After surviving the brutal murder spree at the abandoned mountain hotel, Yannicke (Ingrid Bolsø Berdal) is found stranded in the snow by a rescue worker. She's taken to the local hospital where she reveals the story of the massacre of her friends at the ski lodge by the masked psychopath Geir (Robert Follin, who replaced the first film's Rune Melby). Upon investigating the scene of the crime, the police discover & retrieve the corpses of Yannicke's friends along with the murderer. Unluckily for the staff and patients of the hospital, however, Dr. Hermann (Fridtjov Såheim) decides to play hero and save the vicious mass murderer who had shown brief signs of life. This spells bad news for everyone as Geir breaks free and goes on yet another vicious murder spree through the hospital.
Taking an obvious page from the book of the 'Halloween' franchise, rookie filmmaker Mats Stenberg, taking over for the first film's director Roar Uthaug, moves the 'Fritt Vilt' story out of the lodge and into the hospital, very much like Laurie Strode's experience in 'Halloween II.' It seemed, at first, that this sequel would lose the feel of the first film due to the change in location, but it ended up not losing a beat at all. In fact, everything in this sequel seemed boosted by the location change. The story gets moving quickly, but still manages to get in enough character development to give viewers a bit of interest for the soon-to-be victims. This is a very refreshing as the slasher subgenre is famous for its lack of character development, using characters more as props for the killer to slaughter in various ways. But, worry not, the characters here still suffered their own share of vicious & creative murders. Along with the brutality of the kills, we're given some fantastically well done & realistic gore scenes. However, the film is not solely about the slasher-style scares & kills. In fact, 'Fritt Vilt II' has some of the best suspense and build-up I've seen in this subgenre for a long time. Due to the small cast, there had to be a good balance of suspense & an entertaining pace, and the film delivered beautifully.
As far as the technical aspects go, the film is top notch for the subgenre. While the story may not be the most original or unpredictable, the approach works very well, made even better by director Stenberg's execution. A positive that many fans will notice is the realism of the return of the killer. Instead of the typical Jason/Michael "sit up & kill" reanimation, Geir is actually given a genuine reason for coming back, and that is another welcome element. The cinematography of Anders Flatland is both beautiful and effective. He manages to show us precisely everything we need to see in interesting ways without pulling the reveals too quickly. The cast, as well, did very well in their individual roles. Although very few of the characters had to pull off overly complex characters, Yannicke definitely had some substance to work with and performed very well as one of the most badass "final girls" that's come to the slasher subgenre in a while.
Overall, 'Fritt Vilt II' is a fantastic entry into the genre and is a contender as one of the best slashers of the decade, being one of the few films that may all-around surpass its predecessor.
Final Verdict: 8.5/10
-AP3-
Taking an obvious page from the book of the 'Halloween' franchise, rookie filmmaker Mats Stenberg, taking over for the first film's director Roar Uthaug, moves the 'Fritt Vilt' story out of the lodge and into the hospital, very much like Laurie Strode's experience in 'Halloween II.' It seemed, at first, that this sequel would lose the feel of the first film due to the change in location, but it ended up not losing a beat at all. In fact, everything in this sequel seemed boosted by the location change. The story gets moving quickly, but still manages to get in enough character development to give viewers a bit of interest for the soon-to-be victims. This is a very refreshing as the slasher subgenre is famous for its lack of character development, using characters more as props for the killer to slaughter in various ways. But, worry not, the characters here still suffered their own share of vicious & creative murders. Along with the brutality of the kills, we're given some fantastically well done & realistic gore scenes. However, the film is not solely about the slasher-style scares & kills. In fact, 'Fritt Vilt II' has some of the best suspense and build-up I've seen in this subgenre for a long time. Due to the small cast, there had to be a good balance of suspense & an entertaining pace, and the film delivered beautifully.
As far as the technical aspects go, the film is top notch for the subgenre. While the story may not be the most original or unpredictable, the approach works very well, made even better by director Stenberg's execution. A positive that many fans will notice is the realism of the return of the killer. Instead of the typical Jason/Michael "sit up & kill" reanimation, Geir is actually given a genuine reason for coming back, and that is another welcome element. The cinematography of Anders Flatland is both beautiful and effective. He manages to show us precisely everything we need to see in interesting ways without pulling the reveals too quickly. The cast, as well, did very well in their individual roles. Although very few of the characters had to pull off overly complex characters, Yannicke definitely had some substance to work with and performed very well as one of the most badass "final girls" that's come to the slasher subgenre in a while.
Overall, 'Fritt Vilt II' is a fantastic entry into the genre and is a contender as one of the best slashers of the decade, being one of the few films that may all-around surpass its predecessor.
Final Verdict: 8.5/10
-AP3-