'The Jester 2' Movie Review: An Entertaining Popcorn Horror Flick 

September and October are the horror months—as we approach Halloween, a rapid increase in the output of horror films is always anticipated. This year we have The Conjuring, Black Phone 2, and The Strangers: Chapter 2, among other releases, so evidently, for horror fanatics, this is the best time of the year! Centered around the Halloween festivity, the indie slasher horror, The Jester, returns to our screens with a sequel. Written and directed by Colin Krawchuk, The Jester 2 promises to be more horrifying, more exciting, and more plot-driven than the first installment. The masked villain returns to pester the mortals on Halloween once again, and just like before, it’s almost impossible to escape his spells and tricks. But this time, someone dares to challenge the Jester’s cockiness, and she is just a fifteen-year-old magician!

As usual, the Jester was on the hunt for vulnerable targets, and as soon as night fell, he began stirring up trouble. His first target was a lovestruck young man who never managed to gather the courage to approach his crush. If it would’ve been any other day, you would have run away from a man in a terrifying mask, but it’s Halloween, and the scarier your costume, the cooler you are. So, the Jester had no trouble attracting targets. His innocent victims were always at first impressed by his swift moves and his card tricks, and by the time they realized that he was no ordinary man, the Jester had already set the stage. It was impossible to escape from him, and the interactions always ended with a bloodbath. 

At a diner, the Jester came across a young girl, Max, seated alone at a table. It was obvious that she was a lonely teen and therefore a perfect victim for the masked villain. He followed his usual pattern and gestured for Max to pick a card. He had not the slightest inkling that the young girl seated across from him at the table was a budding magician. She was obsessed with magic tricks, and even though her mother thought it was odd for a fifteen-year-old to be so excited for Halloween, Max genuinely looked forward to a night of trick-or-treating. She was in a gloomy mood before the Jester showed up. She didn’t have friends to hang out with, and her mother was not eager to take her trick-or-treating with her young sister. She also felt extremely self-conscious when her classmates at the diner laughed at her. So, when the Jester showed her a deck of cards, she was delighted. Considering people usually entertained him at first, Jester didn’t really think Max was any different. But in the middle of his trick, when Max enthusiastically exclaimed that she recognized the trick, he was taken by surprise. She took the deck of cards from him and explained how the trick was about to unfold. The Jester didn’t know how to react when Max showed him a trick she’d been practicing recently. The Jester wasn’t impressed; he was rather disappointed and couldn’t figure out how he could have made the mistake of choosing a wrong target. He left the diner, upset, but as you can already guess, the Jester and Max’s interaction was not limited to this one meeting. They crossed paths once again, and this time it was not just for a magic trick. 

The problem with The Jester was the lack of motive. A masked man (with supernatural powers) randomly killing people works for a short film, but when it comes to a feature, it is just not enough. The lack of a motive or a lore to tie things together resulted in a half-baked horror experience. Colin Krawchuk, evidently, made notes, and the sequel tries to compensate for the shortcomings of the first installment. During our conversation with the director, he mentioned that it was only after he was offered to make a sequel that he realized the limitations of having a masked character who only communicated through gestures. The need for someone to explain/communicate the lore or motive behind the Jester resulted in the development of the ‘Max’ character. The fifteen-year-old magician is a great addition to the ‘Jester world.’ Her innocence, her fascination with magic, and her genuine kindness make her a character you would want to root for. While the Jester and Max share the same love for magic, they offer the typical contrast that you would expect from a protagonist and an antagonist. The ending of The Jester 2 is thrilling and laden with suspense. 

Stylistically, The Jester 2 is like any typical low-budget exploitation horror. Some below-par acting from the additional cast, a typical background score with a generous sprinkle of horror sound effects, and a lot of screaming. There were a few funny moments in the sequel, such as the scene where Jester’s tricks didn’t work on a trio of friends. I also chuckled when one of the firefighters ended up with dangling eyeballs; you know it’s just bad prosthetics, and that makes it all the more funny. You would expect such visuals from a low-budget film, and I think that just adds to the overall aesthetics. Also, the Jester’s mask has got an upgrade—it’s way creepier and makes his appearance a lot more sinister than in the first installment. 

Kaitlyn Trentham delivers a convincing performance as Max. Michael Sheffield has been playing the Jester consistently since the short film days, and clearly he has brilliantly embodied the character. From a series of short films to now a feature sequel, Colin Krawchuk’s The Jester franchise has come a long, long way. We all love a good slasher, especially one that has a masked killer involved, and perhaps that explains why the Jester is returning to our screens. The Jester 2 is going to be an entertaining watch if you belong to the dedicated fan base for low-budget indie horrors. Setting aside the stylistic preference, The Jester 2 undoubtedly redeems itself after a lackluster first installment. I won’t recommend it if you’re searching for an edge-of-the-seat experience, but if you’re on the lookout for a popcorn horror flick, then The Jester 2 is just the right fix.