READY OR NOT 2 : HERE I COME - Tuesday 31st March 2026

I saw the MA15+ Rated 'READY OR NOT 2 : HERE I COME' at my local multiplex this week, and this American comedy horror film serves as a direct sequel to 2019's 'Ready or Not' and is once again Directed by Matt Bittinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett. The first film collected US$58M at the Box Office from a US$6M production budget and garnered positive critical reviews. This film saw its Premiere at the SXSW Film & TV Festival in mid-March before its release Stateside and here in Australia two weeks ago. It has generated positive critical press, and has so far collected US$25M at the worldwide Box Office from a production budget of US$14M.

The film follows on immediately following where the first film left off, with Grace MacCaullay (Samara Weaving) collapsing directly out the front of the burning Le Domas mansion on the steps, still wearing her very bloodied wedding gown. She lights up a cigarette, as Police and emergency services sirens are heard approaching, and then promptly falls unconscious from exhaustion and her wounds endured during the previous evenings game of Hide and Seek. She is taken by ambulance to hospital, where she later that day comes round handcuffed to her bed, with Police Detective Bassett (Grant Nickalls) standing over her. 

Into the room walks Grace's estranged younger sister Faith (Kathryn Newton) whom she has not spoken to since she left for college, some seven years previously. Faith is still registered on Grace's phone as the person to contact in the event of an emergency, hence her appearance. Bassett tells her that she needs to accompany him to the Police Station for questioning as she is the prime suspect in the murder investigation of two people whose corpses were recovered from the building, and the blood on her dress is not her own. 

In the meantime, the Council, an order of six elite families are notified of the Le Domas' demises and prepare to unite at the Danforth estate for another game. The head members include twin siblings Ursula (Sarah Michelle Gellar) and Titus (Shawn Hatosy) Danforth, Wan Chen Xing (Olivia Cheng), Viraj Rajan (Nadeem Umar-Khitab), Ignacio El Caido (Nestor Carbonell), and Bill Wilkinson (Kevin Durand). Prior to their arrival at the Danforth estate, Ursula and Titus kill their elderly father Chester (David Cronenberg), the current 'High Seat' of the Council, by suffocating him with a pillow, so they can enter the game simultaneously. Chester's last duty before his death was to text a message to the remaining families that 'the game is in play'. Bill attempts to kill Grace at the hospital, but he and the Wilkinsons explode in a shower of blood because they failed to wait for the game's official commencement at 2:31pm that afternoon.

Grace and Faith are gassed as they try to make their escape from the hospital, and come round bound and gagged at the Danforth estate while Le Bail's representative, the 'Lawyer' (Elijah Wood), explains their new found situation, which due to Grace's victory at the Le Domas' hide and seek game, the four remaining families must kill her before dawn to acquire the High Seat, and a ring with seemingly infinite worldwide power will be provided to the winner. The players are not allowed to kill each other, and their deaths allow the next eldest member of their family to enter the game. Grace initially refuses to take part, but agrees when Faith's life is threatened with a knife to the throat. The pair are then drugged, as the eldest members each in turn sign a blood oath and the next game commences at the allotted time.

The sisters are handcuffed together and put on a golf course, on hole 9. After evading attempts from different families, they manage to kill Viraj in an industrial sized washing machine sending him spinning round and round at high speed in very hot water, so that his skin melted. Wan Chen Xing finds them and reveals a loophole, whereby if Grace marries one of the elite's family members, the game immediately ceases, granting her husband the High Seat and allowing her to live. Grace refuses as it would mean selling her soul to the Devil. Ignacio interrupts them, and Chen Xing unintentionally kills him with a Japanese katana sword. The Wans explode into blood as Ignacio's daughter and Alex Le Domas' ex-fiancee Francesca (Maia Jae) prepares to enter the game. Faith berates Grace's refusal of the opportunity of marriage.

