This one is best left on the retail shelf.
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"White Noise 2" is also known as "White Noise: The Light" and was a theatrical release in Europe, but is a direct-to-video release here in the States. The film capitalized on the success of the Michael Keaton featured original film and paired two cult science fiction actors into one picture. "Firefly" star Nathan Fillion and "Battlestar Galactica" star(buck) Katee Sackhoff are paired as the stars of "White Noise 2." As far as production values go, "White Noise 2" is an above average effort for direct-to-video films, but it is far from being a good film. The first movie was lackluster and I firmly believe that Keaton´s presence helped drive it to $55 million dollars of ticket sales. This sequel doesn´t have Keaton´s name in its credits and is barely connected to the sequel. To see Fillion and Sackhoff is a reason to pick up this video release, but beyond that, "White Noise 2" is avoidable.
The film begins with Abe Dale (Fillion) having breakfast with Rebecca Dale (Kendall Cross) and their son. Rebecca and the boy are both having some sort of physical reaction to something and just as Abe tries to figure out what the problem is, they are murdered at gunpoint by a nervous man named Stanley (Aaron Pearl) who then commits suicide. Saddened with grief, Abe later attempts suicide himself, but is saved by the fine medical efforts of Dr. Karros (William MacDonald). Abe sees a golden glow around the good doctor and they begin talking about Near Death Experiences (NDEs) and Electronic Voice Phenomenon (EVPs). Just as Abe begins to take interest in the work done by Dr. Karros, he discovers that the doctor had died from a heart attack. It becomes clear to Abe that the halo indicated Karros was going to die. He starts to see halos around other people.
Abe befriends a pretty blonde nurse with colored stripes in her hair. After saving two people, Abe finds himself having to save nurse Sherry Clarke (Katee Sackhoff). The ability to see people who will die and save them seems like a busy blessing at first for Abe, but he soon discovers that those he saves go on a killing spree three days after they are saved. The first two survivors are responsible for a large number of deaths and Abe realizes that his new girlfriend Sherry is next to go on a murderous rampage. Abe also discovers that Stan is still alive, but disfigured from the self inflicted gunshot and they have a heated debate about Satanism and Stan puts Abe on the right path to work with a notepad and discover the number 666 has something to do with those he saved going postal. This allows Abe to realize that Stan had saved his family and why he killed Abe´s wife and son.
This direct-to-video sequel again bases its premise loosely on the concept of EVP and the unrelated ability to see into the future and save the lives of those that will die. The film also touches on the fact that good people will befall horrible fates and unleash pure evil. It almost feels like a loose remake of the first film, but without Michael Keaton. I like Nathan Fillion, but he doesn´t have the same ability to portray a man on the edge. Sackhoff is more than acceptable as the perky and love-starved nurse. The best acting job was done by Aaron Pearl. However, it doesn´t matter what actors are in a film if the script is just horrendous.
"White Noise 2" is one such film and you´ll struggle to enjoy its repetitious plot and poor attempts at horror. It is not even remotely scary and most of the frights in the film are jump scares with old-school ghost effects where the supernatural just appears pointlessly on the frame. At least the first film had reasons built into its thin script to have scary moments. The ghosts here are just placed in the film to provide a brief shock. It doesn´t work very well either. It doesn´t take long before the entire plot is figured out and the film´s climax is a no-show when Fillion´s character saves the big explosion from happening that could have at least been visually impressive. The film ends on a downer, but tries to provide a positive. The concept of NDE is thrown in to expand the supernatural focus of this sequel and is used without any bearing on the story. This film had very little connection to the original and more than likely earned the name to earn a few dollars after the success of the original.
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[release]22558[/release]