CREEP 2 (2017) ***

Serial killer Aaron (Mark Duplass) is still up to his old tricks, placing personal ads online, coaxing potential documentary filmmakers to his home, and then killing them.  He gets more than he bargained for when Sara (Desiree Akhavan) shows up.  She doesn’t flinch when he tries to scare her or recoil when he reveals intimate details about his victims.  In fact, she encourages him to go further.  It just might be a match made in Heaven.  Or probably Hell.

Creep 2 is superior in every way to the original.  Much of that has to do with the performance of Akhavan.  In the first film, it was basically Duplass’ show all the way.  With this sequel, he has someone worthy of his talents to bounce off of.  Not only that, but she’s his match nearly every step of the way.  When he tries to scare her off by getting naked minutes inside of their first meeting, she nonchalantly chucks her clothes off too.

Their efforts to film the documentary often lead to some big laughs.  I liked the part in the creek where a bird chirping continuously interrupts Duplass during a pivotal scene.  It’s hard to tell if all of this was scripted or improvised, but that in itself is a testament to Duplass’ performance.  Akhavan is also quite good and the chemistry between the duo is genuine, which alone makes it well worth watching.

Creep 2 also moves like lightning.  Even though it’s longer than the original, its zippy pace gives it a faster and looser feel.  The ending (which is usually a foregone conclusion in Found Footage horror movies) is genuinely surprising too and makes me look forward to Creep 3 in the near future.