Viraj's death allows his brother Madhu (Varun Saranga) to enter the game, but he cowardly forfeits head status to his wife Martina (Masa Lizdek) signing over all of his worldly possessions to her. Instead of playing, she drives off from the hunt at speed destroying the front gate in the process. Madhu then relents and says he's ready to enter the game, but alas says the Lawyer, its too late and that he has nothing, zip, diddly squat possessions to his name, and as his wife still lives there is absolutely nothing that can be done. Ursula nearly kills Grace with a foot long metal spike right through her shoulder and is about to cut her throat with a blade as Faith saves her and the pair flee. Grace lambasts Faith's return and wishes they had never reunited, resulting in a downtrodden Faith to leave. Titus attacks Faith, beats her up and is about to kill her when Ursula intervenes and says she's better use to them alive than dead. They take her hostage while Francesca targets Grace, though Grace acquires a shotgun from the Guardhouse and kills her. Through an intercom, Titus taunts Grace and forces her to the main lounge where Faith is being held captive.

Grace storms into the lounge blasting away with her shotgun, until she runs out of cartridges. She locks herself in a walk-in coolroom in the kitchen, but is cornered by the surviving players. Using Chen Xing's previously advised loophole, Grace suggests she marries Titus to ensure her and Faith's safety, handing over the High Seat to the Danforths and concluding the game despite Faith begging her not to. Both Grace and Faith are washed, cleaned up and their injuries attended to by a group of maids, after which Ursula privately warns Grace about Titus' psychopathy and her fears of what could develop under his worldwide order. Ursula suggests that she and Grace work together to control Titus after the marriage. Titus, having overheard, kills Ursula by strangulation, as there is no rule against killing family members. At an underground cavernous altar, the marriage ceremony begins before a crowd of Satanic cult members and presided over by the Lawyer. 

After they sign their intertwined familial blood pacts, Grace stabs Titus with a fountain pen repeatedly in the neck, and Faith then kicks him into an open circular pit full of the skeletons of sacrificed human and animal bodies, killing him. Now with rightful ownership of the High Seat, Grace announces everyone in attendance to kneel, and they obligingly do so. She then further states her removal from the organisation and throws the ring into the pit. Since the High Seat now belongs to whoever is wearing the ring at dawn, which is just three minutes away before the sun rises, the wedding guests all jump headlong into the pit for a chance at locating the ring, murdering one another as they do. As Grace and Faith look on at the melee unfolding before them, no one succeeds before dawn and the entire Council erupts in a torrential explosion of blood and guts covering the recently cleaned up pair. As they turn to leave, Le Bail's spirit briefly appears behind the alter, and nods to both Grace and Faith as they are finally free. The sisters walk out of the premises holding hands at the beginning of a brand new day, and Grace promises never to leave Faith again.

'Ready or Not 2 : Here I Come' is a fun and entertaining enough follow up to 2019's sleeper hit, but I'm not sure that I'd describe it as a comedy horror offering as the jump scares and frightening scenes are very thin on the ground, and by very thin I mean non-existent! That said, the film ramps up the bloodletting, the creative kills, the emotion, the chaos and the dark humour which is no bad thing, and the chemistry between Weaving and Newton as estranged sisters brought back together under very trying circumstances, works a treat. Once again it's good to see two working class girls rise to the challenge of dispensing with the controlling elitist hierarchy of this world, as their individual and collective demise is meted out in interesting and inventive ways, courtesy of their grit, determination and sisterly bond, unlike the antagonists who just want to play a high stakes game of cat and mouse. It's a worthy follow-up, but I'm not sure there's much room left in this universe for 'Ready or Not 3'!

'Ready or Not 2 : Here I Come' merits four claps of the Odeon Online clapperboard from a potential five claps. 

    

-Steve, at Odeon Online-

What's new at Odeon's this week : Thursday 2nd April 2026

The 44th Brussels International Fantastic Film Festival (BIFFF) takes place this year from Friday 3rd April through until Saturday 18th April, in the Belgian capital city of Brussels. The BIFFF offers more than just horror movies. It is first and foremost a genre film festival that is open-minded, and offers a great deal of variety. Its programme serves up thrillers, science fiction films, fantasy films, black comedies, action films, as well as many other genres. As one of the most famous genre film festivals in the world, the BIFFF does not limit itself to screening feature films and shorts. In the course of its sixteen days, almost twenty peripheral activities will be on offer. The programme includes the famous vampire ball, the must-see make-up competition, an art exhibition, as well as many other surprising events. During the festival, you can enjoy more than a hundred features and shorts and get the opportunity to discover a truly unique audience. Thanks to the master classes held by prestigious guests, lively debates, exceptional exhibitions, and breathtaking animations, this is not merely a festival you are going to attend. It is an experience like no other! So reads the official website.

