I really enjoyed Influencer. I didn't think it needed a sequel though. I wasn't even sure it would be possible to create another story for any of the main characters. Writer-director Kurtis David Harder was sure though, and the end result here shows that he was right to be sure.
The whole thing starts with a woman at the end of her rope. She has a knife. She uses it. Her phone starts ringing. It's then time to reunite with the entertaining psycho known as CW (Cassandra Naud), who is now happy in a relationship with a woman named Diane (Lisa Delamar). It would seem to be only a matter of time until her history rears up to bite her on the ass though, especially when Madison (Emily Tennant) becomes more determined to track her down and make her pay for everything that transpired in the first movie.
I don't want to make the mistake of over-hyping this, to anyone else or myself, but Influencers is pretty damn great. It's not only another enjoyable bit of time spent with leads who were so good last time, but it's a genuinely fantastic sequel. Is the premise plausible? Not really. Harder gives us enough details to make it seem so though, even if we only need to suspend our disbelief for a short time until all of the main players start being moved around and manipulated on the way to a very satisfying and thrilling third act.
I wish I'd been able to make time for a repeat viewing of the first movie before moving on to this, I suspect the two together makes for a hell of a good evening of entertainment, but you do get a bit of a recap once Madison comes back into the narrative. You just have to be patient during a lengthy opening sequence that ends up proving vital in setting up plot points and details that will recur later on like breadcrumbs along a path leading to a very dark and very dangerous copse in the very middle of a forest.
Naud remains a compelling presence, helped by a script that allows her to dance from playful to deadly within any scene. Tennant is equal to her, and it's interesting to see her character being picked apart and ruined by the same people who used to idolise and envy her. Delamar is an interesting addition, and her role casts a surprisingly long shadow over the proceedings, and there are turns from Veronica Long, Georgina Campbell, and Jon Whitesell that are, by turns, hilarious and awful.
Considering how unlikely this instalment was, it's testament to Harder's guiding hand that I now want a trilogy, at the very least. I'd settle for either Deinfluencer, Under The Influence, or INFLUENC3. Mr. Harder, take it away. There's a lot of gold to still be mined here, considering the huge supply of potential victims all easily made vulnerable by someone preying on their vanity, and the whole thing could end up being the most satisfying killer thrillers of the social media age. Hashtags and bodybags go very well together.
8/10
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