may be serious - that experimental artificial insemination might be going wrong - but beyond that it's a hilarious little film. Who really just wanders around in broad daylight shooting children between the eyes? Even if they are cannibalistic monsters it just feels incredibly hokey.

Because it does feel so ridiculous I was able to enjoy it a lot. It's a very dumb film and the twist doesn't even make sense if you really think about it. It was just put there to give you something else to worry about besides a bloodthirsty infant. But why would you even need anything else when you have that? The Unborn II made me think about a few things though despite how silly it was. For one, who are these movies about pregnancies gone wrong made for? Are they made for women to prey on their very personal fears? Or are they made for the same audiences as everything else?

Anyway, it was a truly goofy experience and would probably be good to watch with friends. The basic plot does keep in line with the original movie, so if you've seen it, you might as well give it a shot too. However, don't expect them to feel at all the same. If anything, it really feels more like It's Alive.

PS: The Unborn II's soundtrack has nothing on the first film's awesome score by Gary Numan and Michael R. Smith.