The main International Competition of the festival consists of eight to ten feature films each year. In this section you’ll find the cream of the crop in terms of recent fantastic features from around the globe. The selected films can win the grand prize of the festival, the Golden Raven, or one of two Silver Ravens, two incentive prizes for film Directors that show great potential. Those films in this main competitive category are :-

* 'Back to the Past' - from Hong Kong and China, and this action Sci-Fi film is Directed by Jack Lai and Yuen Fai Ng.

* 'Gaua' - from Spain, and this fantasy horror film is Written and Directed by Paul Urkijo Alijo.

* 'Imposters' - from the USA and this Sci-Fi psychological horror film is Written and Directed by Caleb Phillips. European Premiere.

* 'Never After Dark' - from Japan and this mystery ghost story is Written, Co-Produced and Directed by Dave Boyle. European Premiere.

* 'Nirvana The Band The Show The Movie' - from Canada and this time travel Sci-Fi comedy film is Written and stars Matt Johnson and Jay McCarrol and is Directed by Matt Johnson.

* 'Saccharine' - from Australia and this crime horror thriller film is Written, Co-Produced and Directed by Natalie Erika James.

* 'The Home' - from the USA and this horror film is Co-Written and Directed by James DeMonaco, and stars Pete Davidson, John Glover and Bruce Altman.

* 'The Red Mask' - from the USA and this black comedy slasher film is Directed by Ritesh Gupta.

* 'Tristes Tropiques' - from South Korea and this action thriller film is Written, Produced and Directed by Hoon-jung Park.

* 'Whistle' - from Ireland and the USA and this supernatural horror mystery film is Directed by Corin Hardy and stars Dafne Keen, Nick Frost and Sophie Nelisse.

For the descriptors of the above named films, plus the full details of the the other competitive strands being showcased, together with a summary of each of the 132 films being screened over the duration of the festival, and a whole heap of other good stuff, you can visit the official website at : http://www.bifff.net

Turning the focus back on this weeks five new release movies coming to a big screen Odeon near you, we launch with a comedy drama in which estranged siblings reunite after years apart, forced to confront unresolved tensions and reevaluate their strained relationships with their emotionally distant parents. Then we have a RomCom where a happily engaged couple get put to the test when an unexpected revelation sends their wedding week way off track. This is followed by a film from Iraq that tells the story of while people across 1990's Iraq struggle to survive, a nine-year old girl has been selected to prepare a cake to celebrate President Saddam Hussein's birthday. Next up is a Vietnamese horror offering where a young woman returns to her family's dyeing workshop after years of being ostracised, only to be confronted by a supernatural entity. And closing out the week we have an Aussie doco about ten young dance hopefuls who score the chance of a lifetime to audition for a London dance theatre company under the guidance of a renowned choreographer.

Whatever your taste in big screen film entertainment is this week - be it any of the five latest release new films as Previewed below, or those doing the rounds currently on general release or as Reviewed and Previewed in previous Blog Posts here at Odeon Online, you are most welcome to share your movie going thoughts, opinions and observations by leaving your relevant, succinct and appropriate views in the Comments section below this or any other Post. We'd love to hear from you, and in the meantime, enjoy your big screen Odeon outing during the coming week.

'FATHER MOTHER SISTER BROTHER' (Rated M) - is a comedy drama anthology film Written and Directed by Jim Jarmusch whose filmography takes in his feature film debut with 'Permanent Vacation' in 1980, which he would follow up with the likes of 'Stranger than Paradise' in 1984, 'Down by Law' in 1986, 'Dead Man' in 1995, 'Ghost Dog : The Way of the Samurai' in 1999, 'Broken Flowers' in 2005, 'Only Lovers Left Alive' in 2013 and 'The Dead Don't Die' in 2019. This film Premiered in the main competition at last years Venice International Film Festival at the end of August where it won the Golden Lion. It has generated mostly positive critical reviews and has so far grossed US$7.5M following its US release on Christmas Eve last year. It is released in the UK and Ireland next week.

