The cinemas are open again, and with the success of Paramount’s A Quiet Place 2, it’s clear the demand for horror is still alive and well with audiences. Lucky for us, Escape Room 2: Tournament of Champions is the perfect Saw-infused flick to please any movie-goer while satisfying the palate of even the most sophisticated horror fans.
Horror movie enthusiasts fell in love with the Saw franchise back in the early 2000s. And since then, a new hybrid genre of puzzle horror has spawned. But when it comes to Escape Room 2: Tournament of Champions, its inventiveness makes up for any clichés or fumbles in the plot due to its blatant predictability.
Serving a refreshingly inventive twist from the original, Escape Room (2019), the second installment of the franchise is arguably more of an innovative good time due to its pure absurdity. But who doesn’t want that?
Unlike its predecessor, Escape Room 2: Tournament of Champions takes another group of individuals who have already beaten the game, and places them back into another, more elaborate puzzle to solve in order to survive.
Director Adam Robitel brings back Escape Room survivors Zoey (Taylor Russell) and Ben (Logan Miller), who we witnessed defeat the game back in 2019. Only this time, all the two champions journey to New York City in order to seek vengeance for what the evil corporation, Minos, did to them and their friends.
Alas, before they know it, they are dupped into playing another game. But by then, it’s already too late. Audiences haven’t seen a psychological escape room like this since Mikael Håfström’s 1408 (2007). The film’s wow factor is nothing short of ingenious.
While the plot may lean towards the predictable, aka don’t die, the puzzles are constructed in such a fascinating way that the 90-minute runtime flies by. If you think you may get bored because of the redundancy, guess again.
Robitel does a tremendous job of keeping the game engaging. I won’t give away any spoilers, but one could compare it with a Salvador Dali painting in the sense that it’s utterly absurd. But in a good way.
There are a few new players in the game that are familiar faces. Yet, Pose’s Indya Moore offers a scene-stealing performance that provides the film with more sassy comedy than the first. There’s no denying that Robitel and his writers had a blast banging this script out in a writers’ room. And from the exquisite production design, it looks as if no expense was spared. After you see it, you’ll see what we mean.
As for the question: will there be a third installment? Audiences could absolutely bet on it. Welcome to the horror franchise club, Escape Room. We’ve been waiting for you.
Grade: B+