Whispering Corridors 2: Memento Mori Review

Disclaimer: Contains spoilers!

Plot Summary: Zany antics of the highest order unfold at an all-girls school after a student commits suicide.

Review: What the fuck were they thinking with this film? Not only is this the worst entry in the franchise, it hardly even qualifies as a horror movie. The story doesn't get going until around 35 minutes, and the closest thing to a horror element doesn't pop up until the damn 55 minute mark. Seriously, what the hell?! Essentially, this is an angsty teen drama, with heavy emphasis on being pretentious, and a few horror scenes chucked into the mix for the trailer's sake. Making matters worse, this poor decision to create sequels unconnected to one another was so monumentally stupid that it boggles my mind to no end. And the setup was right there--just set the story at the same school and make a few, tiny references to the previous movie or include one teacher back or something. But noooo, let's make a fucking drama about two attention-seeking lesbians who are completely unlikable along with an entire cast of insufferable bitches. Yes, brilliant.

So, I don't know what bullshit plot summary you may have read out there, but, chances are, it's nonsense meant to make this movie sound interesting. All we actually get is the main chick finds this diary that was shared by these lesbians; I guess this might have been a taboo subject matter at the time. While reading the diary, we get countless flashbacks that are meant to endear us to this relationship and these characters, but, instead, it comes off as unhealthy and the lovers are painfully annoying. They always discuss committing suicide, one cheats on the other--possibly getting pregnant--while the other is implied to have cheated as well, and the two are all too eager to betray and humiliate the other heartlessly. Once their relationship falls to pieces, one of them, seemingly, commits suicide only to later haunt the school. Two things about this suicide: one, why does the movie establish a mystery that hints the girl was murdered only to show us she wasn't and that there is no mystery whatsoever? And two, the editing is such utter shit that I can't tell if the events of the film are all in the same day the girl died or if some unknown passage of time has gone by. It really is that difficult to discern, because the characters act as if a lot of time has passed yet there are no transition scenes; the flow of events give the impression that the story all takes place in one day and night.

After spending the majority of the running time showing us these awful characters, we finally get the suicide girl coming back as a ghost that looks totally normal. Her haunting strategy makes little sense with her doing the most random of shit like locking a bathroom door, something with a little birdie flapping around, appearing as a giant face on the ceiling (pitiful effect by the way), and all around shenanigans. At this point in the film, the director was like, "I want more pretentiousness, goddamn it!" This leads to a dream sequence with a birthday party, slow motion, and the audacity to end the movie out of nowhere with no resolution. Oh, you want an actual ending? Too bad. Argh! You know, the funny thing is that this nonsense story line could have worked if they restructured the narrative. Instead of making all the events recent, the movie should have began with the main chick finding the diary long after the one chick committed suicide. Make finding the diary itself what awakens the ghost--which would fit the title better anyway(!)--and have the main chick slowly become haunted or possessed as she tries to read through the diary. Then you can cue the flashbacks in order for the audience to see this relationship spiral out of control all the while the ghost grows more restless between scenes. Once we reach the climax, maybe have the main chick possessed and used by the ghost to confront the living lover and bring final closure to everything. Lastly, and this is key, make the characters less angsty and pains in the ass; make them normal and likable. See...that wouldn't have been so hard.

I've always had a special hatred for this film for being a drama masquerading as a horror and for squandering the chance to make "Whispering Corridors" a franchise of true merit. The only redeeming qualities are a few decent actors, okay camerawork, and the handful of good ideas like the way the diary is designed. Unfortunately, the film fails completely as a horror, is not good as a drama, and is unforgivably boring and slow. Despite these tremendous flaws, I was still close to giving this an average rating until the "ending" came along; I must have blocked that dumbass decision out of my memory, because I could have sworn there was an actual conclusion. Overall, "Memento Mori" is absolute shit from start to finish. The only plus to each film standing alone is that it doesn't matter if you skip one...which is what I'd highly recommend doing here.

Notable Moment: Well, there are plenty of moronic scenes like just casually saying the lesbians can communicate through telepathy because who doesn't? However, I guess I'll go with the one time the film was sorta funny with the girls taking physicals. One chick was like don't tell them my chest size (that's a thing?) and the teacher yelled it. Another one kept trying to seem taller, and then we had the chick whose weight went up after a second measuring. I mean, if this really were a drama it would be an amusing interlude, but these are the scenes the director felt crucial to add to an, alleged, horror movie already ridiculously light on scares?!

Final Rating: 4/10