Carefully constructed in the form of a triptych, the three stories all concern the relationships between adult children, their somewhat distant parent (or parents), and each other. Each of the three chapters takes place in the present, and each in a different country. In 'Father', siblings Emily and Jeff (Mayim Bialik and Adam Driver) make a dutiful trek to their father (Tom Waits) somewhere in rural USA, whose destitution may be an act; in 'Mother', Charlotte Rampling presides over ritual tea with daughters Lilith (Vicky Krieps) and Timothea (Cate Blanchett) in Dublin, Ireland; and in the third 'Sister Brother', Skye (Indya Moore) and Billy (Luka Sabbat) sift through the residue of their parents lives in Paris, France. Also starring Sarah Greene and Francoise Lebrun.

'THE DRAMA' (Rated MA15+) - this American RomCom is Written and Directed by Kristoffer Borgli who made his feature length film Directorial debut with 2017's 'Drib', and which he would follow up with 'Sick of Myself' in 2022 and 'Dream Scenario' in 2023. Here, a happily engaged couple - Emma Harwood (Zendaya) a bookstore clerk from Baton Rouge, Louisiana and Charlie Thompson (Robert Pattinson) a British museum Director - just days before their wedding, has their relationship shaken when one partner learns of unsettling truths about the other which sends their wedding week off the rails. The film also stars Mamoudou Athie and Alana Haim, and is released this week too in the US.

'THE PRESIDENT'S CAKE' (Rated M) - is an Iraq, Qatar and US Co-Produced drama film Written and Directed by Hasan Hadi, in his feature film making debut. Set in the 1990's, it’s 'draw day' across Iraq, when schools select students for the honour of bringing items to their mandatory local celebrations of President Saddam Hussein’s birthday. Nine-year-old Lamia (Baneen Ahmad Nayyef) lives in the historic marshes with her spirited grandmother, Bibi (Waheed Thabet Khreibat). Before school, Bibi teaches Lamia clever tricks to avoid being chosen for the president’s cake. However, when Musa (Ahmad Qasem Saywan), the authoritative teacher, calls Lamia’s name for the most challenging task - the birthday cake - she has no choice but to accept. Refusing could mean imprisonment or even death. The film had its World Premiere showing at the Directors' Fortnight section of last years Cannes Film Festival in mid-May where it won the section's Audience Award and the Camera d'Or. It had its US release in early February, has garnered widespread critical acclaim and has so far generated US$2M in Box Office receipts. 

'THE CORPSE 2' (Rated MA15+) - this Vietnamese supernatural horror film is Directed by Pom Nguyen and serves as a prequel to the 2025 film 'The Corpse' which was also Directed by Nguyen. Here, a young woman, Minh Nhur returns to her family's dye workshop after years of exile, only to confront supernatural phenomena and the brutal truth behind her mother's death and a blood pact from the past. As karma comes full circle, can Minh Nhur escape the grip of the evil that surrounds her? The film was released in its native Vietnam in mid-March and has garnered average reviews.

'DANCE FOR YOUR LIFE' (Rated PG) - is an Australian documentary film Co-Produced, Directed, photographed and Edited by Luke Cornish in only his second feature length film after 'Keep Stepping' in 2022. Here, ten young Australian dancers from Australia's leading commercial dance school - Brent Street Performing Arts School in Sydney, compete for a spot with an international dance company, traveling to London to audition for Shapehaus Dance Theatre under choreographer and Artistic Director Dean Lee. The film serves as a powerful testament to the transformative power of dance, where every leap is a story, every setback a lesson and every moment a chance to be seen. 

With five new release movie offerings this week to tempt you out to your local Odeon, remember to share your movie going thoughts with your other like minded cinephile friends afterwards here at Odeon Online. In the meantime, I'll see you sometime somewhere at your local Odeon in the week ahead.

-Steve, at Odeon Online-