Fear Street Part 2: 1978 movie review — A killer on the loose at a summer camp for teens equals an effective horror romp

A summer camp for teens is the seemingly idyllic location where unspeakable horrors unfold, in Fear Street Part 2: 1978.

In Part 1, we were introduced to the world in which these stories are situated: The twin towns of Sunnyvale and Shadyside, with fates that mirror their names. Shadyside was the site of a witch-lynching several hundred years ago; it's been cursed ever since. Shadysiders have a penchant for snapping, and going on murderous sprees — even the gentlest and most well-adjusted among them. Lives spiral downwards, dreams and aspirations follow that same disappointing trajectory. Doom is the default.

Shadysiders whisper that it is the executed witch, Sarah Fier, who's behind their dark fate. They say that she made a deal with the Devil, sacrificing her hand at his altar in exchange for eternal life. And so she haunts the town even from her grave.

Fear Street Part 1: 1994 was about how the curse impacts four friends — Deena, Sam, Kathy and Simon — and Deena's younger brother Josh. Spoiler alert: By the end of the story, we saw that Sam had been possessed by the witch, and Deena and Josh reach out to a woman — the sole known survivor of a previous Shadyside massacre attributed to Sarah Fier's malign influence — for counsel. Part 2 is this woman's story.

Fear Street Part 1: 1994 is a fun ode to Stranger Things, slasher films and high school horror

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In 1978, Shadysiders and Sunnyvalers are summering at Camp Nightwing, having fun and dealing with their towns' simmering rivalries in equal measure. Brash and rebellious Ziggy (Sadie Sink) is busy staving off a bunch of bullies — Sunnyvale teens who think she's strange. Her older sister Cindy (Emily Rudd) is dismissed by Ziggy as trying too hard to be "Miss Perfect"; their relationship has been tense ever since a family crisis some years ago. Cindy in the meantime is trying to keep ahead of all her duties, and spending time with her boyfriend Tommy. Cindy's estranged friend Alice (Ryan Simpkins) and Nick (Ted Sutherland), a Sunnyvaler who watches out for Ziggy, are the other pivotal characters.

Even as everyone at the camp prepares for the grand finale — the Colour War — a disturbing attack on Tommy by Nightwing's resident Nurse Lane puts Cindy and the others on edge. As they attempt to investigate what caused the attack, they stumble upon the secret of Sarah Fier's curse — a secret that goes all the way back to 1666.

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Most of the events in Fear Street Part 2: 1978 follow a pretty straightforward path: what happens when you have a bunch of teenagers in close proximity in a desolate place, with a manic killer on the loose. The tension is no less nerve-wracking for it. As the killer picks off teens one by one, you're on edge, waiting for where the next blow will fall. In that respect, Part 2 feels a little less trope-y and a whole lot more unexpected than Part 1.

Sink, Sutherland and Rudd all turn in compelling performances, and the direction by Leigh Janiak feels even defter and more taut in this follow-up to Part 1. As we travel backwards into the Sarah Fier mystery, Fear Street Part 2: 1978 does an engaging job of filling in the backstory of the myth, and building the world of Shadyside, even as it drums up interest in the final part of the trilogy. Perfect for a not-too-overwhelming-but-spooky-enough night of Netflix bingeing on the couch.

Fear Street Part 2: 1978 is now streaming on Netflix. Part 3 releases 16 July.