Because A Haunted House 1 wasn’t enough, Marlon Wayans and co are back to bring in another set of chills, thrills, and chuckles (or I assume that’s the point) in this fairly timely sequel. With obvious nods to Paranormal Activity, the horror scape has changed for the Wayans brothers who used to parody slasher films in their early 2000s Scary Movie series. They still make the films, but the Wayans are not attached to them. I actually believe they started this series to rival the new Scary Movies.
Malcom (played by Marlon Wayans) wants a fresh start after terrifying events involving his ex-girlfriend (played by Essence Atkins) who became possessed by demons. He seems to have met Megan (played by Jaime Pressly) during the timeskip between the first film and now. Along with her children, they move in together. The home at first glance is wonderful. However his fun won’t last long as the supernatural once again rears its ugly head. This time, the house itself isn’t enough, the demon wants Malcom and it won’t rest until it has him.
I don’t think this movie tries to sell itself as anything else but appealing to the lowest common denominator. The jokes are more offensive than funny and Marlon Wayans really goes overkill. It comes off as desperate.
I admit that I liked Scary Movie 1 and 2. I can watch either one again today and still find it funny. I don’t know if that’s because I watched them as a teen or if it was genuinely better comedy though. I don’t know if I’d find them as funny today after the novelty has worn off. But perhaps those just didn’t feel as lazy and formulaic.
There are but so many times you can do something before it feels really stale.
Comedy is hard, especially smart comedy. And it’s especially difficult to achieve in parody when not everyone understands the references.
All in all if you are accustomed to their brand of humor and it appeals to you then this film should be satisfying. Otherwise if you didn’t like the trailer, you’ll wind up liking the film even less. I’m open-minded and I don’t always need smart comedy, but even still the Wayans are hit and miss for me. Keenan Ivory Wayans and Damon Wayans have always been the funniest of the brood and it doesn’t look like Marlon will be changing my mind on that anytime soon.