Blu-Ray Review: The ABCs Of Death 2

By Brad Henderson

W Is For Wish

The setup for The ABCs Of Death is brilliant. Get 26 badass directors and give them some cash to make something sick and twisted. Unfortunately, not structuring it properly resulted in an extremely discombobulated flick with some high quality shorts among a barrage of lame and not so great ones. When I first saw the movie I was extremely disappointed, but over the past few years I’ve grown to love a handful of shorts and continue to watch them on and off again. D, L, O, Q, R, S, U, and Y were my favorites but everything else was either very bland or just not good. Now we have The ABCs Of Death 2 which is completely different. Regrettably, that “difference” is that they are all quality shorts but very few are entertaining.

Like I said, these shorts are well-made but if these were standalone shorts they wouldn’t have a leg to stand on. The ABCs Of Death 2 suffers from just being there and evoking no feelings. A, K, M, S, T, W, and X are the ones that stood out for me but overall none are that memorable.

Yo! What’s with the “message” segments by the way? The first ABCs Of Death had one of these and it felt very misplaced and odd. There are a few in this one and they are completely out of place and derail the entire thing. I’m not saying these filmmakers did anything wrong, but this may be the wrong place to give your “message.” I’m not sure someone’s message on war goes in the same movie where a little girl’s ribs are ripped out in order to silence a musical instrument. Just saying. Nothing wrong with messages but having them in The ABCs Of Death franchise doesn’t feel right.

The ABCs Of Death 2 has gone over better than the first film with critics and the general public. I’m guessing they enjoy the tamer side of things but with the people involved in this project, I want to be grossed out and offended with things like this. Now, I’m just bored and confused. In a way I’m glad it was received better than the first because it gives me hope for a third installment.

No matter how much I dislike most of the shorts I’m still glad these films exist because I freaking love anthologies and adore most of the filmmakers involved with these projects. I’m happy to watch and support them. I just wish they could get their act together and form some sort of plan to make something ultimate and unforgettable. It feels like everything is rushed with this series but I know it’s probably more difficult to work with 26 different people in order to make this possible. I’m just hoping by the third installment we will have gold.

The ABCs Of Death 2 was released by Magnet Releasing on February 3.