Phantasm II 1988

Picking up right where the previous installment concluded, the story follows the relentless pursuit of the Tall Man and his sinister minions as they attempt to capture Mike (James LeGros). Fortunately, Reggie (Reggie Bannister) intervenes heroically by igniting a gas leak while the fireplace roars, resulting in a fiery explosion that obliterates the house.

Fast forward six years, the narrative introduces Liz Reynolds (Paula Irvine), a young woman who shares a psychic connection with both Mike and the Tall Man, which manifests through a series of disturbing prophetic dreams. Upon awakening from one of her nightmares, Liz flips through her dream journal, which holds intricate illustrations of characters and events from the first film. As she examines her notes, a vivid vision plays out: it resumes precisely where the prior film left off, when the Tall Man’s sinister minions ambushed Mike through his bedroom mirror. Reggie, hearing the chaos, rushes upstairs, but finds himself besieged by Lurkers as he seeks a shotgun to defend Mike. He narrowly avoids the Tall Man’s grasp and rescues Mike, leading them to leap through the bedroom window just as gas fumes ignite, engulfing their home in flames.

In the aftermath, Liz desperately urges Mike to find her, fearing that the death of her grandfather will enable the Tall Man to claim him. Although Mike has been labeled delusional and confined since the first movie, he can’t dismiss Liz’s haunting calls for help. He feigns mental recovery to secure his release from the institution. That night, Mike stealthily ventures back to Morningside Cemetery to unearth bodies, but is soon interrupted by Reggie, who claims that no attack ever took place at the film’s beginning. Mike uncovers the truth: the coffins he has dug up are empty, compelling Reggie to join him on a perilous hunt for the Tall Man.

As they travel, Mike experiences a horrifying premonition of an explosion. He races against time to warn Reggie, but it’s too late; Reggie’s house is engulfed in flames, claiming the lives of his wife Celeste, daughter Bonnie, and Aunt Marta. With growing conviction, Reggie agrees to accompany Mike on their deadly quest.

Together, they break into a hardware store to stock up on essential supplies and weapons, including an improvised chainsaw and double-barreled shotguns. Over the coming months, they traverse deserted roads, encountering ravaged towns and eerie graveyards, as well as unsettling traps and ghostly visions left in the Tall Man’s wake, including that of a deceased young woman in a disturbing state.

Meanwhile, Liz grapples with the death of her grandfather, attending the funeral with her sister Jeri, who mysteriously disappears during the service. In her search for Jeri, Liz explores the mortuary, where she stumbles upon an exhumed coffin. Before she can investigate further, she is startled by the Tall Man, forcing her to flee. In a frantic scene, Father Meyers (Kenneth Tigar), battling fear and alcohol withdrawal, resorts to horrific measures against her grandfather’s corpse in a desperate bid to combat the unsettling events surrounding him.

As the night unfolds, the reanimated grandfather makes a shocking appearance, leading to the troubling realization that Liz’s grandmother is also in grave danger. Driven by the Tall Man’s manipulations, he commands Liz to return at night if she hopes to save her grandmother.

When Mike and Reggie finally arrive in Perigord, they encounter a hitchhiker named Alchemy (Samantha Phillips), who hauntingly resembles the apparition from Mike’s visions. In the ghostly town of Perigord, now in disarray, they rest at an abandoned bed & breakfast before heading to the cemetery, unaware that Liz is confronting her own nightmarish ordeal at the mortuary.

The plot thickens as Liz and Mike cross paths at the cemetery—each grappling with their own inner demons and the threat of the Tall Man, who continues to manipulate them from the shadows. A chaotic series of confrontations lead them back to the mortuary, where the stakes are raised higher than ever.

With thrilling escapes, deadly traps set by the Tall Man, and a decisive confrontation with Liz at the crematorium, they battle bravely against the unsettling forces unleashed upon them. As the climax unfolds, old foes and new alliances converge. They ignite the embalmment room, hoping to vanquish the Tall Man for good, but not without devastating losses and narrow escapes.

In the thrilling conclusion, as Reggie tries to flirt with Alchemy after their successful mission, he uncovers her chilling truth, leading to a devastating crash back into the horror they sought to escape. In a gut-wrenching echo of the first film’s ending, Mike and Liz find themselves ensnared once again beneath the Tall Man’s malevolent grasp, questioning the very reality they inhabit. > “No, it’s not!” echoes as their fates hang precariously in the balance.