...den utmärkta Fuhrman som visar att hon kan spela kortväxt psykopat lika väl som barn som i vuxen ålder.

Like Esther, the movie has a keen sense of how to weaponize its own audacity.

...the filmmakers behind this prequel skillfully balance shock and schlock

...it acknowledges the original before taking a hard left turn into overblown soapy madness. The modern gothic of the first film transforms here into a perfectly fitting explosion of operatic schlock.