By Seth Lukas Hynes
The Platform 2
Starring Milena Smit and Hovik Keuchkerian
Rated R18+
3.75/5
A Spanish psychological horror film and the sequel to one of my favourite films of 2020, The Platform 2 is a riveting film on its own that doesn’t fully justify its existence.
In a vast tower prison, a platform descends every day with food, and each level can only eat the above level’s leftovers. Chaos ensues when various prisoners differ on how to improve the system.
The Platform 2 continues the first film’s dark social satire and oppressive atmosphere of deprivation, madness and dogged hope, and despite the copious gore, the film has some of the most striking cinematography of the year.
Milena Smit is graceful and indomitable as Perempuan, and Hovik Keuchkerian plays Zamiatin, a greedy, hulking man with a gentle streak. As compassionate prisoners attempt to enforce a law in which every level is fed, The Platform 2 explores the futility of trying to fix a system so cruelly stacked against you, and Oscar Jaenada is deeply intimidating as Dagin Babi, whose gang commits unspeakable brutality in the name of helping everyone.
This sequel has a greater focus on well-meaning order and abuse of power, but for a series with such an interest in food, the theme of starvation carries oddly little weight compared to the first film.
Much of The Platform 2 is graphic, tragic and gripping, but loses its way in the third act.
Trimagasi (Zorion Eguileor) inexplicably returns, despite being killed and eaten in the first film, and the ending, some dreamlike imagery notwithstanding, is just a nihilistic retread of the first film’s ending with nothing new to say.
A solid horror film but a redundant follow-up to the first film, The Platform 2 is available for streaming on Netflix.
